Former Tennessee forward Olivier Nkamhoua is taking his talents to the University of Michigan, as reported by On3 Sports’ Joe Tipton on Wednesday afternoon. Nkamhoua committed to the Wolverines over Baylor, West Virginia, and Kansas State.
After spending four years on Rocky Top, the native of Helsinki, Finland jumped into the transfer portal on Mar. 30, just seven days after the Vols’ season-ending loss to Florida Atlantic in the Sweet 16. On May 31, just about a month later, Nkamhoua withdrew his name from the NBA Draft to signal his return to the college game.
Nkamhoua’s final season in Knoxville saw him play in 36 games, start 36 games, and average 10.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and two assists per game. During the span of his 112-game career at Tennessee, Nkamhoua averaged 6.4 PPG, 3.8 RPG, and 1.0 APG.
Nkamhoua will now head up north to finish his college career with head coach Juwan Howard in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Wolverines finished the 2022-2023 season with a record of 18-16 and 11-9 in the conference. Michigan did not eclipse the No. 20 AP ranking throughout the season and lost to Vanderbilt in Nashville during the second round of the NIT tournament.
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The year before that is all too familiar for Tennessee fans, though, as the Wolverines ended the Volunteers’ season in the second round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament from Indianapolis. Michigan, the 11-seed in the region, took down three-seed Tennessee by a score of 76-68 in the game.
Nkamhoua’s veteran presence and experience will be crucial for Howard’s squad as the 2022-2023 team’s 18 wins on the season were Michigan’s lowest since the 2014-2015 season.
Tennessee brought in three talented players from the transfer portal this offseason: USC Upstate guard Jordan Gainey, Northern Colorado wing Dalton Knecht, and Harvard forward Chris Ledlum. The Vols also received big news in the last two months that both Santiago Vescovi and Josiah-Jordan James will be returning to the team as well.
The last few weeks haven’t been easy on Olivier.
So Mom flew in from Helsinki for a surprise visit 🧡 pic.twitter.com/9xLXRJy1vJ
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) February 26, 2022
