Michigan basketball seemed to set some new record just about every week during the 2025-26 season.
With the 2026 NBA Draft less than a month away, it appears three former Wolverines are set to continue the trend.
Morez Johnson Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara are all projected to become lottery selections in June, according to Cameron Salerno of CBS Sports in his latest mock draft, released on Friday, May 29.
While Lendeborg, a first-team All-American, was seen as the top prospect for much of the season, Salerno actually has Mara as the first former Wolverine off the board. He has the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year set to go No. 9 to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He says OKC, which is one-game away from returning to the NBA Finals, will consolidate picks No. 12 and 17 to move up and grab the 7-foot-3 Spaniard who saw his stock skyrocket during the NCAA Tournament.
“If OKC does move up, Mara makes a ton of sense if the organization declines Isaiah Hartenstein’s $28.5 million team option this summer,” Salerno wrote. “Mara was one of the best shot blockers in college basketball and was efficient around the rim.”
According to Salerno, this will begin a run on Michigan hoopers. Just two picks after he projects Mara to join the defending NBA champions, Lendeborg is pegged to go No. 11 overall to the Golden State Warriors.
Lendeborg, 23, averaged a team-high 15.1 points and 6.8 rebounds during his one year in Ann Arbor, which included a three-game stretch in the NCAA Tournament when he averaged 25 points and 8.3 rebounds while making 10 of 19 3-pointers.
“When it’s all said and done, Lendeborg will comfortably be a top-10 prospect on my personal board,” Salerno said. “His combination of size, strength and athleticism is hard to pass on in the late lottery. Yes, his age is a question mark, but it won’t be as big a deal if he joins a win-now team like Golden State.
“Lendeborg will slot into any NBA rotation immediately and make an impact.”
Last but not least is Johnson, the player U-M fans held out the most hope for as a possible returnee to Ann Arbor.
Another member of the All-Big Ten defensive team and a second-team All-Big Ten selection, Johnson expanded his game under coach Dusty May, showing promise as a 3-point shooter to go with his elite athleticism and aggressive play style.
“Johnson has been one of the biggest risers throughout the last month,” Salerno said. “He’s a versatile forward who can defend at a high level inside and outside the arc and also exploits mismatches on the offensive end. It’s becoming a real possibility that Michigan’s entire starting frontcourt gets selected in the lottery.”
Dating back to at least 1957, Michigan has never had two top-10 selections. Michigan has had multiple top-15 picks three times (1990, 1994, 2023), three top-16 picks once (1990) but never had three picks go in the top-15.
The season may be over, but Michigan basketball players from 2025-26 appear set to make history yet again.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 3 Michigan basketball stars go in lottery in CBS Sports NBA mock draft
Reporting by Tony Garcia, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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