Report: Caleb Houstan's NBA Draft decision revealed
The third and final NBA Draft decision is in for Michigan men’s basketball, this time from freshman forward Caleb Houstan. According to Jonathan Givony from ESPN, he will declare for the 2022 NBA Draft and go through the process while maintaining his eligibility. He has until June 1 to make a final decision.
Houstan, who was a five-star signee and No. 10 prospect in the 2021 recruiting class, started every game at Michigan this season. He averaged 10.1 points, four rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Houstan shot 38.4% from the field with a 35.5% mark from three-point range. He came into the season as a potential NBA lottery pick but did not appear on draft boards at year’s end.
Moussa Diabate also declared for the draft on Monday and will follow the same plan. Center Hunter Dickinson announced Sunday that he would return to Michigan for his junior season. Dickinson was a force for Michigan in 2021-22, averaging 18.6 points and 8.6 rebounds for the Wolverines this season.
Diabate was Michigan’s other five-star addition in 2021 and started 26 of 32 games for the Wolverines. He averaged nine points and six rebounds per game while shooting 52.4% from the floor. Like Houstan, Diabate was also considered a potential lottery prospect. He is not present on prospect boards as of this posting.
How Michigan is viewed nationally ahead of season
National pundits were quick to put Michigan near the top of some Way Too Early Top 25 lists at season’s end. CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish considers them the favorites in the Big Ten for 2022-23.
“The Wolverines’ ranking is based on a returning core of Hunter Dickinson, Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate, each of whom is a nice college player but nothing resembling a sure-fire first-round pick,” he said. “For that reason, I’ll assume for now that they’re all back at Michigan, which could then be the favorite in the Big Ten.”
There is still plenty to sort out this offseason, but Michigan appears to be staying in the hunt at the top of the Big Ten. They also considered the frontrunner for Texas Tech transfer Terrence Shannon Jr., who was on campus this week.
Michigan will be a national darling if all three return and Shannon is added. The program is coming off a 19-15 season and fifth-straight trip to the Sweet 16. The Wolverines were good on paper last year and the year was a struggle, though. They will hope to power through that and contend for a Big Ten Championship in 2022-23.
