Yaxel Lendeborg on Michigan's Final Four dreams: 'I'm gonna do whatever I can to get us there'

It turns out, Florida Atlantic making a magical run to the 2023 Final Four came around to help Michigan Wolverines basketball, which was stuck watching at home that postseason.

Forward Yaxel Lendeborg — a JUCO player at Arizona Western at the time — was one of the potential recruits watching the Owls win game after game. He watched from afar, then competed against head coach Dusty May and Florida Atlantic after transferring to UAB in the 2023-24 season. The 6-foot-9, 240-pounder developed an affinity for May’s coaching style.

“My first year watching basketball, me and my friends at JUCO were watching March Madness, and then we’re watching FAU,” Lendeborg said on the ‘Defend The Block’ podcast with host Brian Boesch.

“I just started to like how he coached his team, how he looked when he was coaching, because a lot of coaches are always fired up, angry. He just seemed so cool, calm and collected, and that’s just how I try to be as a player, as well. It’s kinda nice to have that. It’s refreshing.”

Following a stellar three-year run at Arizona Western, Lendeborg had two standout seasons at UAB, earning first-team All-AAC honors and the league’s defensive player of the year award in consecutive years. In 2024-25, he averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, while shooting 54.9 percent on twos and 36.2 percent on 69 three-point attempts.

Lendeborg became the top-ranked player to enter the transfer portal this offseason, and Michigan got in the mix right away. May and the staff met with Lendeborg in Chicago in late March.

“When he came out to visit me, it was amazing,” Lendeborg said. “It was big time.

“It was huge for my emotions, because I always want a coach to be like a father figure for me, someone I can look up to, and I feel like Dusty May is gonna be a really big part of that. He can for sure be a father figure for me and help me grow as a person rather than just a basketball player.”

Michigan was patient, allowing Lendeborg to go through the NBA Draft process, one of the reasons why he chose the Wolverines as his college option. Sure enough, he withdrew from the draft May 27, one day before the deadline.

Lendeborg visited Michigan in late April, plus NBA teams gave him feedback that indicated another year in college — especially one at the Big Ten level — could help him raise his stock for the 2026 process. He was seeking a promise that a team would pick him in the first round, but that didn’t come.

“There were two things,” the Michigan transfer said of why he withdrew. “No. 1 was when I came out here on my visit, it pretty much turned everything around for me. The NBA, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can make it.’ But then when I came out here, it was like, ‘He’s promising me next year I can be better than what I was last year, higher ranking draft-wise if I come here and put the work in.’

“Two was just I spoke to NBA teams, and the majority of them were saying that it wouldn’t be a bad idea to come back here, develop a little bit more and play at a higher level, just to see what I’m capable of doing.

“I always asked that question to make sure, because my mind was always like, ‘I want to come to Michigan, but the NBA is the NBA. You have to go when you have the chance.’ So just hearing that feedback from NBA teams is pretty much what helped me lean more toward Michigan.”

Lendeborg, who was born in Puerto Rico but spent some of his childhood in the Dominican Republic, Ohio and New Jersey, isn’t just coming to Michigan to develop himself, he hopes to contribute to a winning team that has lofty goals. The Wolverines are in the mix as a national title contender heading into the year, according to Vegas odds.

“I am super excited,” he said. “I’m happy to get to that stage. I made a promise, as well, that I want to at least take us to the Final Four. I’m gonna do whatever I can to get us there.”

Yaxel Lendeborg on Danny Wolf role

Michigan using forward/center Danny Wolf as a seven-foot playmaking wing is also something that Lendeborg watched, and was impressed with, from afar. Lendeborg is a big with a similar skill set and feels he can slide into that role.

“Me and Coach AJ [UAB staffer Aaron Johnson], who’s my trainer, we talked a lot about Dusty and the way he was playing Danny Wolf,” Lendeborg revealed. “We just kinda envisioned me in that particular role, so I was watching a lot of games, just seeing how they play, and became a Michigan fan, I guess you could say.

“I did definitely know about Coach May and his system, so I was super excited seeing that and obviously how I envision myself. And when the transfer portal opened up, that’s why they had a head start, I guess you could say.

“We pretty much do the same thing. I would say [Wolf is] a better shooter than me. But just coming off the pick-and-roll with a big, it’s always a lot better, because ‘5’ men can’t really move that well. I feel like I move pretty decently for my size, and the first instinct for me is to pass.

“So coming off a screen, I’m gonna have a lot of shooters around me, I can make that pass to a shooter and probably increase my assist number. That’s always something I’ve wanted to do.

“But if the opportunity for me to score is there, I have to take that, as well. But I do feel like I can play his role pretty well.”

Lendeborg was a two-team NJCAA All-American at Arizona Western and led the JUCO ranks in rebounds in 2022-23. His relentless effort and knack for timing stands out, as does his passing for someone his size.

“The most confidence I have in my game, I would say my passing ability and my rebounding,” the Michigan newcomer explained. “I feel like I’m naturally gifted with passing, and it’s my favorite thing to do, as well.

“Things that will get better with the help of Michigan is my shooting — shooting off the dribble or shooting a little quicker and being on target. And my defense, as well, just helping my body out, my strength, my speed. I have a lot of faith that they’ll get me right body-wise. I didn’t really put up the most athletic numbers at the combine, but I do feel like that’s gonna change.”