Caleb Love will not attend Michigan: Highly coveted North Carolina star to remain in transfer portal

One of the biggest transfer names in college basketball is back on the market. Former North Carolina guard Caleb Love will not play for Michigan next season after initially committing to join the Wolverines, sources told CBS Sports.

Love did not have the adequate amount of transferable credits to easily clear the admissions bar at Michigan, sources told CBS Sports. He did have a pathway to enroll, one source added, but it would have required an extremely heavy class load this spring and summer.

The news of Love’s decommitment from the Wolverines was first reported by 247Sports’ Eric Bossi. A return to play at North Carolina is not on the table, a source told CBS Sports.

Love, who rose to stardom the past two seasons at North Carolina, is a rising senior. He announced his commitment to Michigan on April 7 but will instead remain in the transfer portal. After a rocky junior season, Love checked in at 17th in David Cobb’s transfer rankings.

While at UNC, Love started 96 games. His play during the 2022 NCAA Tournament helped spark No. 8-seed North Carolina all the way to the national championship game. The high point: Love’s shot over Duke’s Mark Williams in the closing seconds of the Final Four. The game ended Mike Krzyzewski’s Hall of Fame career, and Love’s 3-pointer became an iconic moment in UNC history.

A former five-star prospect, Love averaged 14.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists on 36.0% shooting and 31.7% from 3-point range in his career. He has talent but has been inconsistent. His size, shooting stroke and ability to get to the rim as a 6-foot-4 shooting guard had him, at one point, considered as an NBA prospect. 

His star has dimmed some, but he’s still seen as a player with immense potential. Now that Love is back on the market, he will be in high demand at the high-major level. This second-stage 2023 recruitment will surely become college basketball’s most tracked player movement in the weeks to come.