Michigan big man Danny Wolf heads to Nets at No. 27 in the NBA draft

James Hawkins, The Detroit News on Jun 25, 2025

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Danny Wolf bet on himself when he made the decision to transfer from Yale to Michigan.

He wanted to prove he could play on the perimeter. He wanted to prove he could play against the best in the Big Ten. He wanted to prove he had the talent to play at the next level.

Wolf proved all that and more, and it paid off in a major way Wednesday when he was taken by the Brooklyn Nets with the No. 27 overall pick in the NBA draft.

The selection made Wolf the 32nd first-round pick in program history and the first draft pick of coach Dusty May’s tenure. May and assistant coaches Mike Boynton Jr., Kyle Church, Justin Joyner, Akeem Miskdeen and Drew Williamson were all in attendance at the Barclays Center in New York to support Wolf, who was one of 24 players to receive a green room invite.

It also marked the 10th draft in 13 years a Michigan player was chosen. Since 2013, Wolf is the 17th Wolverine to be drafted and the 12th first-round pick over that span, joining Trey Burke (2013), Tim Hardaway Jr. (2013), Nik Stauskas (2014), Mitch McGary (2014), Caris LeVert (2016), D.J. Wilson (2017), Moritz Wagner (2018), Jordan Poole (2019), Franz Wagner (2021), Jett Howard (2023) and Kobe Bufkin (2023).

Not bad for an unranked and unheralded high school recruit who struggled during his freshman year in college. Following a breakout sophomore season at Yale, Wolf hit the portal, landed at his dream school and became one of the most impactful transfers in college basketball.

A 7-footer with guard-like skills, Wolf made the transition from the Ivy League to the Big Ten look seamless. He elevated Michigan’s offense as a super-sized playmaker and formed a formidable pick-and-roll tandem with fellow big man and draft hopeful Vlad Goldin.

During his lone season with the Wolverines, Wolf, 21, produced plenty of highlights with his ball-handling, crafty passing and step-back jumpers. He averaged 13.2 points and a Big Ten-best 9.7 rebounds. He set career-high marks in assists (3.6) and field goal percentage (49.7%). His 15 double-doubles were tied for the most in the conference. He earned All-Big Ten second-team honors and was one of five finalists for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year award.

Though turnovers were an issue and he has more to prove as a defender and shooter (33.6% on 3-pointers, 59.4% on free throws), Wolf’s size and ability to create out of ball screens as a point forward intrigued NBA teams.

After making the leap and proving himself at Michigan, he’ll look to do it again with the Nets.

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