Top-35 recruit Khani Rooths decommits from Michigan basketball

The losses keep coming for the Michigan men’s basketball program.

Khani Rooths, a top-35 prospect in the 2024 class, announced in an Instagram post Monday that he has decommitted from the Wolverines and will reopen his recruitment.

The 6-foot-8 wing out of Florida’s IMG Academy verbally committed to Michigan in November, but didn’t sign a National Letter of Intent.

Rooths, a four-star prospect and Washington D.C. native, initially picked the Wolverines over Florida State and Georgia. He also had offers and took official visits to Maryland, Mississippi State and Virginia Tech.

After Michigan fired head coach Juwan Howard on Friday, Rooths told 247Sports he was “gathering thoughts on everything” and was “going through all the options.”

Rooths said he spoke with assistant Saddi Washington, who was his lead recruiter, and a couple of players, including fellow DMV native Dug McDaniel, when the news of Howard’s dismissal broke.

However, all of Michigan’s assistant coaches, including Washington, are on contracts that are set to expire on April 30, and McDaniel entered the transfer portal on Monday, becoming the second Wolverine to do so.

Rooths will continue to consider the Wolverines despite the coaching change.

“I need to see who the new head coach will be, the players that are leaving, staying, who I’ll be there with, and the way the coach sees me,” Rooths told 247Sports. “I need to start from the ground up with Michigan since it’s a whole new staff.”

While Rooths was the highest-rated recruit in Michigan's 2024 recruiting class, the Wolverines still have two signees. Guards Christian Anderson Jr. and Durral Brooks, who was named Michigan’s Mr. Basketball last week, signed their letters of intent during the early signing period in November and have yet to announce a change in their future plans.

jhawkins@detroitnews.com

@jamesbhawkins