If you thought you’ve seen the last of Roddy Gayle Jr. in a Michigan basketball uniform, you might need to think again.
On Friday night, Judge Charlotte Sweeney of the U.S. District Court of Colorado granted class-wide preliminary injunction that will force the NCAA to give an additional year of eligibility to any player in the 2022 class, who exhausted their eligibility this past spring.
This stems from the NCAA passing the new five-for-five rule, which now gives athletes five years to play an NCAA sport, getting rid of waivers and redshirts. The class of 2022 wanted an additional year with the new five-year rule recently passing.
Roddy Gayle. Jr. is suddently an option
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Gayle Jr. played two seasons at Ohio State, before playing his final two years at Michigan. He went undrafted in the 2026 NBA Draft, while signing an Exhibit 10 Deal with the Detroit Pistons. But until he plays a game in the NBA, he would be eligible to return, if he chooses.
Following the news, Gayle Jr. posted a meme on his Instagram account, likely indicating he is thinking about returning to college basketball for a fifth season.
In his final two seasons at Michigan, he played in every game, while getting 26 starts — only one start in his final season with the Wolverines. Gayle Jr. averaged 9.8 points in 2024-25, then 7.3 points per game last season.
Gayle Jr. would fix Michigan’s problem
Mike Boynton Jr. did an incredible job of retaining Michigan’s roster this upcoming season. The lone loss was guard L.J. Cason, who opted to transfer to Miami (FL).
With the loss of Cason, who likely wasn’t going to see much playing time this season due to a torn ACL suffered late last season, Michigan is thin at point guard depth.
Roddy Gayle Jr. isn’t a point guard, but he would certainly fix a glaring issue. Michigan needs playmakers who can take care of the basketball and facilitate the offense. Elliot Cadeau will always do that, but he has to take breaks at some point during games.
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Trey McKenney can do that as well, but he’s better suited off the ball. Gayle Jr. took a backseat once he came to Michigan, after being one of Ohio State’s better scorers. Not only could Gayle Jr. slot in as the starting ‘3’ this season, allowing Brandon McCoy Jr. to have a McKenney role from last season, but he can help run the offense.
Boynton Jr. would have three players he could trust to run the offense, and Gayle Jr. would be the perfect player to run the show when Cadeau is taking a breather. Plus, you can’t replicate his championship experience, his defensive tenacity, or his ability to shoot the three.
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