Nimari Burnett's unofficial visit to Michigan this past February was interrupted by an untimely illness.

Burnett, a highly recruited, 5-star prospect in the class of 2020 who plays at Napa (California) Prolific Prep, caught the flu while in Ann Arbor. He said he didn't get a chance to personally talk to Michigan coach John Beilein. His illness also prevented him from taking a full academic tour of the school — a step traditionally been required for prospects looking to earn an offer from the Wolverines.

Burnett said he believes that was why he didn't receive an offer during the visit.

“They didn’t exactly say that, but I kinda believe that was the case," he said.

Regardless, Burnett — the No. 23 overall player in his class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings — has an offer from Michigan now. Beilein called the 6-foot-3, 185-pound guard Tuesday to deliver the news.

“I was very excited," Burnett said. "We’ve been talking and they’ve been recruiting me for over a year now. For me, I’ve been to Michigan unofficially and it was a good visit while I was there. But I caught the flu there, so I couldn’t talk to Coach Beilein personally. Over time, we grew a relationship and he offered me yesterday.”

While Beilein offered Burnett, he has been recruited mostly by assistant coach Luke Yaklich. That's because of Burnett's Midwest roots. He's originally from Chicago and won a title at Morgan Park before moving to California in 2017.

And before that, he was coached by Yaklich on an AAU team.

“I’ve known him since I was in second or third grade,” Burnett said. “He coached my AAU team when I was younger, and ever since I was in eighth grade he’s been recruiting me.”

That relationship, which Burnett described as "very good," may give Michigan a leg up in this recruitment. Burnett and Yaklich are in constant communication — they talk "almost every day; if not, five times a week."

For Burnett, the appeal of Michigan lies in the coaching staff.

“The coaching staff is a next-level coaching staff that helps prepare yourself physically and mentally for the next level," he said. "They’ve recruited guys who work hard and play hard and have fun with the game.”

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Burnett's recruitment is already heavily contested, as he has offers from schools such as UCLA, Arizona, USC and Ohio State.

Now, the Wolverines have thrown their hat in the ring and will recruit Burnett heavily this spring and summer. They've already seen him play at the first Nike EYBL session in Atlanta, where he averaged 23.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists on 49.2% shooting. And the staff has already told Burnett they'll see him at the NBPA Top 100 Camp in June and the EYBL Peach Jam in July.

Burnett's recruitment remains open. He has no list of preferred schools. His Midwest background won't strongly influence his decision, he said. He's looking for the school that is the "best fit." Burnett is looking to return to Michigan sometime in the fall for an official visit. After that, a decision could come in late winter or spring.

“My decision will probably be around February or March of next year," Burnett said, "but I’m not 100% sure about that.”

Contact Orion Sang at osang@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @orion_sang. Read more on the Michigan Wolverines and sign up for our Wolverines newsletter.