Elliot Cadeau was destined for greatness; he was called to play for Sweden on the National team as a freshman in high school. His mother is Swedish. Cadeau committed to the University of North Carolina as a Junior in high school. He then reclassified to the class of 2023, skipping his senior year of high school, which was a huge risk. His Freshman year at Carolina, he showed lots of promise.
Elliot started 31-37 games, on a team that won the ACC regular season title, and earned a number 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. Individually, Cadeau earned All-Freshman ACC honors, averaged 7 points and 4 assists, and added 2 rebounds per game as well. He showed his elite court vision, having a game with 10 assists against Tennessee (the best 2-seed in NCAAT that year), but the thing that Carolina fans remember most about his time as a Tar Heel was his poor shooting numbers.
He entered his Sophomore year hoping to improve his shooting numbers. He improved a lot, going from under 20% from 3 to shooting 33% his Sophomore year. The rest of his stats improved as well, scoring 9 points per game, getting 6 assists a game, with 2.9 rebounds a game, and even his defense improved as he averaged a steal a game. He led the ACC in assists and had a -2 assist-to-turnover ratio. However, the team was much worse, and fans grew more agitated over his lack of shot and critiqued everything he did. So he did what most college players do these days, He put his name in the portal, as the number 1 PG in the portal.
He committed to Michigan, where he would have a much improved season, with 10.5 points per game, 5 assists per game, his 3-point percentage went up to 37, and his free throw percentage increased from 67% to 71%. But this is almost nothing compared to his postseason success.
Elliot was the most outstanding player in the tournament. Averaging 12 points, 7.5 assists, and 3.7 Rebounds a game. With almost 2 steals, to help Michigan win the National Championship. As an individual, Cadeau showed extreme growth with his ability to attack the basket and showed extreme poise in big moments. He joined the 1,000 points club. He had 14 assists in a tournament game. (most by any Michigan player in 5 years) The accomplishment he is most proud of is scoring 19 points in the National Championship game.
Elliot Cadeu truly silenced all the haters this past season. He showed that he is a top 5 point guard in college basketball. I cannot wait to watch his game continue to grow. A message to Elliot: I was never someone who gave criticism over everything you did. I loved your time as a Tar Heel, and was beyond Happy for you. Congratulations on a National championship. I am sorry that the Tar Heel fans’ spoiled behavior ruined your chances at being great wearing Carolina Blue. GO BLUE!!
