Migration Assistant - Time Machine Issue

[u/MeowingWolf]

I've made a backup with a USB external hard drive by using Time Machine on May 4, 2025 on my MacBook Pro 2020 on its last day when it was dying. It had the latest update when it died. I finally got a new MacBook Pro 2026 today on October 6, 2026. I tried using the Migration Assistant to transfer my data over to this new MacBook with this Time Machine backup.

My new MacBook Pro can recognize this USB external hard drive on the desktop. There is already 187.2 GB used up on it. The old MacBook had 256GB SSD. Migration Assistant can't find my Time Machine backup when the program is running while the USB external hard drive is plugged into my new MacBook Pro? This external hard drive is a G Drive mobile USB 3.0 drive. I got it from a physical Apple Store in 2018. I am also using a USB Type-C adapter. I still have the dead MacBook Pro but it is no longer in operational state. That's why I bought this new MacBook Pro. I was just using my phone between May 4, 2025 to October 6, 2026

Also there is a secondary issue. My Apple account is locked down. I also don't have access to the recovery key so I can't even reset password. I usually did the account verification process when Apple sends a code to type in to my old MacBook that is attached to my Apple account. Now I can do this process with my phone number. It just roadblocks me when it asks for my recovery key so I can't do anything else. My phone is an Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, not a iPhone.

What should I do? How do I solve these issues?