‘Fab Five’ star Howard to coach Wolverines
Juwan Howard, who was part of Michigan’s “Fab Five,” agreed to a fiveyear deal to coach the Wolverines, the school announced Wednesday.
Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel is giving the Miami Heat assistant coach his first shot at being a head coach other than during the NBA’s summer league. Howard, who will get paid $2 million in his first year, replaces John Beilein, who left to coach the Cleveland Cavaliers.
“As a ‘Michigan Man’ I know the place our program has in college basketball and I embrace the chance to build onto that history and lead us to championships both in the Big Ten and national level,” Howard said. “We will continue to develop young men on the court, in the classroom and in the community that our fan base will continue to be proud of.”
Howard helped Michigan reach the national championship game twice, playing alongside Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson. The school later removed the Fab Five’s Final Four banners from Crisler Arena as part of self-imposed sanctions that stemmed from one of the NCAA’s largest financial scandals.
Federal prosecutors want former USC associate head coach Tony Bland to serve six to 12 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery in the investigation into college basketball corruption. As part of a deal with prosecutors, Bland pleaded guilty to accepting a $4,100 bribe provided by an undercover FBI agent posing as an investor in July 2017 in exchange for directing USC players to use a fledgling sports management company. Bland is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday.
His attorney argued in court last week that the former coach shouldn’t serve prison time. But prosecutors disagreed. They speculated in the memorandum that Bland might have received “hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes over time …” if they hadn’t intervened, though it’s unclear what the claim was based on.
Ohio State is adding California transfer Justin Sueing to its basketball team. Sueing, who will sit out next season per NCAA rules, will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2020-21.