Michigan Basketball: 3 reasons Wolverines need Juwan Howard

The dreaded coaching search is upon us and Athletic Director Warde Manuel is already trimming his list. A list that most recently included former Michigan Basketball star, Juwan Howard.

Michigan basketball is in dire need of a new head coach so who should they turn to?

Warde Manuel should turn to Juwan Howard.

But, who is Juwan Howard? Is he the guy who was on the famous fab five teams that were partially banned from campus and battled years of controversy? Is he just an assistant coach for the Miami Heat? Or is he the prodigal son waiting on Manuel’s call?

"Juwan Howard tells me #Michigan has retained Turnkey Sports for its coaching search. Howard has spoken with them and has been informed that Wolverines AD Warde Manuel is very interested in speaking with him."

ESPN Insider Jordan Schultz reported Warde is ‘interested’ in speaking with Howard, but is he really in consideration for the head coaching job?

He should be.

The Michigan basketball fan base may have wanted the juicier bigger name coaches like Billy Donovan or Brad Stevens. Others have brought up Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard as a possibility, although it’s unlikely he will take over in Ann Arbor.

“He’s a great coach. He has history at Texas Tech and he proved he can win there immediately,” former Michigan player and ESPN college basketball analyst Tim McCormick said. “He’s a hero and he makes a ton of money, so I think it’s really going to be a challenge for Michigan to get him.

“If he was interested, I would think that that process would’ve already started, and it doesn’t appear that that’s the direction it’s going.”

There’s also Shaka Smart from Texas and Ed Cooley from UConn. Both viable options but neither has done as much for Michigan basketball as Juwan Howard and it’s time to pay up or rather pay him to be the next head coach.

Here are three reasons why hiring Howard just makes sense.