Michigan Basketball: Pros and cons of top head coach candidates

LaVall Jordan

Pros: When it comes to getting credit for the success of Michigan basketball from 2013 Jordan doesn’t get enough but he was instrumental in the development of guys like Trey Burke, Tim Hardaway Jr. and others. He was seen by some as the heir apparent to Beilein before spending the last three years coaching UM-Milwaukee and Butler.

The Bulldogs reached the NCAA tournament in his first season but just the NIT last year. Yet, that’s a pretty poor reason not to hire someone. When you watch Jordan’s team, you see some Beilein concepts. He is running lots of 4-out and moving the post around a lot, posting him up and using him on screens, which Jon Teske could do perfectly. He would be the smoothest transition.

Cons: While we don’t know exactly how much it is or what it looks like, it sounds like his buyout at Butler is going to be pretty steep after they gave him an extension following that first season. That’s according to Sam Webb of the Michigan Insider ($).

Some people think money won’t be an obstacle in this coaching search but Michigan is still a football school first and I don’t think there is a blank check here. Don’t get me wrong, the Wolverines are going to dole out some money but if Jordan and others like Shaka Smart or Juwan Howard are viewed as somewhat equal, buyout issues could be a deciding factor.