15 best Michigan basketball NBA careers in Wolverines history
By Joey Loose
Michigan basketball has placed some great players in the NBA, but who really had the best careers after leaving Ann Arbor?
The basketball world is constantly churning out new superstars, but it churns out players of all shapes and sizes in the meantime. In the more recent world of basketball, new names pop up in the NBA not just from college ball, but from internationally and from the G-League and other non-collegiate outlets. It’s been some time since players were able to head directly to the NBA from high school ball.
Not every player is a superstar, even if they starred at the highest level during their pre-NBA careers. Many international stars don’t exactly reach the highest heights playing in the NBA, even if a select few have achieved those goals.
In the college game, things are far different. There are more than 360 Division 1 basketball programs that all churn out talented basketball players, and there are hundreds more programs doing the same at lower levels.
Who had the best NBA careers coming out of the Michigan basketball program?
Michigan has quite the place in college basketball history. The Wolverines have been to eight Final Fours and their last decade has thrust them back into relevance after a lame period in the late 90s and 2000s. The Wolverines won the national title in 1989, rode the Fab Five to relevance a few years later, and had John Beilein lead them to two more titles games in more recent memory.
Today, we’re combining these two things by looking back through Michigan basketball history and identifying the players who had the best careers in the NBA. Michigan has produced a number of fantastic athletes; there’s no question about that.
Few really get that shot at NBA glory and we’re looking closely at the top 15 such athletes. There have been 64 former Wolverines who have played in the NBA and we’re looking at the best of the best.