The fourth member of the Fab Five — Juwan Howard — enters our list ranking the top players for the Michigan Wolverines since the 1989 national championship. The first commitment in the recruiting class that changed the trajectory of college basketball, Howard was the ultimate glue guy who developed into one of the most decorated players in the history of the program. Even with a forgettable tenure as head coach, Howard’s an iconic name that will forever be tied to Michigan.
No. 3 – F Juwan Howard – Score: 191.1
If it weren’t for Howard, the Fab Five would have never happened. He played recruiter as a high schooler to bring Jalen Rose, Ray Jackson, Jimmy King and Chris Webber to Ann Arbor. Before the one-and-done culture of college hoops, Michigan was the first to boast a starting lineup of five freshman, four of whom were McDonald’s All-Americans. It was completely unprecedented and the team’s flare, domination and cultural significance revolutionized not just college basketball, but the sport altogether.
Webber was the most talented, Rose is the most recognizable personality, but Howard was the steadiest player across his three seasons with the Wolverines. As a freshman, he put up 11.1 points and 6.2 rebounds per game while starting 31 of 34 games. Because of the presence of Webber and Rose, Howard was the guy who was asked to do most of the dirty work, especially on the defensive side of the ball. He was routinely that guy on the other team you didn’t want to mess with.
By the time all five freshmen were starting, it wasn’t just that the team had talented underclassmen starting. It was the fact they dominated the court together. Michigan was 13-5 before the Fab Five all started that season, and it went 12-4 after. And that was against far superior competition on the Wolverines’ way to their first of consecutive National Championship appearances. They were a 6-seed in their first NCAA Tournament and toppled Ohio State, a team that had beaten them by double-digits twice in the regular season, on their way to a Final Four.
Their freshman campaign was the runway, but their sophomore season was where things really took off. Each saw noticeable improvement, as the team entered the year as the No. 1 team in the country. Howard shot more than 50 percent in 1992-93 while averaging 14.6 points and 7.4 rebounds per contest. That performance led to Howard being a All-Big Ten second-team performer.
The Wolverines finished second in the Big Ten to the Indiana Hoosiers, who went 17-1 in conference play led by National Player of the Year Calbert Cheaney. Still, they were a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament in the West Region. Howard opened up the tournament with a 16-point, 10-rebound performance vs Coastal Carolina. He posted another double-double in a 17-point, 10-rebound game against George Washington in the Sweet Sixteen.
But his biggest game of the run to a second-straight National Championship Game was in the 81-78 win over Kentucky, led by All-American Jamal Mashburn, who averaged more than 21 points a contest. While Mashburn scored 26 points, he didn’t record a field goal in the final 12:36 of regulation and eventually fouled out in overtime. On the other end, Howard scored 17 points in the 81-78 Final Four victory.
Although the Wolverines fell short of a title, Howard’s legacy at Michigan continued to his most impressive season in Ann Arbor. As a junior, he ascended to the best player on the roster. While shooting 55.6 percent from the field, Howard scored 20.8 points and brought down nine rebounds per game. In maybe the most physical era of Big Ten basketball, Howard was an elite presence. He earned unanimous All-Big Ten first-team honors and was named an All-American by the AP.
Howard’s final games at Michigan showed just how much he had progressed. In a shaky team performance where the Wolverines almost lost to Pepperdine in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, Howard scored 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting, while also bringing down nine rebounds and recording four steals. Against Texas in the second round, Howard had the single best performance of his career with 34 points and an absurd 18 rebounds.
The astonishing run continued with a 24-10 stat line against Maryland in the Sweet Sixteen, leading to a 30-13 contest in his final career game in the loss to No. 1 Arkansas. It was a legendary run that concluded with Howard scoring 116 points and 51 rebounds across four games, earning him West Region All-Tournament Team honors and cementing his legacy as one of the best players in the history of the program.
Howard’s tenure as head coach wasn’t pretty, but it shouldn’t tarnish his on-the-court dominance and the impact he and the Fab Five had at Michigan and across college basketball. His steady performance as a defender and presence on the interior as a do-everything kind of player was crucial to the team getting as far as it did. When it was his time to shine as a junior, he rose to the occasion, nearly getting the Wolverines to a third straight Final Four. He wasn’t the flashiest or most memorable, but Howard was the ignitor of greatness as a player, and his contributions were immense in the biggest moments of his career as a Wolverine.
More in this series
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 25-23
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 22-20
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No.19-17
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 16-14
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 13-11
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 10
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 9
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 8
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 7
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 6
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 5
- The Top 25 Michigan men’s basketball players since 1989: No. 4