When John Beilein announced he was leaving Michigan to head to the NBA, most fans and experts agreed that it would be nearly impossible to replace him.
Now that targets like Billy Donovan and Brad Stevens are reportedly off the table, it seems like the Wolverines will have to settle for a lesser candidate than they initially hoped for.
http://gty.im/142023617
As we sift through many of the reports floating around, it seems like the coaching search has been narrowed down to six candidates.
Those candidates include the following: (I am including odds based on what I think will happen)
Juwan Howard +150
LaVall Jordan +300
Ed Cooley +400
Luke Yaklich +800
Saddi Washington +1000
Shaka Smart +2000
If I had to make a prediction right now, I would say Juwan Howard will be named Michigan’s head basketball coach by the end of the week.
Though Howard lacks head coaching experience, he would certainly be able to recruit as he would relate well to the high school players around the country since he too went through the recruiting process back in the day.
In my opinion, the ideal situation (if Howard is hired) would be for Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel to do everything in his power to keep Luke Yaklich (and Saddi Washington to a lesser degree) around to keep some continuity.
