WATCH: Juwan Howard talks Michigan senior day, the transfer portal, more
Michigan Wolverines basketball head coach Juwan Howard met with the media Friday afternoon ahead of his team’s senior day matchup against Nebraska Sunday in Ann Arbor. Watch video of Howard’s media session in the player at the top of the screen or on our YouTube channel.
On Sunday, Michigan will honor seniors and graduates Nimari Burnett, Jaelin Llewellyn, Jackson Selvala and Terrance Williams II. Both Burnett and Williams have eligibility remaining, but Howard said discussions about their potential returns for the 2024-25 season have yet to be had.
“No, we haven’t had any conversations at all about next year,” Howard said. “We’re so dialed in and focused on this season — and this season’s not over yet.
“When the season ends, we will sit down and have some conversations. And I want them, more importantly, to talk it over with their family and let me know as far as what their plans are for next year. But we love those two guys, and they’re Michigan men through and through.”
Williams has been at Michigan for four years, which isn’t as common in today’s college basketball. The Wolverines brought in three transfers ahead of this season and others in the past, which is becoming increasingly more common. Howard discussed his thoughts on the current landscape and building a program in this climate.
“Well, in today’s environment with college basketball, it’s so much different than when I first came in, and also when Terrance Williams first arrived,” Howard pointed out. “Before, the transfer portal was one of those things that was not heavily active, where you have guys jumping in and jumping out and you see a lot of free agency movement happening with different programs.
“Also, there was no NIL. NIL was not a factor. No one even knew what NIL was. Do I miss those days? Yes, I do. And Terrance Williams has seen, just like myself, he’s seen where we’ve had some guys from the transfer portal who have transitioned well here.
“When I first started it was Chaundee Brown Jr., as well as Mike Smith. Those guys came in, and they blended extremely well with the guys that we had on our roster. It was like seamless, in a lot of ways. And then after that, we brought in DeVante’ Jones. He was another great one that was a huge addition to our team. And then the year after that was a guy like Jaelin Llewellyn, who’s been great in our locker room and embraced the Michigan culture.
“So, I haven’t had a ton of transfer portal guys. You have some teams that will have like five, six or seven, and that model has worked for that program. You also have it where it has not worked with some other programs. But this year, we had three guys because we had scholarships available, because we had two guys that went to the NBA, and we also had another guy who transferred. There were scholarships that opened up, and we had to fill our roster. With the three that we got, I thought we had three guys that did a good job here for the months being here.
“Unfortunately, we just ran into some tough times with injuries. But overall, I really appreciated that they trusted the vision [of the Michigan program]. Unfortunately, we just didn’t have the season that we all planned to have.”
