The University of Michigan has been around for many years, giving it numerous great basketball seasons. Today we will be talking in-depth about the greatest University of Michigan basketball team of all time, also known as the Fab Five. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the story.

The Greatest Basketball Team at U of M

Michigan’s 1991 Recruiting Class

The year was 1991 when Michigan had arguably one of the best recruiting classes in college basketball history, even up to 2021. This team consisted of Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson. Four of these five individuals were among the top ten recruits in their class that year, with only Ray Jackson outside the top five, ranking 24th. Including their high rankings, four of the five members were McDonald’s All-Americans, setting a two-decade record.

Now, these freshmen slowly came into stardom, with different players earning starting spots throughout the year. When the season began, only three of the young stars started for the team, which was still a high number in college basketball back in the 1990s. It also took a few games for all five members to be on the court together.

It would take another month for all five freshmen to start together on the court, which occurred on February 9, 1992. They shocked the world by scoring all of the team’s points against Notre Dame, earning them the starting spot for the rest of the year.

This team was remarkable not only for their talents on the court at a young age but also for their attire. They also grabbed the attention of fans all around with their baggy shorts, black shoes, and socks. This may seem like common sense to people nowadays, but some of the guys who started this trend did so in basketball.

1992 NCAA Tournament

Now we wouldn’t be talking about them if they weren’t a successful basketball team, and trust us, they were. They performed very well in their first appearance at the NCAA Tournament in 1992, when they were all freshmen. The first few games of this journey were relatively uneventful, but all eyes were on their Elite Eight matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Buckeyes destroyed the Fab Five by double digits during the regular season, so fans expected another blowout in this game.

It is safe to say that everyone was shocked when the Fab Five beat the Buckeyes, and the Fab Five crew scored all but two of Michigan’s points in that game. This proved the young team’s strength and was almost as impressive as their overall victory.

The National Championship game was not as close, with the team losing by 20 points to the Duke Blue Devils during March Madness. It is safe to say that everyone was disappointed with this performance given prior expectations. Despite the setback, Webber earned second-team All-Big Ten Conference recognition in 1992. Lucky for Michigan, all the players returned to the team in 1993 for their sophomore year to give it another shot and prove the world wrong.

1993 Season at U of M

Even though they didn’t receive as much attention now that they were sophomores, their performance didn’t change much. Unfortunately, they never won a Big Ten regular-season championship, which is quite ironic. They still performed well enough to earn a second chance at the 1993 National Championship.The

1993 Final Four game was one of the most iconic games in college basketball history. It was coming down to the wire in the second half, and Michigan was all out of timeouts. However, Chris Webber, a forward for the team, called a timeout when there were none left, which resulted in a technical foul and free throws for the North Carolina Tar Heels. This was in the game’s final seconds, which ultimately led to their defeat, 77-71, and earned them the runner-up title for the second year in a row.

Unfortunately for the team, Chris Webber would become part of an investigation that would strip the team of their wins and Final Four appearances. Michigan was stripped of its record for the entire 1992–93 season, including its six NCAA post-season tournament games. It was found that Webber had received cash and support payments from a booster. This would come many years down the road, but one of the best ways to show a team’s success is how many players furthered their careers in the NBA.

NBA Careers for Four of the Fab Five

To be exact, four of the five players on this Michigan starting lineup would make it onto an NBA roster. The only man who did not make it on an NBA roster was Ray Jackson. Despite playing 125 games and scoring over 1200 points for U of M, he was cut in the preseason by the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons. Jackson was also the only player who was not in the top ten of the recruiting class before attending the University of Michigan. In 1995, Jackson was drafted into the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) by the Grand Rapids Hoops, where he received the 1995–96 CBA Rookie of the Year Award.

Jimmy King only played two seasons in the NBA, which didn’t amount to anything crazy. King played 64 games in 2 seasons with the Toronto Raptors and Denver Nuggets and made 1 start for the Raptors in 1996. For most of King’s career, he played for the Quad City Thunder in the CBA.

Juwan Howard was a little luckier, as he is the only member of the Fab Five who won an NBA Championship. He also had one of the longest NBA careers, with rings in 2012 and 2013, decades after his time at Michigan. His career has now come full circle, with Howard becoming the coach of the Michigan Wolverines from 2019 until 2024. .

Fab Five point guard Jalen Rose never won a ring, but he still was a great player in the league and helped lead the Indiana Pacers to the NBA Finals in 2000. Unfortunately, he did not win that title and is better known as the man Kobe Bryant scored 81 points against. Chris Webber took his talents to the NBA, became an All-Star, and led his team to a Western Conference Finals appearance in 2002. During his fifteen-year career, he was an All-Star five times and even had his number retired by the Sacramento Kings

Conclusion of Michigan’s Fab Five Basketball Team

As you can see, the Fab Five was considered the greatest team in basketball at the University of Michigan and highly notable in NCAA history. Although they never won an NCAA Championship, Michigan fans continued to follow the team as they continued to play at a high level even after their time at college was over. For more information about this time, we recommend watching the Fab Five 30 for 30 documentaries made by ESPN.

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