Greatest University of Michigan Basketball Players of All Time

These are the greatest basketball players of all time from the University of Michigan.

Whoever is lucky enough to write the definitive history of college basketball will find many protagonists to pick from. Blue-blood programs like Kentucky, UCLA, Kansas, Duke and North Carolina fit the bill.

But if you’re looking to tell a really great story, our advice is to always focus on the antihero — and in this case, that would most definitely be a role perfectly suited for the University of Michigan.

While the Wolverines have won just one national championship, their story is interwoven with the very best teams of all time. The Michigan basketball team has been the NCAA national runner-up six times (even if two of those are no longer officially on the books). It also paved the way for a group of players in the early 1990s, known as the Fab Five, to change the way the game is viewed and played on every level.

Here’s a look at the best Michigan basketball players of all time.

Honorable Mention: Bill Buntin

AP Photo

Years: 1962-65

Position: Power Forward/Center

Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 250 pounds

College highlights: Two-time AP All-American (1964, 1965), two-time Big Ten champion (1964, 1965)

Bottom line: Detroit native Bill Buntin was a rebounding machine who led Michigan to back-to-back Final Four appearances in 1964 and 1965 alongside Cazzie Russell, losing to UCLA in the 1965 NCAA championship game. Buntin was a player entirely out of his era at 6-foot-7 and 250 pounds — he averaged 21.8 points and 13.2 rebounds during his three seasons in Ann Arbor.

Buntin was only 26 years old when he suffered a fatal heart attack during a pickup basketball game. Michigan’s annual team MVP award is now named The Bill Buntin Award.

Honorable Mention: Rumeal Robinson

AP Photo

Years: 1987-90

Position: Point Guard

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 195 pounds

College highlights: NCAA champion (1989), AP All-American (1990)

Bottom line: Rumeal Robinson will always be remembered for hitting the game-winning free throws in overtime against Seton Hall in the 1989 NCAA championship game — and rightfully so — but he was a much more complete player than that moment gives him credit for.

Robinson was an All-American in the season after the national title and is still in the school’s Top 10 on the career and single-season lists for assists and steals. He was drafted No. 10 overall in the 1990 NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks and played seven seasons in the NBA and 12 seasons of pro basketball.

10. Phil Hubbard

AP Photo

Years: 1975-79

Position: Power Forward/Center

Height/Weight: 6-foot-8, 215 pounds

College highlights: AP All-American (1977), NCAA national runner-up (1976), Big Ten champion (1977)

Bottom line: Ohio native Phil Hubbard was as good as any player in Michigan through his first two seasons, helping lead the Wolverines to an NCAA runner-up finish as a freshman in 1976, then earning All-American honors after he won a Big Ten title as a sophomore in 1977. Hubbard also won an Olympic gold medal in 1976.

Hubbard suffered a catastrophic knee injury that forced him to miss his entire junior season, but he still averaged 16.5 points and 11.1 rebounds and shot 53 percent from the field for his career. Hubbard was selected No. 15 overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons and played 665 career games for the Pistons and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

9. Rudy Tomjanovich

AP Photo

Years: 1967-70

Position: Power Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-8, 225 pounds

College highlights: AP All-American (1970), three-time All-Big Ten (1968-70),

Bottom line: Modern basketball fans just know Rudy Tomjanovich as an NBA head coach — long before that he was a high school basketball star in the Detroit suburbs who went on to star at the University of Michigan.

Tomjanovich was nothing but great for the Wolverines, with career averages of 25.1 points and 14.1 rebounds while also being named a three-time All-Big Ten selection and an All-American as a senior in 1970. Still, Michigan’s career-leading rebounder, Tomjanovich played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the San Diego/Houston Rockets, and was a five-time NBA All-Star. He would later coach the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995.

Tomjanovich’s career — and life — almost came to an end when he was punched by Los Angeles Lakers center Kermit Washington during a game in 1977. The incident resulted in fractures all over Tomjanovich’s skull.

8. Gary Grant

mcmiller_2 / Twitter

Years: 1984-88

Position: Point Guard

Height/Weight: 6-foot-3, 185 pounds

College highlights: Two-time All-American (1987, 1988), Big Ten Player of the Year (1988), two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year (1987, 1988), Big Ten Freshman of the Year (1985), two-time Big Ten champion (1985, 1986)

Bottom line: Ohio native Gary Grant was a Parade All-American at Canton McKinley High before he became a two-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for Michigan. Grant still holds the career and single-season records for steals and assists and won a pair of Big Ten championships at Michigan in 1985 and 1986.

Grant was selected No. 15 overall in the 1988 NBA Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics but traded to the Los Angeles Clippers on draft day — he would go on to play 12 seasons in the NBA.

7. Jalen Rose

Carol Francavilla / AP Photo

Years at UM: 1991-94

Position: Point Guard/Shooting Guard/Small Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-8, 215 pounds

College highlights: AP All-American (1994), All-Big Ten (1994), two-time NCAA runner-up (1992, 1993)

Bottom line: Jalen Rose played on one of the greatest high school basketball teams of all time at Detroit Southwestern High before becoming the Robin to Chris Webber’s Batman on the Fab Five at Michigan — a Swiss Army knife of a player who could play point guard, shooting guard and small forward with ease.

Rose was actually the leading scorer for Michigan as a freshman and helped lead the team to back-to-back Final Four appearances and national runner-up finishes in 1992 and 1993. Rose was selected No. 13 overall in the 1994 NBA Draft and played 13 seasons in the NBA, winning NBA Most Improved Player honors in 2000.

6. Roy Tarpley

Al Behrman / AP Photo

Years: 1982-86

Position: Power Forward/Center

Height/Weight: 6-foot-11, 230 pounds

College highlights: Two-time AP All-American (1985, 1986), Big Ten Player of the Year (1986), two-time Big Ten champion (1985, 1986)

Bottom line: Roy Tarpley dominated in the post for Michigan, leading the Wolverines in scoring for each of his final three seasons. He also led them to back-to-back Big Ten titles and earned Big Ten Player of the Year honors in 1986. Tarpley finished his career with averages of 13.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks and is still Michigan’s career leader for blocked shots.

Unfortunately for Tarpley, his greatness at Michigan has become only a side note to his basketball career as a whole. After he was drafted No. 7 overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 1986 NBA Draft, Tarpley was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team in 1987, NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 1988 … and became one of the few players in NBA history to receive a lifetime ban in 1995 after years of alcohol and drug abuse.

Tarpley died in 2015, at 50 years old.

5. Juwan Howard

David Longstreath / AP Photo

Years at UM: 1991-94

Position: Power Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-9, 250 pounds

College highlights: AP All-American (1994), two-time NCAA runner-up (1992, 1993),

Bottom line: Juwan Howard shot to fame as a member of Michigan’s Fab Five in the early 1990s when the team’s five freshmen starters led the school to back-to-back NCAA runner-up finishes in 1992 and 1993.

What an absolute nightmare it must have been for opposing teams to try and game-plan for Howard and frontcourt mate Chris Webber — two players who could go almost interchangeably back and forth between power forward and center. Howard’s versatility was rewarded in the NBA, as he was selected No. 5 overall in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets and became the first NBA player to sign a $100 million contract in 1996. He would go on to play 19 seasons in the NBA, winning back-to-back NBA championships with the Miami Heat in his final two seasons.

In his post-playing career, Howard has been Michigan’s head coach since 2019 and was named National Coach of the Year after leading the Wolverines to the Elite Eight in 2021.

4. Trey Burke

Paul Sancya / AP Photo

Years: 2011-13

Position: Point Guard

Height/Weight: 6-foot, 185 pounds

College highlights: National Player of the Year (2013), AP All-American (2013), Bob Cousy Award (2013), Big Ten Player of the Year (2013), Big Ten Freshman of the Year (2012), Big Ten champion (2013), All-Big Ten (2013)

Bottom line: The only player from the modern era to make the list is Trey Burke, who is also the shortest, although his height did little to get in the way of his success. Burke was named Big Ten Player of the Year and National Player of the Year in 2013 after he led Michigan to an NCAA runner-up finish and also won the Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s best point guard.

Burke was drafted No. 9 overall in the 2013 NBA Draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves, immediately traded to the Utah Jazz and played for five different teams over nine seasons.

3. Cazzie Russell

AP Photo

Years: 1963-66

Position: Small Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-5, 220 pounds

College highlights: National College Player of the Year (1966), three-time AP All-American (1964-66), three-time Big Ten champion (1964-66), NCAA runner-up (1965)

Bottom line: There’s another name for Crisler Arena, where Michigan has played its home games since 1967 — The House That Cazzie Built. And it’s called that for good reason.

Cazzie Russell was a schoolboy legend at Chicago’s Carver High before coming to Michigan, where he led the Wolverines to three consecutive Big Ten championships and back-to-back Final Four appearances in 1964 and 1965. Russell was also a three-time All-American and the National Player of the Year in 1966. He’s also the only player in Michigan history to have their number officially retired by the school.

Russell was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1966 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, where he won an NBA championship in 1970. He played 12 seasons in the NBA and made his lone NBA All-Star Team with the Golden State Warriors in 1972.

2. Glen Rice

David Longstreath / AP Photo

Years: 1985-89

Position: Small Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-8, 225 pounds

College highlights: NCAA champion (1989), NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player (1989), AP All-American (1989), Big Ten Player of the Year (1989)

Bottom line: Glen Rice led Michigan on one of the most amazing NCAA Tournament runs of all time as a senior in 1989, guiding them to the national championship and earning NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors.

Rice is still Michigan’s career-leading scorer with 2,242 points and also still holds the record for most points scored in a single NCAA Tournament. He was selected No. 4 overall in the 1989 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat and played 15 seasons in the NBA, becoming a three-time NBA All-Star, two-time All-NBA Team pick and winning an NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000.

1. Chris Webber

Mark Elias / AP Photo

Years: 1991-93

Position: Power Forward

Height/Weight: 6-foot-10, 245 pounds

College highlights: AP All-American (1993), Big Ten Freshman of the Year (1992), National Freshman of the Year (1992), two-time NCAA runner-up (1992, 1993)

Bottom line: Chris Webber led Detroit Country Day School to three consecutive state championships and was the nation’s top basketball recruit when he picked Michigan in 1991, becoming the centerpiece for the Fab Five.

Webber’s two years at Michigan changed the way the game of basketball was played on every level and he is perhaps the greatest power forward to ever step foot on a college basketball court. As spectacular as he was, few can say his legacy at Michigan isn’t forever tainted by the most infamous illegal gambling operation in NCAA Tournament history and for being at the center of a scandal that eventually saw the school stripped of its two Final Four appearances.

For more college basketball stars, check out “Greatest College Basketball Players.”