The team that changed college hoops forever – the Michigan Wolverines’ Fab Five – shared the court once again on Monday
From their long shorts to their black socks, the college basketball world had never quite seen anything like the Fab Five – a collection of freshmen who were dynamic, controversial, and eventually historic. They ruled the game together for two years, before eventually going their separate ways for years. Until Monday night, that is.
A Fab Five Family Reunion
The collective – Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson – had immediate success together and went to two straight Final Fours in 1992 and 1993. Webber would depart that year, and the group never shared the court again.
But on a frigid Monday night in Ann Arbor, the Fab Five gathered together again. Not just as a reunion, but also to support a member of their unit who has befallen some recent health problems.
Jalen Rose told a reporter during the game that the members returned to Ann Arbor on Martin Luther King Jr. Day to support Howard, who is now the head coach at Michigan.
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Howard’s Health Issues
Juwan Howard underwent open-heart surgery on Sept. 15, and he was hospitalized for 15 days thereafter. He didn’t return to the sidelines until Dec. 16, when Michigan blew out Eastern Michigan 83-66.
“Sometimes doubt sort of creeps in, because you care so much,” Howard said after the game. “But tonight, with the help of our great crowd and the Michigan — Chris Webber came out, Jalen Rose, as well as Jimmy King and Ray Jackson, they, of course, ignited that run.
“It felt great [to see them across from me.] It’s nothing like having your family step in when we going through a tough time. And then to be here and support us, it was truly uplifting. These guys I’ve been in the trenches with for so many years. I won a lot of games with; lost some games with. I learned a lot from them. But knowing they have my support through thick and thin, I appreciate that. Our brotherhood goes like no other.”
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