Michigan Basketball coaching search tracker

John Beilein is moving on from the University of Michigan and is now the new head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, leading to the first coaching search for the men’s basketball program in 12 years and the first major hire between the hoops and football programs for athletic director Warde Manuel.

We will keep tabs of the coaching search and the names that emerge here throughout the process and will update this with any information that becomes available as we get closer to a hire.

May 13

• The first candidate to address potential interest in the job was Alabama’s Nate Oats, who cut his teeth coaching Romulus High School and was hired by the Tide after his work at Buffalo the last few years. He has taken his name out of consideration, but endorsed U-M assistant Saddi Washington, a former pupil of his at Romulus, for a chance at the gig. (247Sports)
• Manuel released a statement on Monday, saying that he was saddened to hear the news, but promises a “full national search” in finding U-M’s next head basketball coach. (Maize n Brew)

May 15

• Jeff Goodman from Stadium is reporting Notre Dame’s Mike Brey and Florida’s Mike White are two coaches unlikely to leave their current job for the Michigan gig. Brey’s name has not appeared at all during this coaching search, but White’s had been thrown around some.

May 16

• Handful of updates posted from Sam Webb, mostly revolving around Billy Donovan and Brad Stevens not being interested, but endorsing former assistants of theirs in Shaka Smart and LaVall Jordan (Michigan Insider, VIP)
• Interestingly enough, Michigan assistant Luke Yaklich is interviewing for a job on Shaka Smart’s staff at Texas. (Brian Davis)
• Dick Vitale speaks to Texas Tech HC Chris Beard, who tells him it would take a “special offer” to pull him away from his current job. (Dick Vitale)

May 17

• A first confirmation of interest from a candidate himself, with Miami Heat assistant (and former member of the Fab Five) Juwan Howard saying the search firm has reached out to him and said AD Warde Manuel is “very interested” in speaking to him about the position. (Jordan Schultz, ESPN)
• Juwan Howard and Warde Manuel have a meeting planned for Tuesday (May 21st). (Josh Henschke, Michigan Insider)

May 20

• Manuel is meeting with Providence head coach Ed Cooley on Monday prior to Juwan Howard’s interview on Tuesday for the job. A decision may be coming by the end of this week on who the next coach will be. Both Luke Yaklich and Saddi Washington have interviewed for the job. (Nick Baumgardner, Detroit Free Press)

May 21

• Ed Cooley has presumably taken himself out of the running for the job, or not been selected (or maybe just used the interview process for a raise), with Providence Basketball tweeting that Cooley is “staying home.” (Providence).
• Juwan Howard’s interview set to take place on Tuesday in Miami.

May 22

• Multiple media reports say that Michigan has offered the job to Juwan Howard and that contract negotiations are currently ongoing, though a deal is far from done at this point. It appears Michigan has its man. (Jon Rothstein and Detroit Free Press)
• Shaka Smart and Texas still reportedly have strong interest in bringing in Luke Yaklich (Multiple media reports)
• The deal is apparently done with Rothstein saying a press conference could be held as soon as later this week or early next week. Jeff Goodman of Stadium says that Howard will receive a five-year deal from Michigan.

Feel free to drop any thoughts or scoops you may see in the comments below!