By the numbers: Michigan basketball with another impressive showing at the NBA Draft
For the third straight draft, Michigan Wolverines basketball had multiple players selected, with wing Jett Howard being picked No. 11 by the Orlando Magic and guard Kobe Bufkin going No. 15 to the Atlanta Hawks. Michigan has had more than one selection in four of the last five and six of the last 11 drafts.
That marked the fifth time in history that Michigan has had multiple first-rounders, with 2014 (Nik Stauskas and Mitch McGary), 2013 (Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr.), 1994 (Juwan Howard and Jalen Rose) and 1990 (Rumeal Robinson, Loy Vaught and Terry Mills) being the other occurrences. It was the first time the Wolverines had multiple top-15 choices since 1994, 29 years ago, when Howard went No. 5 and Rose was taken at No. 13.
Michigan was the only school with more than one top-15 selection in 2023, and only four others had multiple first-round choices — Alabama, Arkansas, Houston and Duke, all with two.
Juwan Howard, Michigan’s head coach entering his fifth season, has now seen six of his players become NBA Draft picks, including five that he recruited out of high school. Juwan and Jett are now the NBA’s 97th father-son duo, and they’re the first pair to play at both U-M and in the association.
Howard has kept Michigan’s strong NBA Draft tradition alive, after former head man John Beilein — the program’s winningest coach — sent 11 players to the draft during his tenure from 2007-19.
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By the numbers: Michigan basketball and the 2023 NBA Draft
4 Michigan players have left college after one season to be NBA Draft picks this century: Ignas Brazdeikis (2019), Caleb Houstan (2022), Moussa Diabate (2022) and Jett Howard (2023).
6 NBA father-son duos from Michigan, with Juwan and Jett Howard joining Tim and Tim Jr. Hardaway, Earle (ABA) and Sean Higgins, Glen and Glen Jr. Rice, Glenn and Glenn III Robinson and Jimmy Walker and Jalen Rose.
6th Is where Michigan stands nationally with its 31 first-round picks in history. That’s behind Kentucky (58), Duke (55) North Carolina (53), UCLA (41) and Kansas (36).
11 First-round draft picks for Michigan since 2013, which leads the Big Ten. Indiana is second with six.
16 NBA Draft picks for Michigan since 2013 (11 first round, five second round), which leads the Big Ten. Here’s a look at Big Ten selections during that timeframe:
| Team | Picks Since 2013 |
| Michigan | 16 |
| Michigan State | 10 |
| Indiana | 8 |
| Maryland | 8* |
| Iowa | 6 |
| Ohio State | 6 |
| Purdue | 5 |
| Nebraska | 3 |
| Penn State | 3 |
| Wisconsin | 3 |
| Illinois | 1 |
| Minnesota | 1 |
| Northwestern | 0 |
| Rutgers | 0 |
17 Drafts with multiple Wolverines chosen, including the last three.
19 Lottery picks in Michigan basketball history, with Howard being the latest. Franz Wagner was the most recent before Howard (No. 8 in 2021).
67 Overall NBA draft picks for Michigan basketball. The Wolverines have had 31 first-rounders and 13 second-rounders. They’ve seen two players get chosen No. 1 overall — Cazzie Russell in 1966 and Chris Webber in 1993. Six have gone top five, with the last being Juwan Howard (No. 5) in 1994, and 19 have been lottery picks, with Jett Howard being the most recent.
Michigan ranks seventh in the country with those 67 picks, trailing UCLA (110), Kentucky (106), UNC (99), Duke (94), Kansas (77) and Arizona (69).
2003-04 Season was Juwan Howard’s year spent with the Orlando Magic, Jett Howard’s new team.
