Jalen Rose: Fab Five Reuniting ‘Like Voltron’ After Michigan Hires Juwan Howard

Duane Burleson/Getty Images

Juwan Howard was hired as Michigan’s head men’s basketball coach to bring Final Fours and championships to the school, but he’s already brought something else—unity among his former Fab Five teammates.

ESPN’s Jalen Rose appeared on Thursday’s episode of Get Up and said that the hiring of Howard “squashes any drama or any beef” Rose has with Chris Webber. He also said the Fab Five is going to “come together like Voltron.”

Michigan announced the hiring of Howard with a video montage featuring some of his playing days on Wednesday:

Rose released a book titled Give The People What They Want in 2015 that revealed he and Webber hadn’t spoken in five years and grew apart over time, as the latter didn’t participate in as many group activities or take part in a Fab Five reunion or the 30 for 30 documentary.

Charles Curtis of USA Today’s For The Win summarized a dramatic back-and-forth in 2018 in which Rose suggested Webber’s decision to be an honorary captain for a Michigan football game was to bolster his Hall of Fame candidacy by appealing to media members.

Webber fired back, saying Rose only talked about him to further a media career. Rose denied the idea he needed to talk to Webber at all to advance in his career.

Their former teammate is the one who will apparently bring them together, as Howard will attempt to establish some of the dominance the trio brought the Wolverines in the early 1990s.

The Big Ten program went to back-to-back national championship games during the Fab Five years before it was forced to forfeit wins and take down banners for NCAA sanctions.

Michigan experienced plenty of success under John Beilein—who left to become the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers—as well. It reached two of the last seven national title games, meaning Howard will be under plenty of pressure to continue winning in his first head coaching job.

He at least knows both Webber and Rose will be there to support him if Thursday’s comments were any indication.