Imagining someone other than John Beilein on the Michigan sideline is an exercise that was not expected so soon. On Monday, Beilein rocked the collective basketball world when it was announced that he would leave Michigan to become the Cleveland Cavaliers’ head coach. Rumors of an imminent departure were nonexistent or the quietest of whispers at most, and though he had flirted with the NBA last offseason, the 66-year-old was thought to be a lifer with the Wolverines.
Imagining someone other than a jacket-less Beilein on the Michigan sideline was not expected to happen for another four to five years as Beilein mulled retirement and a succession plan had been implemented. Instead, Michigan is scrambling in mid-May to select its next head basketball coach.
So who does Michigan turn to? Whomever it may be, it seems likely that Michigan will sacrifice a piece of the identity that Beilein constructed for this program during his 12 years in Ann Arbor.
