Can You Name the Five Michigan Players Who Have Won NBA Championships?

Submitted by BursleyHall82 on

With the NBA Championship starting Thursday, can you name the five U-M players who have NBA Champiosnhip rings? I couldn't - I got four of the five.

According to my research, here's the list. See how many you guessed:

Bob Harrison (three championships in the 1950s with the Minneapolis Lakers)

Cazzie Russell (1970 with the Knicks)

Mike McGee (two championships with the Lakers, 1982 and 1985)

Glen Rice (2000 with the Lakers)

Juwan Howard (2012 and 2013 with the Miami Heat)

We also had three players who won ABA championships - Craig Dill, John Clawson and Oliver Darden.

Magnus

May 29th, 2018 at 11:31 AM ^

So...I came here to name as many as I could (I knew Russell, Rice, and Howard), but you answered the question in the OP. That was...disappointing.

Stevedez

May 29th, 2018 at 11:36 AM ^

Didn't recall Glen Rice being on that Lakers team in 2000... only thing I remember is that I had just moved to Los Angeles and had quite the drunken night when they won. I was not a fan, but when in Rome...

I was only able to recall Juwan Howard...

mastawen

May 29th, 2018 at 12:06 PM ^

Long time reader, first time post.  I love trivia and felt a need to register and respond.

The question is former players with NBA Championship rings.  Doesn't say it has to have been as a player.  Thus, Rudy T should qualify.

kehnonymous

May 29th, 2018 at 12:43 PM ^

I knew about Juwan Howard, as well as Glen Rice and Mike McGee (it helps being a lifelong Laker fan)

Neither Rice nor McGee were ever really truly comfortable fits in their respective Laker teams - Phil Jackson pretty openly preferred Rick Fox to Rice for the 3-spot because of Foxy's defense and ability to play within the triangle and Rice didn't do himself any favors when his wife openly complained about his lack of shot opportunies in a lineup with peak Shaq and Kobe.  McGee gave LA some scoring off the bench and filled in capably as a part-time starter but was also typecast as a sharpshooting reserve wing on a team that also had one Michael Cooper

Zoltanrules

May 29th, 2018 at 3:06 PM ^

Two time captain at UM. Won NBA titles as a teammate of George Mikan on the MInneapolis Lakers. He won the first NBA finals game on a last second half court shot. Was a very good NBA player, later coached Harvard and is still alive. Stunned I have not heard of him at all. Also scored 139 points in an 8th grade game which is some sort of record,lol.

Sounds like an interview for John U Bacon or Brian. This is all I can find about his personal story. Would love to know about his struggles as a Native American athlete. 

 

vanbluegens

May 29th, 2018 at 4:40 PM ^

Just skimmed the box score for the 6 game Laker - Pacers Final series. Surprising to me: Shaq extremely dominant and much more so than Kobe, who missed a few games. Jalen Rose was a stud - averaged 23 a game. Glen Rice - up and down a bit