Michigan basketball: What Juwan Howard can learn from Kofi Cockburn transfer news

Michigan basketball head coach Juwan Howard can learn a great deal from the Kofi Cockburn transfer portal offseason drama.

Juwan Howard and the Michigan basketball team can learn so much from afar from the Kofi Cockburn offseason transfer portal situation.

The All-Big Ten performer had initially entered the 2021 NBA Draft after his sophomore season with the Illinois basketball program. However, the Jamaican big man decided to enter the transfer portal. This is yet another wrinkle of frustration when it comes to coaching in college basketball these days. Fortunately, Howard can learn vicariously through this.

If Howard is naive in thinking this could never happen at Michigan, the Wolverines will pay for it.

Michigan basketball: How Juwan Howard learns from the Kofi Cockburn transfer

There are two strong lessons to be learned from this afar. One, a head coach needs to continually support one of his departing players throughout the draft process. If a marquee player is leaving your team for the NBA Draft, then that is where he needs to go and not to another team in the Power Six. And two, maybe you steal a player or two in this manner ahead of future NBA Drafts?

Cockburn has reportedly narrowed his list down to three teams: Illinois, Kentucky and Florida State. He will be making his decision Friday on where he will play his junior year. While Cockburn is not coming to Ann Arbor in anything other than a visitor’s uniform, his transfer portal drama opens up a new can of worms head coaches like Howard must learn how to best navigate.

Howard and Michigan must learn from Illinois’ hiccup, or complete gaffe, surrounding Cockburn.

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