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The John Beilein era of Michigan basketball produced several fan favorite players over the course of 12 years.
Manny Harris, Zack Novak, Trey Burke, Tim Hardaway Jr., Nick Stauskas and other names of prominence from that era will resonate within this program forever.
But you’d be hard-pressed to find a player more universally loved by the Wolverine faithful than Moritz Wagner, better known as “Moe”.
After being drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018 and spending his rookie season on the West Coast, Wagner was traded to the Washington Wizards for the 2019-20 season.
As one of the Wizards’ primary players off the bench, Wagner has improved greatly upon his rookie season with the Lakers, and is currently averaging 11.3 points — on nearly 60 percent shooting — and 5.7 rebounds per game.
But with the NBA All-Star Break in effect this weekend, Wagner had the opportunity to return to Ann Arbor to take in his alma mater’s game against the Indiana Hoosiers, and, of course, see his younger brother and rising Wolverine star, Franz.
When Moe’s image appeared on the jumbotron inside the Crisler Center, the capacity crowd let out what was perhaps the largest roar of the day during the Wolverines’ 89-65 win over the Hoosiers.
“I heard a little bit,” Franz said of the cheers that greeted his older brother. “Great to see that he is still so welcome here. People like him here. Very cool to see that.”
Franz gave the home crowd something to cheer about as well, as he poured in a team-high 16 points on an efficient 7-of-11 shooting performance. The younger Wagner also grabbed 8 rebounds, nearing a double-double before fouling out with just under five minutes left to play.
Franz knocked down a pair of three-point baskets during the game, and heard from his brother after one triple went down early in the second half.
“It’s about damn time you hit one!” Moe chirped at his younger brother.
“At first I didn’t really know who said it,” Franz said with a smile. “But I saw him and chirped something back.”
Trash talk may be commonplace between the two brothers, but Franz was pleased to get the opportunity to interact with Moe.
“Very cool,” Franz said. “Obviously, I haven’t seen him too much with his schedule and mine. Just good to have him here and spend a little time with him.”
Moe was joined in his return by former Michigan point guard Derrick Walton Jr., and a plethora of other Wolverine basketball alumni as the university celebrated an “Alumni Appreciation” day.
The two standouts of the Beilein era met with the team — Team 104, the first of the Juwan Howard era — following the victory.
“They just came in [and] congratulated everybody,” Franz said. “It’s always great to have former players come back that made it to the league (NBA). I think it’s good motivation for everybody to see them come back, seeing how connected they still are to this program.”