where are they now?
sojourn as a wonderful financial avenue, but his thoughts always drifted
back to Ann Arbor.
"Nothing compares to college,"
he said." I just look at the NBA as
a great opportunity for you to take
care of yourself and your family financially, but it's more of a business.
You meet friends along the way, then
you're traded to another team, then
you meet a few more friends.
"If you got a job and you go from
Comerica Bank to Fifth-Third …
that's kind of the way it is. In the
back of your mind, you would always remember that group of guys
that you were there with for four
years.
"Eleven years in the NBA is a
great career. I loved it. I would never
change that for anything in the
world, but the four years of college
stands up there as being the best."
He wound up finishing his degree,
and coached in the International Basketball League, then four years at
Henry Ford Community College in
Detroit prior to returning to Michigan. His cousin, former NBA player
Grant Long, tipped him off to the
opening at U-M, and Mills has embraced the opportunity.
"I've really enjoyed it," Mills said.
"Matt Shepard is one of the best, and
he's made it a lot easier on me. I auditioned with him, and he basically
told me: 'It's like you and I talking
basketball. We're having a conversation. That's all it is.'"
Mills can talk Michigan basketball
all day long — past, present and
future. ❑
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