Central Michigan University Athletics
Homecoming For Chippewa Legend Dan Majerle
11/26/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - It's a welcome home for Central Michigan legend Dan Majerle.
Majerle will bring his Grand Canyon University men's basketball team to McGuirk Arena to take on the unbeaten Chippewas on Saturday. The game tips off at 6 p.m., moved back from its original 1 p.m. start time.
"I'm anxious to get back and relive some memories of my playing days there," Majerle said Tuesday in a telephone interview from Grand Canyon's campus in Phoenix, Ariz. "Central was a great place for me. I love Mount Pleasant. Bringing a team there and coaching a team is totally different, but I think it's going to be a great experience."
Majerle is among the very best to ever wear a Chippewa uniform and he remains CMU's second all-time leading scorer. In 1986-87, he led the Chippewas to the Mid-American Conference championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
He was selected 14th overall by the Phoenix Suns in the 1988 NBA draft and went on to a 14-year professional career with the Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat. He is best remembered for his days in Phoenix, where he became a fan favorite and, along with Charles Barkley and Kevin Johnson, led the Suns to the 1993 NBA Finals where they lost to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.
Majerle earned a bronze medal as a member of the U.S. team in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, and a gold medal with the U.S. team at the 1994 FIBA World Championship. He made three NBA All-Star appearances.
He was inducted into the Marcy Weston Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998, into the Phoenix Suns Ring of Honor in 2003, and into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2006. After retiring from the NBA in 2002, Majerle worked in broadcasting until 2008, when he became an assistant coach with the Suns.
He took over as Grand Canyon's head coach before last season, when the school made the jump to Division I from Division II. His deep connections to the Suns organization and former team owner Jerry Colangelo helped draw him back to the college game.
"Jerry Colangelo, who drafted me, is a big part of Grand Canyon University," Majerle said. "Our president (Brian Mueller) is a go-getter with a great vision for the university. We've got a great arena that we're expanding and a fantastic fan base.
"I jumped at the chance to be a head coach, especially with the ability to stay right here in Phoenix."
Majerle led the Lopes to a 15-15 finish a year ago, including 10-6 (third place) in the Western Athletic Conference. Grand Canyon was picked to finish eighth in the nine-team league. The Lopes earned a berth to the CollegeInsider.com tournament.
"Going to Division I from Division II is a process," Majerle said. "It's exciting and it's a challenge and it's the competitor in you that makes you do it, gets you through. That's what's always gotten me through, the competition and wanting to be the best and persevering.
"You don't like losing, and you want to get there quickly, but you know you can't. It's going to take a while. We're seeing baby steps as we go along. I really enjoy it, I love coaching college kids. They listen, they want to get better. It's a lot of work, but it's really rewarding.
"I love it more than I even imagined I would."
The Lopes fell at home to Buffalo, 80-64, on Tuesday and are 2-3. Among Grand Canyon's opponents this season are Kentucky (an 85-45 season-opening loss), Indiana and Harvard, as well as its WAC schedule.
Majerle said that when he brings the Lopes to Mount Pleasant on Saturday it will mark the first time he has been on the CMU campus in "about five or six years."
His parents still live in Traverse City and he said he visits there once a year, in the summer, and is thrilled to return to Mount Pleasant.
"I don't get back to Michigan nearly as much as I want to," he said. "Obviously seeing my family and friends, but also being back on campus - I'm really looking forward to it. College is a special time in someone's life. Mount Pleasant was really good to me, Central Michigan was really good to me. I have a lot of great memories of growing up in Traverse City and of Central.
"Looking forward to getting back in that gym where I have so many memories from when I was a player.
"I've lived in Phoenix for a long time, but I always say I'm a Midwestern guy, that's where I'm from, that's where I was raised. We have a lot of Central Michigan alums out here in Phoenix. I run into Central Michigan alums all the time."
Saturday's game marks the first meeting between CMU and Grand Canyon. The teams are scheduled to meet next season in Phoenix. Majerle said he met CMU coach Keno Davis last summer and an instant friendship was born.
"I really like him," Majerle said of Davis. "He's a great coach and a great person. I wish him all the best. I hope they win every game. Except Saturday."
