Juwan Howard Hire is a Failure for the University of Michigan
Juwan Howard was introduced as the University of Michigan’s next head coach for their basketball team yesterday. It was an emotional press conference for Howard, since he was returning home to his alma mater, and because this is first head coaching job.
That right there is the problem. Juwan Howard has never been the head coach of a basketball team. Ever. He has spent six years on the bench of the Miami Heat as an assistant. He has learned under Erik Spoelstra, the head coach of the Heat, and has been around a great basketball mind in Pat Riley, the president of the Heat. For Michigan Wolverine fans, they have to hope that Howard has learned enough around these basketball minds. Let’s just say he is capable of coaching; does he know how to recruit? The NBA and the NCAA are completely different in that regard.
It would be a different story if we were talking about a Division II school. Why not take a gamble on someone with NBA assistant coaching experience? But this is Michigan we’re talking about. They just had an appearance in the National Championship in 2018 under John Beilein, their second appearance in the Championship in his twelve years as their head coach. Michigan should have been a desirable job for coaches with experience, but instead, they went with another ‘Michigan man.’
When the Wolverines hired Jim Harbaugh to lead their football team, it made complete sense. Harbaugh was the most sought-after coach in both the NFL and NCAA. He was a proven winner and leader every single place he’s been. While Harbaugh hasn’t been able to get over the hump in Ann Arbor just yet, his résumé was completely opposite of Juwan Howard’s. It seems like the school and the athletic director, Warde Manuel, wanted the hype that Harbaugh created with the hire of Howard. The whole narrative of having a ‘Michigan man’ coming home to be the savior worked out great for the branding off the University of Michigan. It helped get Michigan back into the mainstream.
That leads to The Fab Five. Juwan Howard was a part of that famous 1991 Michigan squad that included Chris Weber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King, and Ray Jackson. Many believe that it was the most impressive recruiting class of all time. Unfortunately, despite the team’s major success, the team had to forfeit those wins later on when they were found guilty of a former booster paying Chris Weber, among other players.
Because of the investigation and wins being revoked, the Fab Five doesn’t have the same effect as maybe it once did. That, and is using the Fab Five connection really going to help land recruits? After all, none of the kids Howard will try to recruit will have been alive during his tenure at the school. He would be better off using his Miami Heat connection with LeBron James and Dwayne Wade to try and get recruits.
While it is understood that John Beilein leaving so abruptly didn’t give Warde Manuel and the school much time to find a coach, one would think they could have found someone with a greater background than Juwan Howard. It makes you wonder what is going on behind the scenes.
It is a tough pill to swallow for Wolverine fans because they were consistently a good team under John Beilein. Michigan was starting to beat Michigan State and the rest of the Big Ten and were becoming an elite program. You can’t help but think there will be a learning curve in year one and that will just be a lost season. Perhaps this will all be an overreaction, and Juwan Howard will show he can be a great head coach and leader for this basketball team. Let’s hope so for Michigan’s sake.
