Michigan Wolverines basketball head coach Juwan Howard is just over halfway through his first season back at his alma mater. The Wolverines have experienced some high levels of success, winning the Battle 4 Atlantis, but are still finding their way in the Big Ten. Howard is enjoying his time back in Ann Arbor so far, and a lot of that has to do with the players he gets to coach.
"It’s been fun," Howard told CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein on the College Hoops Today Podcast. "I’ve been impressed with the overall level of competitive play on the college level, both in the non conference and in conference play.
"What I’ve been really excited about is just the opportunity to work with an impressionable, fun, hard working group. I can just keep going on and on about the players that I’m coaching. They are just the joy of what makes me want to come in each and every day to grow and get better as a coach, because they make my job a lot easier and fun."
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Looking back on his days as a U-M player, Howard recalled what he enjoyed about playing for national championship winning coach Steve Fisher. He has understandably taken a lot of what he learned from Fisher and implemented it into the way he coaches his team.
"The beauty of playing for a guy like Coach Fish was he allowed you to be you as a player," Howard said. "He trusted his players, and put them in positions where they can utilize their strengths.
"Now, I have my chance to be a head coach, allowing our players to grow and not just on the court, but also growing with their confidence and boosting their confidence level. I see how our team is growing game by game, every day in practice. It just puts a smile on my face."
Howard is not just boosting the confidence of his current players, but he's instilling confidence in recruits and their families that he and his staff can be trusted. So far, Howard has hauled in the No. 4 class in America, according to Rivals.com's team rankings.
"Sometimes, you have to bet on yourself," Howard said bluntly. "Yes, I never coached at the college level before, but I think my track record has proven as a former player who played many years in the NBA, 19. And then a coach in the NBA for six years as an assistant with the Miami Heat, having a chance to work under Erik Spoelstra and learn from him, and other coaches like David Fizdale, Keith Smart, Dan Craig. The parents are able to go back on social media and find out information, and do their due diligence on me and what I bring to the table, who I’ve worked under.
"Now, when I go out there on the recruiting trail, yes, in the beginning I wasn’t able to sell anything other than obviously the Michigan brand, but I’ve been able to be honest and real with a lot of folks. I think that has helped me in many ways.
"I’m vulnerable. I don’t mind getting vulnerable, and just sharing, ‘Hey, I’ve never done it before, but I’ve also hired a great staff that I know I can trust and have countless years of experience, who have been through it before.' I’m not the guy to have all the answers. I’m willing to grow throughout the experience, but I’m also going to learn as well. If I don’t have the answers, I’m going to find it for our players."
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Part of what gives Howard and his staff credibility on the trail is assistant coach Phil Martelli's wealth of experience, having been the head coach at St. Joseph's for the 24 years prior to this one.
"You gotta have experience next to you, especially when you haven’t done it before," Howard said. "Coach Phil, a guy who is just as pure as they come, egoless, also a guy who taught many players and coaches who worked under him. He’s not afraid to share knowledge, and he’s not afraid to speak up. Not only that, he understands his new role, and he’s not a guy to step on anyone’s toes or anything like that or try to go out there and say, ‘Me, me, me.’ It’s a family here, and I’m just happy that Coach Phil Martelli has embraced this Michigan culture."
On the court this season, U-M is 0-5 in true road games. Three of those road losses came with second-leading scorer Isaiah Livers on the bench, battling a strained groin. Howard recognizes how big Livers' absence has been, while still acknowledging the team has room to grow.
"Unfortunately for us, we haven’t had health on our side," he said. "We’re missing one of our key best players, and that’s Isaiah Livers.
"Yes, we have been in every game, fighting, clawing, competing hard. We’ve noticed, and it wasn’t no surprise, that the Big Ten is going to be a tough conference each and every year. It has been proven that it has been a truly competitive conference. I am extremely happy that we’re a part of this atmosphere, because it’s just helped our players grow and learn where we are as a group, and how we got to improve as a group. So, I look back on it, we make no excuses, we’re going to keep forging ahead, keep working hard. I know that we’re going to keep getting better and better."
As far as Livers' status, Howard does not have an update.
"It’s a very delicate injury and it’s one of those things where it heals itself, but with our training staff, with our strength and conditioning coach and also how we’ve managed him throughout the process, he’s working extremely hard to get back on the court," Howard said. "But we need a healthy Isaiah. It’s going to take some time, but we’re going to keep monitoring it. I love the fact that we’re seeing some growth and some improvement with his injury."
One bright spot lately for the Wolverines has been freshman guard Franz Wagner. He's averaging 15 points per game in four January outings.
"Wagner has been great since he first walked in on campus," Howard said. "He came in late, didn’t have any summer of player development work with us and our staff. But once he hit camp, he hit the ground running, because he’s a guy who’s a quick learner, a student of the game, has a high basketball IQ, a high ceiling.
"To be a guy who’s a 6-9 wing who can put the ball on the floor, and can shoot, the sky's the limit for him. I see now that he’s into conference play, he’s getting a chance to adjust and see how he can adjust his game to the level of play on how the Big Ten is being played thus far this year. It’s not easy for a guy who hadn’t played any ball here in the U.S. to hit the ground running like how he has. It goes to show you about his level of IQ and more importantly, his skill level."
Wagner's increased level of play needs to carry over for the rest of the team in the second half of the season. Getting fully healthy is another thing that Howard believes will be a large part of any late season success the Wolverines may have.
"Health, health, health," Howard said, after being asked what U-M needs to find more success. "I’ll just give it to you that simple. We want to keep all our guys healthy, man, because we need each and every one of them on our roster to be ready to compete and compete at a high level, night in and night out in the Big Ten."
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