Juwan Howard's introduction highlights strengths, recruitment issues



[ad_1]

Juwan Howard loves the University of Michigan and has displayed it publicly in an unusual way over the years. It was special to see and the emotions were palpable the day he was officially announced as the men's basketball head coach in Ann Arbor.

Howard may not have the experience of a head coach that supporters may have wanted to replace John Beilein, but from a passionate and moral point of view, Howard is already making his debut as program manager. His attitude and his love are felt in the room and are contagious, which is undoubtedly an advantage for players and people close to the program who have been upset by the most accomplished coach in history of the program, without doing anything. really no warning.

Howard does not check all the boxes of the first hiring, and his work will depend to a large extent on the quality of his hires in Michigan. However, the main task of a college basketball coach on the recruiting track is to be a salesman of the program and if he is able to give a speech as moving to his players as he did to the media and to those gathered at the Crisler Center on Thursday, is going to be a big win for them.

That's great, but the press conference also highlighted the concerns raised by the program under Howard. It is not enough to like the university. Ask Brady Hoke how it went.

When asked what his philosophy was and what he hoped to bring to the program from a coaching perspective, Howard did not have much to say and openly admitted that he would need to learn on the job . The man has never trained a player before, but it reinforces the concerns of some that this team will look like coming out of the Beilein era.

Beilein had questions to come, but he had a style that he had brought with him. It had to come from somewhere and start somewhere. That said, Beilein had to go through many steps before arriving in Michigan.

Howard has the support and patience of athletic director Warde Manuel to become a coach and build him in his image. And a week after the beginning of the head coach's term for the first time, of course, they still know it.

Howard will surround himself with people who will guide him from the beginning of the process by becoming a head coach and the people he will hire for his staff could very well determine the direction this situation will take in Michigan. One of the themes of Thursday's press conference was the maintenance of the strong culture and program that had been created under Beilein, but Michigan is going to be very different.

It's not a bad thing, it's just different. And a change.

The change is scary.

It seems that Howard will be able to recruit and potentially have more success than his predecessor in terms of ranking. But what will win or break is if he can train and develop his players, what we have said about the rental from the beginning.

He would not be able to answer these questions at a press conference.

Manuel made it clear that it was his job and that he was not motivated by marketing or links to the past. He sincerely believes that Howard was the ideal candidate for this position and must be given the benefit of the doubt for the present and the present. He did not think that it was a risk because of the passion inside the man he had chosen for this job and was sure to be sure he was safe. to take the media for suggesting that it was a risk.

Well, Warde, it's a risk. Anyone who would have been hired realistically would have represented a risk. This is what happens when the best coach the basketball program has ever seen is gone.

This is Manuel's guy, and given what happened, it's a logical risk to take. The man loves Michigan and is ready to be head coach. There will be bumps on the way at first, but Howard will be defined by whether these bumps are snowballing or not.

For the moment, all the fans can do is bring together a guy who is so eager to succeed in this job and who is eager to get to work. He has a lot to learn and maybe we have a bit of hindsight to bear. That will take time.

Anyone outside the sports department who minimizes rental concerns only pays for the program. It's good to be excited for a guy, but be aware that there are big questions about Michigan Basketball's orientation.

The hell are done. The introduction is complete. It's time to go to work.

[ad_2]

Source link