Michigan Suspends Basketball Coach, Juwan Howard

And just like that, Juwan Howard, head basketball coach at Michigan, has been suspended for the remainder of the regular season. This suspension has come from the University of Michigan itself, while a greater suspension could still be in store from the Big Ten.

Howard’s suspension comes as a result of an altercation at the end of a 77-63 Wolverine loss to the Wisconsin Badgers on Sunday. In what was a bit of a blowout, Wisconsin coach Greg Gard, took a late game timeout to reset the half court clock to avoid an eight second violation. This timeout upset Howard, which resulted in him later taking a swing at a Wisconsin assistant.

Howard’s Wolverines have been trending in the wrong direction this year. After finishing in the Elite 8 last season, this year’s team, by Michigan’s definition, has been nothing short of mediocre. The team is being viewed by many as either a “last four in” or a “first four out” team. With pressure mounting to make the tournament, and time running out to improve their resume, each game is becoming more and more important. This included Sunday’s game, against one of the top teams in the Big Ten, Wisconsin. However, the game obviously did not go as planned for the Wolverines. While any coach would be upset with that result, in possibly the most important game of the season for them, to that point, a good coach would recognize that they still have opportunities ahead, and that’s where their focus should shift.

However, Howard, in a moment I’m sure he regrets, made a selfish decision. A decision that could make the rest of the season and the team’s chances of getting a playoff berth even more difficult. Howard put the team in a position where they will be having to play without their coach. He put them in a position where players could end up getting suspended. And he put the team in a position where even more pressure and negative attention will be placed on the players.

I touched on this in a video I posted on YouTube, but this incident could also sway the tournament selection committee to place Michigan in the NIT rather than the Big Dance. While things like this should have no impact on a team making it or not, it very well could. Michigan is not a sure-fire team for the tournament this year. If the team continues to play at the level they have been (and don’t win the B10 tournament), they will be a borderline team. It would be very easy for the committee to look at Michigan and give a team with a similar resume the tournament nod. And there’s no doubt the committee could convince the public that Michigan was put in the NIT because of their resume and that it had nothing to do with the fight.

While I have primarily examined this incident as if I were a Michigan fan (in which case I would be very upset with Howard for hurting the team in this way), I also want to look at it through a broader, basketball fan lens. I love this and wish Howard wasn’t suspended at all. Don’t get me wrong, I’d be pissed if he weren’t suspended, but it would be very fun to be that pissed at the B10.

Additionally, I have watched probably every angle of the swing a million times each. And each time, I find it more and more entertaining. Why limit the number of games where he could produce that result? While he’s still upset, why not poorly officiate each of their games too, to get more great content out of Howard? And, if he wasn’t suspended at all, can you imagine student sections during away games for Michigan?

Controversy is fun, and unfortunately, I’m too young to have watched most of Bob Knight’s career. If Juwan Howard could become the next Bob Knight, I would love it. It would make hating Michigan that much easier, and I would never want to miss one of their games. He’s got a way to go to fully reach that reputation. But, Juwan, if you’re reading this, please take the steps necessary to reach that status.