SUNS’ RALLY DERAILED
Mentor helped Howard become hoops coach
Suns guard Devin Booker shoots over Lakers guard Avery Bradley in the first half on Tuesday night at Talking Stick Resort Arena in Phoenix. Booker’s layup with 3:29 left gave Phoenix a 113-111 lead, but Los Angeles responded with three consecutive 3-pointers and pulled away for a 123-115 win.
Juwan Howard had an inkling he wanted to coach way before earning his first win at Michigan last week.
“Back when I was playing for Portland before I signed with the Miami Heat, 2009, as a player under Nate McMillan, that was the time when I had conversations with Nate and Monty Williams, asking them questions about what it takes to be a coach,” said Howard at Big Ten media day last month.
Williams recalls those conversations and isn’t surprised Howard wound up becoming a head coach.
“I thought Juwan could do whatever he wanted to,” Williams said. “I’m not saying that flippantly.”
Howard was thinking a front office position, but his mind started shifting toward coaching during the 2009-10 season in Portland with McMillan and Williams.
“That coaching bug, that teaching bug became what I wanted to do for my next walk,” Howard said.
When Miami and Phoenix faced each other last Thursday, Howard had picked up his first coaching win a few days earlier.
Howard secured his second win as Michigan defeated Creighton 79-69 on Tuesday.
But Howard’s coaching journey began back in the 1990s as a member of the “Fab Five.”
Let’s start in 1993 with Williams, way before he resumed his head coaching career in Phoenix.
Williams played against Howard in college as they were on opposite ends of the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry.
Williams was unfortunately on the wrong end of that game.
Facing the the Wolverines Williams and the Irish lost, 70-55, at Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
“I remember playing against those guys and getting my butt smacked,” Williams laughed.
That’s not the only thing Williams remembers.
“I was a point forward and Juwan guarding me full court,” Williams said. “At 6-10 guarding me full court. I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh.’ “
The two ended up in the same 1994 draft class. Howard was taken fifth overall while Williams was the 24th pick.
The two faced each other several times over years, but let’s fast forward to 2009.
Williams was a Trail Blazers assistant under McMillan when Howard joined the team.
His better playing days were behind him, but Howard made his mark in his one season with the Trail Blazers, who won 50 games, made the playoffs and lost in the first round to the Suns.
“Never had tougher guy around me than Juwan and nobody classier,” Williams said. “When he and (Suns GM) James (Jones) were with us in Portland,
Juwan wore a suit to every game, just to be an example to the young guys and he changed our program. He and James and Andre Miller.”
The following season, Howard signed with the Heat and played for Erik Spoelstra.
Two other players brought their talents to South Beach as well: LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
With Dwyane Wade, the Heat reached the NBA Finals but fell to the Dallas Mavericks. Howard hardly played, but was a guiding force for the Heat, who won it all the next season.
The Heat won back-to-back titles as they defeated San Antonio Spurs in a classic seven-game series.
Howard retired and joined Spoelstra’s coaching staff as an assistant in 2013.
Howard was part of staff which included current New York Knicks head coach David Fizdale and Heat assistant Dan Craig.
“Those guys were teaching me how to become and prepare myself as a head coach,” Howard said. “As I was an assistant with the Heat, those where the moments I when I was preparing myself like, you know what, this is me. I’m embracing this opportunity. I started preparing myself as a head coach. Erik Spoelstra started teaching me how and what to look for. How to prepare as a coach. How to prepare with the game planning for opponents. All that information and data I started collecting.”
What Spoelstra couldn’t prepare Howard for the anxiety he’d feel in the hours leading up to a game.
“Just joking about how it feels a little bit different, those hours before the game when you’re a head coach,” Spoelstra said with a smile. “Those are the worst. From shootaround all the way to tip off. He’s going through those emotions.” In Howard’s second season as an assistant in Miami in 2014-15, the Heat added an undrafted rookie out of Fresno State: Tyler Johnson.
The combo guard spent four full seasons in Miami before the Heat traded him to the Suns before the 2019 trade deadline.
But Johnson saw an essential quality in Howard that all head coaches have.
“He’s a great basketball mind,” Johnson said.
Johnson had figured Howard would be a head coach in the league.
“That’s still obviously an option on the table,” Johnson said. “I definitely thought he would’ve already been an NBA head coach. He’ll be there at some point.”
Johnson’s last season in Miami happened to be guard Duncan Robinson’s first with the Heat.
Also undrafted like Johnson, Robinson noticed Howard’s ability to connect with players, but they already had a connection.
The two both played at Michigan. So when his college coach, John Beilein left to coach the Cleveland Cavaliers and Michigan hired Howard, Robinson was all for it.
“I thought it was a great hire,” Robinson said. “Having known the Michigan program well and having know Juwan well, I thought it was a great match. I think he’s going to do a great job.” Spoelstra agrees.
“Under his leadership and guidance, they’re going to be just fine,” he said.
Howard has taken over the Michigan program for one of the best college basketball coaches ever.
“I think Coach Beilein is truly unique at how he did things and I think Juwan is unique in how he does things,” Robinson said.