Michigan fires basketball coach Juwan Howard after five seasons

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Michigan fired coach Juwan Howard on Friday after five seasons, parting ways with the previous Fab Five star whose return to his alma mater included a Big Ten title and advancing to 2 NCAA tournaments before ending with two in a row disappointing seasons.

Howard finished with an 82-67 record with the Wolverines, with some ups and downs. He won the regular-season conference championship and earned a road victory to the Final Four in 2021, when he was named Associated Press Coach of the Year.

It lost a school-record 24 games that season, and Michigan fell to last place within the Big Ten for the primary time since 1967.

Michigan State athletic director Warde Manuel called for Howard’s firing without cause two days after an eight-win season that ended with a loss to Penn State in the primary round of the Big Ten tournament.

“After a comprehensive review of the program, I have decided that Juwan will not return as our men’s basketball coach,” Manuel said in an announcement from the college, which didn’t include Howard’s comment. “Juwan is one in every of the best Wolverines to ever be related to our basketball program.

“I know how much it meant not only to Juwan, but to all of us, to have him come back here and host this show. Despite his love for his alma mater and the positive experiences our student-athletes gained under his leadership, it was clear to me that the program was not meeting our expectations and was not heading in the right direction.”

Manuel hired Howard, who cried tears of joy during his introductory press conference in May 2019 when John Beilein lashed out on the Cleveland Cavaliers coach after the Wolverines became a national power.

Beilein, who’s a possible candidate to return to Michigan, was left a message looking for comment.

At the beginning of the 2021-22 season, after advancing to the regional finals of the NCAA Tournament, Manuel gave Howard a five-year extension value greater than $16.9 million that kept him under contract through the tip of the 2025-26 season.

Michigan State will owe Howard roughly $7 million in base salary and extra salary and a lump sum payment of $3 million for firing him without cause within the third yr of the contract, in line with the terms of the contract.

Featured Stories

Howard, 51, underwent heart surgery in September and returned to go coaching duties in mid-December after learning of an incident involving several people during team practice. Former strength and conditioning coach Jon Sanderson didn’t join the team on the bench throughout the Dec. 10 game at Iowa, nor did he serve on the team’s bench in subsequent games.

Sanderson resigned last week and was hired Thursday by the Illinois basketball program as an athletic performance consultant.

Manuel said in a December 15 statement that a “thorough internal review” revealed nothing that will justify disciplinary motion against anyone involved.

Two years ago, Howard was suspended for the ultimate five games of the regular season and fined $40,000 for punching a Wisconsin assistant in the top and starting a postgame brawl. Last season, Howard got right into a shouting match with then-Maryland coach Mark Turgeon and needed to be restrained throughout the conference tournament. Howard drew two technical fouls and was ejected from that game.

Howard, a Chicago native, was a key player on Michigan’s Fab Five teams, together with Chris Webber, Jalen Rose, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson, that reached the national championship games in 1992 and 1993.

Washington drafted Howard with the No. 5 overall pick in 1994, and the one-time All-Star forward averaged 13.4 points in a profession that led to 2013 after winning two NBA titles with the Miami Heat. Howard’s coaching profession began as an assistant specializing in player development with the Heat before being promoted to assistant coach.

Two of his sons played for him at Michigan: Jett, who was chosen eleventh overall by the Orlando Magic this yr, and Jace, the team’s reserve this season.