The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1178918
42 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2019 2019-20 BASKETBALL PREVIEW M ichigan assistant coach Saddi Washington wasn't sure what was going to happen once former head coach John Beilein left for the Cleveland Cavaliers. He knew he loved Ann Arbor and wanted to stay, and he made that clear early to new head coach Juwan Howard. Howard found Washington to be a good fit after the two met, and the re- lationship has been a great one since. "Saddi has been awesome. I'm happy that he was one of my hires, and he's done an excellent job help- ing our team, helping me and the staff with all his basketball knowl- edge and experience," Howard said. "He's also been extremely helpful in helping me with some of the play- ers — their dynamics, likes, dislikes, personalities, things of that nature. "He'd built a relationship before I did. I think that's helped a lot of our current players who were on the team last year, to help make that smooth transition." It's been an easy conversion with the new coaching staff, too. Howard Eisley and Phil Martelli have fit in well, the head man said, and all of them have input. Washington is a defensive coordinator of sorts, Eisley an offensive specialist, while Martelli oversees it all. There's no question, however, that Howard is the one in charge. Observ- ers have said he runs practice like a guy who has done it many times be- fore, demanding accountability while teaching in a hands-on manner. He'll admit he's gotten plenty of help from his assistants, too, and Howard noted he hired who he did because he values and seeks their input. Washington said that was clear from the get-go, as well as the fact that everyone would have a voice. "He said right off the jump this is an egoless staff, one that the people can really check their egos at the door," Washington explained. "For me, it's been a great transition, be- cause I felt like our previous staffs that we've had here — we've had good flow to our work. "I really, really enjoy working with Howard and Phil, Dave [Metzen- dorf, U-M's video analyst], coach Jay [Smith, the team's director of player personnel and development] and all the other people that we have. I think that's the beauty of our staff dynamic, that we're all kind of in- terchangeable in terms of being able to teach. "Player development and skill is going to be a huge part of what we do here in the program, and I think that the ability to move back and forth between different positions will be a strength for our staff." — Chris Balas HOWARD PLEASED BY TEAM ATTITUDE AND ACCEPTANCE Coaching transitions can be hard, whether it's players not buying in to the system or coaches trying to ham- mer square pegs into round holes, so to speak. New Michigan head coach Juwan Howard has had nothing but good things to say about his players' attitudes and willingness to adjust to his system through the first several weeks of basketball practice. There are some significant differ- ences from former coach John Beilein, most of them admitted during the program's media day Oct. 17. The of- fense is more up-tempo and there are some more NBA principles being em- ployed on both ends of the court. But from a learning standpoint, they've been all ears and seem to love their new coach. "It's not challenging at all. I've said this, and I mean it from my heart — Coach Beilein and his criteria of re- cruiting players has worked," How- ard said. "Players that are here that Coach Beilein, [former assistants] DeAndre [Haynes], Luke [Yaklich], as well as [current assistant] Saddi [Washington], recruited are high- character guys. You don't have to police them or micro-manage. Their families did a beautiful job of raising them. "While saying that, it hasn't been tough to try and drill my culture or help them with their transition. I'm just authentic and natural, 'real' as they would say. I was them once before. I was a player here before. I played at the highest level. I could understand exactly what it takes for a student-athlete on where they're trying to go, whether it's in basket- ball or being a professional in life. … MICHIGAN BASKETBALL Saddi Washington Has Helped With Juwan Howard's Transition Washington (right), the lone holdover from John Beilein's coaching staff, has helped Howard learn the dynamics and personalities of the team. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL