I wasn’t referring to his comfort level. He appeared to me to be at ease with the media. I just noticed that he would frequently use the wrong word in a sentence and his grammar was often less than stellar. When answering a question, he would start speaking very quickly as well, so perhaps his brain was just working a bit too fast for his tongue.
Or, again, I could be remembering incorrectly. His press conferences from the past two seasons are what stick out in my mind. It’s more difficult for me to recall his interactions with the media from the early years in Ann Arbor.
I don’t have a ranking in my head of great press-conference years and bad, but I do recall press conferences being particularly interesting and illuminating in 12/13.
Beilein definitely had some weird quirks to his speech. They become obvious when you transcribe press conferences. But everyone probably does if you look under a microscope.
He definitely became more trusting and open to the media though. Some of that comes from deep NCAA tournament runs and the unavoidable attention (the Final Four is a different level) but he absolutely grew in that area.
If there is anyone out there who is not as excited as I am about Juwan Howard as our Head Basketball Coach here at Michigan then I urge you to listen to today’s segment of Sam Webb’s show, Michigan Insider on WTKA. I get the podcast on podbean, and the Juwan Howard segment today, segment 11, is definitely worth a listen. It’s part of Sam’s Michigan from the Heart show.
In this segment Sam talks with Juwan Howard about a boy named Randy who was at Mott Children’s Hospital and given only weeks to live when Juwan was a very young man on Michigan’s basketball team and a member of the Fab Five. Randy touched young Juwan’s life in an amazing way, and Juwan, and his teammates, too, through Juwan’s leadership, helped to enrich and even extend Randy’s life from just weeks to a year and a half in a selfless, heartfelt, and very touching way.
Coach Eddie, who was co hosting the show with Sam on behalf of Michigan from the Heart, says that Juwan really was the impetus for Michigan from the Heart. Eddie says, “Juwan got the ball rolling,” and Eddie gets choked up just talking about the impact Juwan had on kids at the hospital.
I sat there listening to the podcast with tears in my eyes, and I KNOW that if Juwan can connect with kids and their parents while sitting in their living rooms the way he connected with me through cyberspace today, he will have no problem helping them to understand what a special place Michigan is, and in convincing them to come play for an NBA all star and former NBA coach and an incredible human being with a huge heart, and a true Michigan man! Juwan IS Michigan from the Heart. He touched my heart today, that’s for sure! He’ll touch yours, too. Give it a listen, if you can!
So at the time Juwan was hired, we had already lost Poole, Iggy and Matthews to the pros, Jalen Wilson had decommitted, Cole Bajema’s status was uncertain, rival schools were recruiting our current players to transfer, and Franz Wagner was looking doubtful. The makeup of next year’s roster was extremely uncertain.
While Wilson got away (Juwan may not have had much of a chance) all of the current players stayed on board, Bajema reaffirmed his commitment, and now Wagner committed. That’s a pretty good transition.
Great news for Michigan and a strong start for Coach Howard and staff on the recruiting trail. Ironically, after last night’s NBA merry-go-round has OKC looking face-to-face with a rebuild, wonder in Billy Donovan is second guessing his decision to say “no thanks” to Warde?
From the day Juwan accepted the job at Michigan I’ve been on cloud nine, and I haven’t left it yet. This man has been places and seen things in his life that I never have, both good and bad. He has suffered losses I have never known. He has seen success I never will. I have been spoiled and entitled my entire live, and while I’ve worked hard I’ve never achieved the success he has. Not many of us have. Juwan has MADE himself, with the help of God and the talent God instilled in him, Juwan has made himself the incredible man he is today.
Juwan came from so little, a tough neighborhood in Chicago, but he had the love of a grandma and his friends in Chicago, at school and on the playgrounds, and at Michigan, and a coach who loved him and treated him like a son. At 74 I hope it’s OK for me to say I am just so proud of Juwan because he’s the same age as my son, but I am, I’m proud of the man Juwan is, and I’m proud he’s the coach at Michigan. I don’t doubt Coach Juwan and I never will. His players don’t doubt him or his knowledge of the game and of people, or his love for them. I can’t think of a better man to lead our program at Michigan.
Juwan has lost so much, so many friends and mentors, but he has an incredibly strong character and a WILL to win, and he has strong arms around him in his family, his kids and Jenine, and on this team. I cheer for him and for the kids he coaches…and that he mentors, and fathers, and leads. I hope everyone reads the article.