The University of Michigan announced on Friday that men’s basketball coach Juwan Howard has been dismissed.
“After a comprehensive review of the program, I have decided that Juwan will not return as our men’s basketball coach,” Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said in a statement. “Juwan is among the greatest Wolverines to ever be associated with our basketball program. I know how much it meant, to not only Juwan, but to all of us for him to return here to lead this program. Despite his love of his alma mater and the positive experience that our student-athletes had under his leadership, it was clear to me that the program was not living up to our expectations and not trending in the right direction. I am thankful for Juwan’s dedication, passion and commitment to U-M and for all that he, and his legacy, will continue to mean to Michigan.”
Although his tenure at Michigan concluded in disillusionment, Howard initially demonstrated considerable potential in the realm of collegiate coaching. Howard, who was hired in 2019 to replace John Beilein, who had departed for the Cleveland Cavaliers, led the Michigan Wolverines to a 19-12 record in their first season. Had the NCAA tournament not been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they would have qualified.
Year two marked Michigan’s first appearance in the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed since 1993, and it was Howard and the Wolverines’ first Big Ten regular-season championship since 2014. They advanced to the Elite Eight prior to a two-point loss to UCLA. The subsequent season, Howard guided Michigan back to the Sweet 16, notwithstanding the team’s lackluster overall record of 19-15.
