Florida Man: Juwan Howard's punishment; an up-and-comer in N.C.
Whether you call what Michigan head coach Juwan Howard did to Wisconsin assistant Joe Krabbenhoft following Sunday’s game between the teams a slap, a grab or a mush, serious punishment needed to be imposed. Later, that shoe dropped.
Most reasonable people agree that a school-imposed, five-game suspension that will cost Howard roughly $130,000 before the Big Ten imposed a $40,000 fine is more or less fitting for an act that has absolutely no place in college basketball. There weren't many people outside the state of Wisconsin that wanted Howard fired, nor should he have been.
That doesn’t change the fact that the third-year Wolverines head coach COULD have been.
In fact, he likely would have been had he not guided his team to a Big Ten title and the Final Four a season ago or shown a knack for recruiting at the highest level by landing the top class in the country in 2021. The fact that there are different rules for winners and losers is no secret to anyone that follows sports. More than anything else, the fallout tells us that decision makers in Ann Arbor strongly believe in Howard and his future as the school’s head coach.
Fact is, Michigan’s 14-11 record and current standing squarely on the NCAA Tournament bubble is viewed, at least in the school’s athletics offices, as merely a speed bump on a road the administration sees leading to long-term success. If it weren't, Howard would be looking for his next job. Opportunities to fire head coaches for cause and skirt buyouts – a $5 million buyout in this case – are rare in college athletics. On Sunday, Howard served his bosses such a chance on a silver platter.
They quickly passed.
It’s sometimes hard to know where you stand in the eyes of your employer, but not for Howard. Not anymore, anyway. Has Howard fallen well short of expectations this season? Certainly. But if anyone at Michigan had doubts about his coaching acumen or the long-term future, this column would be focused on the Wolverines’ coaching search.
Fact is, Howard caught a well-deserved suspension from his school and a sizable fine from his conference. He deserved both, but he also got a silent vote of confidence from his bosses in the process. That much is obvious.
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INTRODUCING: 2025 guard Amore Connelly
I was basically unaware of freshman guard Amore Connelly until Monday, when our Jacey Zembal, who does a wonderful job covering NC State at TheWolfpackCentral.com, called me following an in-person viewing of the Morganton (N.C.) Freedom standout.
Not many have seen the class of 2025 guard in person, as he attends school in a sort of no-man’s-land area of North Carolina and doesn’t play the strongest of competition, but after watching a scouting video of Connelly my interest in certainly piqued.
Already standing 6-foot-1, Connelly is a high-level athlete that comes with impressive bounce, a tight handle and a motor that doesn’t seem to stall. He plays with nice pace and is clearly extremely confident in his pull-up jumper from range. Ideally, he’ll add a few inches and get better when it comes to finishing around the rim, but the potential for a top 25 ranking seems to be there.
I'm already looking forward to getting eyes on the young prospect this summer, as he could be in for a breakout offseason and some high-major opportunities.