Kornacki: For Juwan Howard, It's a Matter of Trust
10/18/2019 11:20:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Features
By Steve Kornacki
"Trust is the glue of life. It's the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It's the foundational principle that holds all relationships."
-- Stephen R. Covey, author "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People"
• Watch: Howard Media Day Press Conference
• Photos: Men's Basketball Media Day
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- It's a matter of trust.
Juwan Howard, the new David and Meredith Kaplan Men's Basketball Head Coach, knows that trust is central not only to establishing his program but in how his players communicate to one another that they can be counted upon.
Howard used the word "trust" over and over again in his media day press conference Thursday (Oct. 17) at Crisler Center.
He used it for the first time in describing Franz Wagner, the freshman guard from Germany whose brother, Moe, led the Wolverines to the 2018 NCAA championship game.
"Super-talented guy, high skill level," said Howard. "He's 6-foot-9, that's pretty dynamic. I think Franz has a chance to have a very good year this season. He's proven it in practice, his teammates trust him and he's shown that he's very competitive. Not only on the offensive end, but he's a very good defensive ball player with his wingspan as well as his activity on the ball. He's a quick learner, a very high basketball IQ, and he's also athletic, too. He's a competitor."
Wagner has already shown the more experienced Wolverines and his coaches that he can be trusted in the heat of a game.
Howard's been able to observe players in practice since Sept. 24, and has gained a good perspective on his two senior starters, point guard Zavier Simpson (nicknamed "X" because he came on campus with his first name spelled "Xavier") and center Jon Teske.
"What I've seen in practice is that both of them are great leaders," said Howard. "I will start with Zavier, for example. One of the most vocal leaders that you can find and a guy that is pretty much an extension of the coaching staff. Everything that we, of course, have talked about, with our coaching, 'X' has brought in from day one. Another thing with 'X,' is he has a basketball mind. He just is one of those guys, where you tell him one thing, he is quick to remember it and pick it up right away.
"But he's also vocal enough where he is a great communicator to his teammates. His teammates trust him. The staff, we all trust him. He's a guy with a ton of experience that has been battle tested in the NCAA the past three years, at an NCAA championship game, he's competed at the highest level, won Big Ten championships. It's good that 'X' has a lot of experience. I wish we could have him for another season in an ideal world, but obviously that's not realistic because he's a senior."
If trust is indeed "the glue of life," Teske also brings that.
Howard said: "Jon, he is one of the best defensive bigs in the Big Ten. He had a great year last year. I expect for Jon to have another year of high-level basketball. The way he competes inside, but also his basketball IQ. Making plays at that size, being able to get that outside shot, communicating defense. I'm big on our bigs in terms of communication. They have to be the loudest in the gym. They are the eyes behind our defense and they've got to quarterback our defense, and Jon has embraced that. Now, it's about getting him out of his comfort zone and being more of a communicator. Being louder because guys trust him, all of his teammates trust him."
Teske
Teske has earned the credibility with his teammates to be a more vocal leader, and Howard will be encouraging him to impart his insights and wisdom on them.
Without trust, you have no bridges from teammate to teammate, from coaches to players. It is essential to believing in the message and in one another. I asked Howard about how a player earns his trust.
"That's a good question," he said. "I think it's a question you may have to ask them. But I will say this: I think, as a former player, you have to look at how the coach has coached the entire team, what type of trust that he has displayed amongst the players as far as what type of relationship he has with his staff.
"Is he a great communicator? Is he one of those guys that 'talks the talk' or is he one of those guys that 'talks the walk?' What's your identity like? I know, for me, I'm the type of guy that I don't expect my players to trust me. I want to earn their trust. I want them to know that I'm in their corner 110 percent and that has to be proven by my actions, not just by words."
Later on media day, I took Howard up on his suggestion and asked several players and two assistant coaches how their new coach went about earning their trust.
"How did he earn my trust?" said Simpson, repeating the question. "His resume speaks for itself. I mean, it's not about him earning my trust. I just trust him. He's a great guy on and off the court, and has relationships with everyone. I don't feel he's earning my trust.
"I trusted him from the first phone call when he called me. I'm still working trying to earn his trust, though. I'm trying to do the most I can on and off the court by being a great teammate and pushing everybody and holding everybody accountable. It's doing the small things he will like."
Wagner, whose brother played for previous coach John Beilein, knew what Michigan was all about both academically and athletically. He also knew Saddi Washington, the lone coaching staff holdover. But he did not know anything about Howard beyond his impressive resume.
Howard was a driving force in the Fab Five, played in consecutive national championship games, was a first-round draft pick, played 19 NBA seasons, won NBA championships with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013, and was a Heat assistant the last five seasons.
But now, Wagner was coming across the Atlantic Ocean to play for a man he did not know first-hand. When Howard flew across that pond to watch Wagner play with Germany, that trust skyrocketed.
"When I played in Greece in the national tournament," said Wagner, "Juwan came over, and that was when it really clicked for me that I made the right decision because it showed me that he wanted to get to know me and he really buys into it. I was really happy about that."
Wagner
Why did he trust Howard once they began building a relationship?
"First of all," said Wagner, "he played here and is experienced. He played 19 years in the league and is an NBA champion. That alone should be enough for a young player who wants to do big things and wants to play in the NBA one day. You always want to learn from people like that. I know this is his first time as head coach, but I really like how he coaches us and teaches us.
"He's great with people and knows how to coach. He's not sugar-coating anything. That's really important."
Teske now not only had a new head coach but a new position coach. Howard is coaching the "bigs" with Washington returning to coaching wing players.
"Ever since the first day when he came into the first team meeting," said Teske, "he sat us all down in the locker room, and everything he said you could tell it came from the heart. And there were the little conversations we had on and off the court, and with everything he teaches. It's just building that trust.
"I mean, that's how it starts, talking about anything and everything. We've built that trust with him so far and are going to continue to build that trust throughout the season."
Forward Isaiah Livers trusted everything Howard had to tell him in evaluations, and dedicated himself to transforming his body, losing about 15 pounds and becoming more able to play the "positionless" style Howard favors.
What about Howard caused Livers to trust him so quickly?
"He wants to work." said Livers. "Some coaches will come in and say, "We're going to get that done and this done.' We're going to get our stuff done, but he likes to get out there and likes that competition. He comes from that Pat Riley organization (the Miami Heat) and my dad always told me about how they get after it. I noticed that in practice. There's a lot of one-on-one, two-on-two, three-on-three, four-on-four, five-on-five. It's exciting."
Howard asked Howard Eisley, whom he's known since Eisley's junior year at Detroit Southwestern High, to join his coaching staff in Ann Arbor. Eisley was a high school teammate of Jalen Rose, whom Howard played with on the Fab Five, and they came to know each other well by playing against one another in the NBA and then serving on opposing coaching staffs.
"That (trust) happens just by him being who he is," said Eisley, who spent 12 years playing in the NBA and nine seasons coaching there. "He's a very sincere guy, extremely loyal. His work ethic -- he goes out every day with the same demeanor and wants and requires everyone puts in his work.
"And his reputation on the teams he's been around, he's been successful at every level. So, that in itself acquires a certain amount of trust from players."
So, he walks the walk?
"Yeah," said Eisley. "He's done it."
Washington got to know Howard when he returned each season to his alma mater, and a trust began growing from that.
"Our relationship has kind of slowly developed since the first day I got here," said Washington. "When the transition came to where he said, 'Wash, I want you to stay and be a part of the staff,' I mean, he's just a genuine dude. Across the board, anyone you ask from former teammates in college and pros and his colleagues, the same thing comes across: 'You're going to get the most genuine dude that's out there.'
"Authenticity is very important in what we do because we spend so much time together with our staff and players and recruitment. People can wade through the B.S. that's out there, and that's just not who he is as a person. So, it was very easy from my perspective to trust him. I know he has a heart for this place, and I know that it's important for him to come here and do well."
Howard mentioned that something he loves is that, while working at 10:30 p.m., he will always hear the music begin blaring on the practice courts one floor below his spacious office. The sounds of basketballs being dribbled and shot provides the continual chorus.
It puts a smile on Howard's face. Livers said the players realize their coach is burning the midnight oil, too, and that Howard wants to coach players to the next level.
"That's how he earned my trust is when he brought that down to us," said Livers.
Trust is a two-way street, and the bridge at Crisler between players and coaches appears to be as strong as it's ever been.
