Phil Martelli recaps effort at Illinois, handling of Hunter Dickinson

Michigan basketball associate head coach Phil Martelli knew the task was tall in the 68-53 loss to Illinois over the weekend. The Wolverines were praised for how hard they played in a shorthanded game, but that can also be taken as a backhanded criticism.

“One little caveat,” Martelli said Monday on a Zoom call with the Michigan media. “Whenever you’re in a situation in sports and the other coaching staff says to you that you played really hard, that’s coachspeak. What that really means is you weren’t good enough tonight. 

“We weren’t good enough Friday. We weren’t good enough in basketball. I appreciate the sentiment but, at the end of the day, what do we have to improve upon in basketball? You’ve got a scholarship to play hard. You got selected to be on this team to play hard. That’s a non-negotiable. Now, let’s play better.”

RELATED: Wolverine TV: Phil Martelli talks path to ending Michigan basketball’s ‘tough stretch’

Martelli is right. Michigan was a preseason national championship contender but sits at 7-7 on the year and 1-3 in Big Ten games. There are still plenty of games left to play, but the margin of error shrinks with each loss.

The latest with Hunter Dickinson

Sophomore center Hunter Dickinson missed the Illinois game while dealing with his return from a COVID-19 bout. Both he and senior forward Brandon Johns went through a limited workout on Sunday night and Michigan will determine Tuesday if they are good to go.

Dickinson missed the opportunity to go up against a potential national player of the year in Illinois’ Kofi Cockburn coming off of an offseason where there were barbs traded between programs.

Martelli saw how much it meant to him to not be out there.

“It pulls at you,” Martelli said. “You want guys to be successful. For as effervescent a personality as Hunter is, I wanted him to have that chance to go out there and play against Kofi. But I didn’t want him out there for me. I wanted him out there for him.

But you look at him, he’s 7-foot-2 and has this oversized personality and persona, you see the look in his eyes and see that he’s a kid. He’s a kid that wants this opportunity and he physically knows that he can’t give it. Same with these players. There’s no player that’s going to come in here and say we practiced [for two hours] so I’m good to go. You want them to go out there and have success against Maryland.”

Michigan staff staying in tune with Dickinson

Dickinson flirted with the NBA last offseason and elected to return for what he seemed to indicate was his final season. He was expected to be the lynchpin of the Michigan basketball team, and mostly has, but the team record is what it is.

With so much attention being paid to everything he does, Martelli is making sure he stays in touch with what Dickinson is going through.

“The conversations you have with him are away from basketball,” Martelli said. “Is NIL (name, image, likeness) time-consuming? Are thoughts about, ‘I kind of was public about this was my last year in college,’ is that a burden? It’s really important – and this tone is set by Juwan – this is personal. These are personal relationships. These are not player-coach. What do we really know about Hunter? You have to be really in tune with them drifting away. In today’s world, how much flack and negativity on social media? We have to be there for him.

“I think he’s concerned health-wise. That was his last statement to me in the locker room in Illinois. I said, ‘Are you all right?’ He said, ‘I just feel bad. I just want to be out there with them.’”

Dickinson was one of the positive COVID cases that led to a two-game pause for the Wolverines, causing them to miss games against Michigan State and Purdue. Martelli gave the center credit for being honest and up front about his status instead of pushing through and potentially prolonging an outbreak.

“Maybe this thing lasts two more weeks instead of one,” Martelli said.

Up next for Michigan basketball is a matchup with the Maryland Terrapins on Tuesday night at Crisler Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.