Michigan basketball’s Phil Martelli praises Warde Manuel's team address

Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel came up with the five-game suspension for Juwan Howard after an altercation on Wednesday, one approved by the Big Ten Monday. Manuel addressed the team at practice yesterday and let them know in no uncertain terms what the expectation was moving forward. 

RELATED

•  Borton and Crawford discuss Juwan Howard suspension, more

• Wolverine TV podcast: Reacting to Juwan Howard’s suspension, what’s next for Michigan basketball

• Juwan Howard shows remorse in statement released by Michigan

Associate head coach Phil Martelli is the guy in charge for the next five games. He praised Manuel for his handling of the situation, one that resulted in Howard’s suspension and Moussia Diabate and Terrance Williams’ one-game penalty.

“He gave a masterclass on what was learned,” Martelli said. “So, he deserves the credit. In situations like that, in all walks of life, there are moments when you [snap]. When that happens, you can go one way, or you can go the other. Everybody went in the wrong direction last time. Whatever needs to happen when [that] happens, let’s each grow from it. 

“All of us would say the same thing. Escalations like that have no place in the game. Everybody involved. Everybody. Not the three people suspended, or not just our players. Everybody involved has now learned a hard lesson.”

Until 3:15 yesterday, Martelli said, people were operating on their own sets of facts — who did what, said what or would get which suspension. However, Manuel let them know what to expect. Even though the player punishments hadn’t been accepted yet by the Big Ten, he told them Diabate and Williams probably wouldn’t play. 

“He was very blunt with everybody that that’s not going to be repeated,” Martelli said. “That is just not going to be repeated, because it’s not acceptable.”

Martelli: “I’m going to be me”

Howard hasn’t had any contact with the team since Sunday night, Martelli noted, nor will he. That was when the coach sent a “very heartfelt exchange” via text to his group. 

Martelli has remained in touch with his boss, though, and will.

“Yes. Juwan’s my friend,” he said. “So … yeah. I feel tremendously responsible to my friends to make sure they’re doing well. 

“Juwan is very remorseful, and today is a little better than yesterday.”

And Martelli isn’t Juwan Howard. He made that clear in Tuesday’s Michigan basketball press conference.

Though they’ll run the same stuff and prepare much the same way, the coach has his own style and will do things his way from the Michigan bench.

“I’m going to be me,” the Michigan assistant said. “So … a small thing. I’ve never sat down during a game, so there will be a chair there, but it will be for him. It will not be for me. I told the players that yesterday — that I’m not replacing Juwan Howard. But what we have in place is the way we are going to play. 

“The guy is a mastermind with ATOs (after timeout plays) and it has blown my mind for three years. I don’t know that he’s repeated an ATO in any of these games for three years. That’s not who I am. So, we’re going to have a way we’re going to approach our timeouts. We’re going to come out of timeouts organized; going to come out of timeouts with a pattern. I’m going to run the timeout the way I run it. But I’m not going to mimic him. I didn’t mimic him yesterday in practice and will not today.”

Michigan is moving forward “together” 

Michigan assistant Howard Eisley will be offensive coordinator now, and Chris Hunter will move to the bench from his Director of Basketball Operations role. When there’s a play coming out of a timeout, it will be Eisley’s, Martelli said. 

“It’s him and Juwan that have put together this really effective and massive playbook,” Martelli said. “So, you’ll see Howard Eisley get up, make a call, and he’ll sit down …”

But coaching isn’t foreign to Martelli, obviously, and he’s certainly not in over his head. He’s had decades of experience as a head coach at St. Joseph before Michigan, knows how to call a game and will be just fine. 

It’s not just his team, though, and he’s well aware.

“The only way we can move forward is together,” he said. “If we move forward and this guy makes a left and I make a right, then we didn’t move forward. Maybe these three people moved forward. 

“So, to me, here’s the power. In this hand. If I have an open hand, not a lot of power can be generated. But here [fist], power can be generated. So, lets’ move powerfully forward — not just, ‘well, let’s get Tuesday out of the way.’”

And the next time things get intense — and yeah, they will (it’s the Big Ten) — the Michigan team will be better prepared, he insisted.

“We are all collectively remorseful for missed opportunities,” Martelli said. “I’ll raise my hand. Juwan went one way … I didn’t think to go with him. Chris Hunter felt the same way. Everybody learned a hard lesson, but you know what? It’s time to play basketball.”

Starting with a big game Wednesday night against Rutgers in Ann Arbor.