Grade: A
Honestly, I was tempted to give Howard an A+ for this hire because it’s that good. It was pretty obvious that Howard was going to need someone with experience to help him navigate recruiting and just everything that is college basketball.
Sources: Former Saint Joseph’s head coach Phil Martelli has been formally offered and accepted an assistant coaching position on Juwan Howard’s staff at Michigan.
— Brendan Quinn (@BFQuinn) June 3, 2019
Martelli, 64, won 444 games in 24 seasons at St. Joe’s, reaching 7 NCAA Tournaments.
Certainly, Howard has basketball knowledge but there are more intricacies in college basketball than the NBA and getting a guy like Martelli, who has won 444 games and a bunch of A-10 championships at St. Joe’s is perfect.
Not only will Martelli be a great help to Howard on the court, but he will also be a huge asset on the recruiting trail. Martelli has deep ties to the East Coast and Philadelphia after all his time coaching in the city and that should bode well for the Wolverines.
Hopefully this is how it irons out
— ᗩᑎT ᗯᖇIGᕼT (@itsAntWright) June 3, 2019
Juwan (Chicago/Midwest)
Martelli (Philly/Northeast)
Eisley (Detroit/Midwest)
Saddi (Midwest)
All hotbeds of some really talented ball players.. I’m sure Martelli recruited guys he had no business around, coming with a Block M will be different
Finding an assistant with head coaching experience was always going to be key, but getting a guy like Martelli is exceptional. In just about every way possible, this is a home-run hire.