Michigan basketball has taken a sharp downhill turn in the 2023-2024 season. After making the NCAA Tournament numerous times in the past decade, the program missed the tournament entirely in 2023, and seems to be on the same trajectory in 2024. It is worth taking a look into the season so far to see what the Michigan basketball program can do to improve on their brutal 6-9 record.
The start of the season has been shrouded in uncertainty for the Wolverines. Head Coach Juwan Howard underwent a heart procedure on Sept. 15, which required a period of recovery where he would understandably be absent from the team. In his absence, assistant Phil Martelli took over as acting head coach, and Howard still has not returned in full. To add on to the uncertainty of leadership, there was also a reported altercation between Howard and head strength and conditioning coach Jon Sanderson, which led many to question if Michigan basketball’s leadership has their heads in the right place. It doesn’t help that Howard has a history of physical altercations, stemming from when he slapped a Wisconsin assistant coach after a game in 2021. While the coaching staff can certainly turn it around, when a team is losing as much as Michigan has, the off-court issues have become a brutal look for the program.
In terms of the teams on court performance, it has obviously been rough. Defensively, the Wolverines have seemed lost, giving up an average of 78.7 points per game, which puts them in the bottom 25 of college basketball. Teams shoot high percentages on three’s against Michigan as well, due to late rotations leading to wide open looks. They also struggle with turnovers, averaging 13.4 per game. The lone bright spot of the year has been the play of star point guard Dug McDaniel, who has averaged 17.8 points per game to go along with 5.1 assists. McDaniel has been the spark when Michigan plays well, as he is very energetic and aggressive with the ball in his hands. Again though, it seems like negativity continues to occur in the program, as McDaniel has been suspended for the next 6 away games of the season. It is unknown at the time of writing why McDaniel was suspended, and why it warranted a bizarre suspension that only applies to away games.
All in all, Michigan basketball has been a brutal watch this year. It clearly isn’t a lost cause just yet, as many teams save their season by getting hot through the end of conference play, but Michigan needs some positive momentum fast. If the wins don’t start to rack up and off the court issues continue to occur, Michigan basketball may have some tough questions to ask itself this offseason.