From Rockets dugout to Nets coaching bench: Juwan Howard and Yao Ming’s hug brings back twenty years of basketball memories for Chinese fans

During the recent NBA China game, the VIP seats in the first row of the stadium were crowded with stars. Former NBA superstars such as Yao Ming and O'Neal were watching the game from the sidelines, which also made the game even more exciting. When the camera swept across the first row of the stadium, I unexpectedly spotted a player of the same generation as Yao Ming and O'Neal on the Nets bench. He is now an assistant coach of the Nets. When I saw him and Yao Ming hugging and exchanging greetings, a burst of emotion came to my heart. Some pictures have their own memory filters. Twenty years ago, a hug between the two instantly took me back to the time when I was crazy about Houston Rockets basketball 20 years ago. This person is Yao Ming’s old teammate Juwan Howard.

I think all old fans who have experienced the Yao Ming era must be deeply impressed by the basketball atmosphere at that time, especially every offseason, when the Rockets make reinforcements, sports newspapers and the Internet will talk about the player's past and strength, and then make a very special comment. The often eye-catching title is: "The Rockets welcome strong new players to help the Yao-Mai team fight for the championship." Everyone is full of expectations for the Rockets in the new season, but now we look back from a God's perspective. The Rockets' reinforcements are too stingy, because the boss is unwilling to spend money, and they have not actually received much strong support.

Chinese fans are very fond of the Rockets players at that time (including the water dispenser administrator). Chinese media people and fans also affectionately gave them nicknames, Uncle Francis (Francis), Uncle Mu (Mutombo), Uncle Huo (Howard) ), Hayes (Hayes), Diamond (Scola), Streetball King (Lal Sitong), Little Black Bean (Brooks), Bird (Landry), Stick (Bunch Wells), etc. In today’s NBA Characters Chronicle, I will turn on the time machine to review Howard’s basketball story.

Juwan Howard was born on February 7, 1973, in the famous city of Chicago, Illinois, USA. His mother Helena met Russell Watson while she was working in a Chicago restaurant while attending college. The two got married after eating forbidden fruit. Helena was only 17 at the time. Years old, she had no ability to raise the child, so she fostered him to her mother, Jenny Mae Howard, shortly after giving birth to Howard. From then on, her grandmother became the guardian of little Howard and named him Juwan Howard after her own surname. She took good care of Howard, had strict requirements, and worked hard to bring him up.

In 1987, Juwan Howard's basketball talent began to emerge in high school. He was selected to the McDonald's All-American Team while at Chicago Vocational High School. Before graduating from high school, he was recruited by several famous universities, including Howard's hometown team, the University of Illinois. They had previously recruited four of the top five high school students in the Chicago area to the team. Against Howard Germany is bound to win, and there is also the University of Michigan. The team's assistant coach Dach followed Howard's training for 28 days in a month. Dach also gained important information. Howard valued the opinion of his grandma the most. At this time, Howard's grandma was in very bad physical condition. Howard specifically emphasized that recruiters should not call home frequently. The entire basketball coaching staff of the University of Michigan After visiting Howard's house and visiting his grandma, Howard was finally moved by the sincerity of the University of Michigan and announced that he would join the school. Unfortunately, his grandma passed away due to a heart attack shortly after he announced the news. She was not able to see the day Howard entered the NBA. Howard turned his grief for his grandma into the motivation to move forward and put it into the game. During the college games, he always emphasized that he would fulfill his grandma's dream. Willing to work hard, Howard vowed to his grandma before she passed away that he would obtain a college diploma. He participated in the summer cram school in the 1994 offseason and completed the last 32 classes. After entering the NBA, he completed self-study and graduation thesis in between games and on trips to visiting teams. Finally, he received a Bachelor of Arts in Communication. At the graduation ceremony, the president of the University of Michigan called him a role model for the school.

Howard's three-year college career from 1991 to 1993 was the most famous period in the history of American college basketball. He teamed up with Chris Webber, Jaylen Rose, Ray Jackson, Jamie King formed the famous "Michigan Fab Five". At that time, Pelinka, now the general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, was on the team. Relying on the heroic performance of the Fab Five, the University of Michigan reached the NCAA Finals for two consecutive years in 1991 and 1992. Among them, the 1992 Finals is the most classic. They staged a peak showdown with the University of North Carolina. In the last 11 seconds of the game, Michigan was trailing by 2 points 71-73 but had the ball. Chris Webber called a timeout. At this time, Michigan's timeouts were exhausted. They were sentenced to a technical foul. North Carolina got a free throw opportunity and the ball, thus eliminating the University of Michigan. Although the Michigan Five failed to win the final NCAA championship, they became well-known basketball players in the United States at the time..

Lao Huo then returned to the NBA. However, compared to the high-spiritedness two years ago, his reputation as a coach has obviously dropped to the bottom. Now he can only work as an assistant coach. Currently, he is the inside coach of the Nets. Players such as Clarkston and Wolff are receiving his guidance. He may be with basketball throughout his life, but no matter how his identity changes, he will always have a affectionate title in the hearts of Chinese fans: Uncle Huo.