3 biggest takeaways from Dusty May's introductory press conference for the Michigan Wolverines
Former Wolverine Juwan Howard is out, and former Florida Atlantic coach Dusty May is in for the men`s basketball coaching position at Michigan. May was formally introduced by the team in a press conference, and he made it clear the things he wants to do for the Wolverines` basketball program.
Dusty May signed a five-year contract that would pay him around $3.75 million every year (via ESPN). He leaves the Owls after leading them to the Final Four last year. He's once again back in this year`s NCAA Tournament even if they fell in the first round to Northwestern.
Here are three key takeaways from May`s introductory press conference:
#1 Dusty May wants to be in Michigan
For Wolverines fans who might believe that he wasn`t a good fit, put those assumptions to rest. The former FAU coach said that his move to Ann Arbor is the best fit not just for him, but for his family as well:
"This was a place that I wanted to be. This was the right fit for me, my family. And it just felt right and I'm a big feel guy. I'm a big fit guy.
"And from Day 1, this was one that I just thought would match me and allow me and those around me to have the highest level of success doing it the way that we enjoy doing."
Perhaps if Michigan is to rebound from a dismal 8-24 season, Dusty May`s philosophy of being a good fit is an excellent starting point for the team.
#2 He wants Michigan basketball to be fun
Fun was a term that could never be attributed to the 2023-24 Wolverines. For one, it`s absolutely not fun to see the team lose nine straight games to close out the year, let alone have four other losing skids for the regular season.
Another thing is that Michigan basketball was just not good enough outside great individual talents like Dug McDaniel (who has entered the transfer portal).
Dusty May will be inheriting an offense that's outside the top 200 in scoring, assists and rebounds. For Wolverines hoops to be fun again, May will have to start basically at the very bottom.
"Our goal is to be enjoyable to watch," he said. "We want to win championships, but we also want to put fans in the seats and be easy on the eyes."
#3 Dusty May doesn`t see major negatives with Michigan despite a poor season
A ton of reasons could lead to an NCAA basketball team having a terrible year. The team`s troubles could`ve been from reasons like the poor handling of student-athletes or anything else, leading to struggles on the court.
However, as a coach with roughly 20 years of experience, May knows that Michigan basketball doesn`t have such underlying troubles:
"Normally, in every search I've ever conducted, you hear something negative. Some issue arose. Somebody didn't think you handled this student-athlete or this team. Nothing. Everything was positive."