{"id":63490,"date":"2025-07-14T00:00:08","date_gmt":"2025-07-14T00:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/63490\/"},"modified":"2025-07-14T00:00:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-14T00:00:08","slug":"in-year-2-dusty-may-sees-michigan-basketball-being-even-more-unique","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/63490\/","title":{"rendered":"In Year 2, Dusty May sees Michigan basketball being ‘even more unique’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ann Arbor \u2014 The sample size is admittedly small.<\/p>\n

At the midway point of summer practices, the majority of the Michigan basketball roster has been together for only a week and there\u2019s only been a few full-team workouts.<\/p>\n

But with most of the squad on campus, coach Dusty May likes what he sees in the early stages as the Wolverines begin to take shape and gear up for the 2025-26 campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cI probably will (have) an optimistic outlook every year going into the season,\u201d May said Sunday. \u201cWe get to choose our players, so hopefully we’re not choosing guys that we don’t like or that we don’t believe in or that we don’t want to coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy nature, I’m going to be optimistic, but I like our team. \u2026 They seem to be a competitive group. They came in better shape than we anticipated. We have a lot of weapons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following an offseason of roster turnover, May and Michigan reloaded with four transfers \u2014 guard Elliot Cadeau (North Carolina), forwards Morez Johnson Jr. (Illinois) and Yaxel Lendeborg (UAB), and center Aday Mara (UCLA) \u2014 who will play prominent roles.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also an infusion of young talent with five freshmen, headlined by top-100 recruits Trey McKenney and Winters Grady. Malick Kordel, a center from Germany, is the only one in the quintet who hasn\u2019t made it to campus yet, but May expects him to arrive \u201cvery soon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite all the new faces, May built the roster with a similar vision in mind. He didn\u2019t want to be like every other Big Ten team last season in his first year at the helm. He wanted to be different. He wanted distinct lineups that could give the Wolverines an advantage.<\/p>\n

More: <\/strong>Like Danny Wolf, Yaxel Lendeborg will be Michigan basketball’s ‘queen on a chessboard’<\/a><\/p>\n

That came to fruition with the pick-and-roll action with 7-footers Danny Wolf and Vlad Goldin that became a staple of Michigan’s offense. There was even the time in the Big Ten tournament when May deployed a big lineup with forward Will Tschetter, Wolf and Goldin.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we can be even more unique (than last season),\u201d May said. \u201cThere\u2019s ebbs and flows in every season. There\u2019s give and take with every substitution decision. \u2026 Offensively, I think when you have talented players, you can figure out a way to be efficient enough to win. It usually comes down to can those bigger guys guard smaller, quicker players? Can you keep the ball out of the paint and still contest on the perimeter?<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there’ll be times when we roll out a rare big lineup. Then there’s going to be other times we have one of our skilled guys at (center), so we can be explosive offensively. There’ll be times when we need to score quickly, so we’ll downsize and play the faster, smaller lineup.\u201d<\/p>\n

As May and his staff begin to evaluate the roster, they\u2019ve already started experimenting, notably utilizing Lendeborg like they did last season with Wolf as a ball-handler and playmaker in pick-and-rolls.<\/p>\n

However, May doesn\u2019t think the Wolverines will need to rely on the four-five ball screens as frequently as they did last year, given the depth, talent and versatility across the board. Several newcomers have already taken notice of that in the early going.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a lot of guys that can flip-flop and play different types of roles,\u201d said McKenney, who won Michigan\u2019s Mr. Basketball award last season. \u201cEverybody can pass, everybody can shoot.<\/p>\n

\u201c(We have) size in the frontcourt and sometimes in the backcourt we can play a bigger lineup. We\u2019re definitely going to have size this year where we attack the offensive glass. We\u2019re going to have a lot of strengths this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Added Lendeborg: \u201cWe have so many assets, one through five.\u201d<\/p>\n

More: <\/strong>Michigan basketball lands first 2026 commitment from Danish 7-footer<\/a><\/p>\n

McKenney, for example, has been playing off and on the ball at both guard spots. Lendeborg has slid up and down the lineup, from small forward to center, and has been on the receiving end of lobs from Cadeau, something that didn\u2019t happen often last season at UAB.<\/p>\n

Johnson is being deployed in multiple ways in the frontcourt. Mara is being used in both the high and low post, where he can take advantage of his 7-foot-3 frame and passing ability to find open teammates.<\/p>\n

And that’s not even including the varied skill sets of the returning players who will factor into the rotation, like guards Nimari Burnett, L.J. Cason and Roddy Gayle Jr., as well as Tschetter.<\/p>\n

\u201cPractice the first day, I was impressed that we weren\u2019t selfish,\u201d Mara said. \u201cWe like to pass the ball. We know where we have to be and where we have to go every time on the court. I like the way we play, and I think it fits everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Michigan\u2019s summer work rolls on, May will continue to tinker with all the pieces and find a way to put them in the right place.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do think we have a group that we’re going to have to figure out who plays the best with who and try to align those minutes,\u201d May said. \u201cThat’s what we have to do these next three or four weeks is figure out who connects with who, and which guys don’t need the ball with this group and they’re more aggressive with that group. That self-awareness will ultimately decide whether we’re going to be good or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

jhawkins@detroitnews.com<\/p>\n

@jamesbhawkins<\/p>\n

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