Dusty May pushes back on Michigan Basketball’s ‘mercenary’ label

After winning the Big Ten Tournament a year ago and making it to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament, Michigan head coach Dusty May and his coaching staff completely reloaded the roster. The Wolverines prioritized top transfer portal players to supplement his highly-touted freshmen and returning players, hoping to put together enough talent for the present and the future.

Recruiting players to Michigan isn’t all about money, however. As seen with last year’s team, despite the success May had in his first season, the entire team could have left Ann Arbor for other opportunities if they believed it could lead to a larger bag. Instead, May has built a belief in his system and culture, allowing him to develop the guys in the building while filling holes in the future to consistently be at the top of college basketball.

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Part of coaching at a school like Michigan, however, is that not everyone sees it the same way. With one of the largest budgets in college basketball and the global reach of the “Block M” brand, some see only dollar signs when they think of the Wolverines.

“I know people outside of our tribe will call our guys these derogatory names, ‘mercenaries’ and whatnot. We have a group of guys that love playing with each other,” May told the media on Monday. “They appreciate Michigan and when you see how connected they are, I don’t know how you would classify them as guys playing just for money when they all sacrificed a great deal of money to do what they’re doing together. And so we have a long way to go, but very happy with being in position to compete at the midway point.”

Part of what makes Michigan so special this season is the amount of talent on the roster. The Wolverines grabbed Yaxel Lendeborg, the No. 1 player in the portal last offseason, along with other starting players in Morez Johnson Jr., Aday Mara and Elliot Cadeau. May paired those guys with returners Nimari Burnett, Will Tschetter and L.J. Cason, and nabbed top…

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Publish date : 2026-02-02 21:00:00

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