FAU makes outside hire which could cause exodus to Michigan basketball
Dusty May just left FAU for Michgian basketball and instead of hiring one of his assistants, the Owls opted for an outside hire.
It's fair to ask how many former players and assistant coaches Dusty May will bring with him to Michigan basketball.
But after the news broke on Wednesday night that the Owls have hired former Baylor assistant John Jakus, it feels like a mass exodus of players and coaches could be on the way.
It can be hard to predict how these things will play out. So far, none of May's former players has entered the transfer portal and because of that, there wasn't much he could say when asked about their possible addition to the 2024-25 Michigan basketball team.
The three former All-Conference players, Johnell Davis, Alijah Marin, and Vladislav Goldin are the biggest names but there are other talented players too.
Many of them could be leaving via the transfer portal now that they will have an entirely new coaching staff, not unlike Michigan basketball which lost its starting center (Tarris Reed) and starting point guard (Dug McDaniel) after Juwan Howard was fired and those weren't the only departures.
Reed sounds like he could be open to a return. George Washington III was at Dusty May's press conference and he also entered the portal for Michigan basketball. As May said, it's about having an open discusssion with each player.
But if May's former "big three" want to join him in Ann Arbor, it would make sense. They would have key roles, in a bigger conference, on a better stage. They would also help trigger a lightning-fast rebuild that could have the Wolverines in NCAA tournament contention next year.
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May is the coach who believed in those players when others didn't. He developed them and they have excelled in his system, so with a new coach at FAU, their departure feels inevitable.
Feelings and predictions can be wrong, so be prepared for anything, but I'd take this as a good sign in the efforts of Michigan landing some talent from FAU.
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