ATLAS, Mich. — Sudden change in sports can happen in a hurry, and no team or program is immune. And neither is Michigan basketball.
Days after now-former head coach Dusty May was doing multiple media interviews discussing the future of the program, he made an unceremonious departure from the program, having accepted the head job with the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA. While there had been speculation in the offseason that May could leave for the NBA, he made it clear he was happy in Ann Arbor, and was working on a contract extension to stay with the Wolverines long term. However, the promise of a storied future in a college program didn’t stop May from taking a professional job.
Just hours after the news, sophomore guard Trey McKenney discussed with WolverinesWire and another media outlet his reaction. He, of course, isn’t happy about the news, but he still thinks that the program can and will move forward without the head coach of the past two years.
“I’m just kind of shocked, but life goes on and I’m happy for him,” McKenney said. “Cuz I mean, anybody else in the room did the same thing and took the same job. I mean, it’s an amazing job, but I’m just excited and kind of anxious to see who we’re able to retain and keep. But I think we have a pretty good staff and I think Dusty left a pretty good blueprint of two years of hard work.
“He brought the best staff in the country to Michigan. So I don’t think there’s anything that the fans or supporters of Michigan basketball should be worried about. So I’m just really excited to be able to see.”
There are strong indications that Mike Boynton, the Michigan assistant who joined May after being the seven-year head coach of Oklahoma State, will take over in an interim role.
If you thought that the news was sudden, that’s because it was. And just like everyone who was shocked that May was leaving, so were the players.
According to McKenney, he learned the news the same way most did: via the Internet.
”I mean, absolutely not,” McKenney said. “I saw it online just like everybody else. So yeah, I was just as shocked as you guys. But I mean, I think my family and just a lot of people around me just always give me the mindset that bumps in the road and life happens. But just to be able to keep going, I mean, people die, coaches get fired, coaches leave, and just life has to keep going on. So that’s just been my whole mindset.”
McKenney clarified after that the team did meet with May after the announcement. According to assistant Kyle Church, who appeared with McKenney at the Alumni Association Greater Flint chapter golf outing dinner, that the plan for May was to meet with the team first, but the news leaked before he had the opportunity.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Trey McKenney ‘shocked’ by Dusty May leaving Michigan basketball
Reporting by Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire / Wolverines Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire | USA TODAY Network
