Monday was supposed to mark Michigan’s inaugural summer practice as it kicked off its national championship defense, but those plans were canceled when the news broke that Dusty May would leave for the Dallas Mavericks job. The Wolverines’ high-priced roster now faces pivotal stay-or-go decisions in the middle of the summer. Defensive coordinator and top assistant coach Mike Boynton is expected to be elevated to interim head coach, per CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander, and Michigan’s entire roster will have a 15-day window to enter the transfer portal that begins five days after the Boynton news becomes official.
Point guard Elliot Cadeau is the headliner. The 6-foot-1 senior was named Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four after depositing 19 points in the championship win over UConn and dicing up Arizona for 13 points, 10 assists and numerous off-the-backboard lobs (disguised as missed shots) in a semifinal romp over the top-seeded Wildcats. Rising sophomore guard Trey McKenney averaged 9.5 points and shot 38% from 3-point range last year, including one of the biggest triples of the season in the title tilt that proved to be the knockout blow for Danny Hurley’s club. The chiseled, burly guard looks more than due for a Year 2 explosion and possesses All-Big Ten (and All-American) upside.
Michigan also did yeoman’s work in the big man market, reeling in Tennessee’sJP Estrella, Cincinnati’sMoustapha Thiam and LSU’sJalen Reed to replace three potential lottery picks (Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson and Aday Mara), while landing a prized freshman class, headlined by five-star wing Brandon McCoy and top-50 stretch big man Quinn Costello…