The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1520409
30 THE WOLVERINE ❱ JUNE/JULY 2024 2024 BASKETBALL RECRUITING ISSUE spent two seasons with the Tigers and has two years of eligibility remaining. The Tallahassee, Fla., native started 10 of 35 games this past season, averaging 6.7 points, 3.2 assists and 2.4 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per contest, splitting time with point guard Aden Holloway "His ability to shoot from deep off the bounce, off the catch … his passing, especially out of pick and roll, is very advanced," May continued. "He comes from a winning program at Auburn. Those guys have won at a high level. "He brings a lot of things to this equation that are going to translate to winning at a high level, hopefully." Especially with the players joining him at Michigan. May has brought in eight new faces and could add one more, if it's the right fit, and he expects to be competitive in Year 1. The newcomers also include Ohio State transfer Roddy Gayle Jr., one of the Buckeyes' top play- ers last year. Gayle finished third on the Buckeyes in scoring with 13.4 points per game, adding 4.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists. The shooting guard was On3's No. 62 player nationally in the 2022 class and No. 8 shooting guard, played two seasons in Columbus, and has two years of eligibil- ity remaining "There's a lot to like about Roddy," May said. "I know he didn't shoot the ball well from three last year [28 per- cent], but the year before he shot 40 per- cent. His ability to draw fouls, get out in transition … I think he can be an elite of- fensive rebounder and an elite defender, so we thought he was one of the more undervalued guys in the portal." Fortunately, he added, a couple of the new coaches on the Michigan staff had prior relationships with him, and they provided an "in" with the 6-foot-4, 210-pounder. "There was some trust built in with those around him, so he was a guy once again that as soon as he went in the por- tal, we went after with as much aggres- sion as you can," May said. "We got him to campus right away." He turned out to be an elite fit, too, May added. "What another pleasant, enjoyable guy to be around," he said. "These offi- cial visits we had, I don't think we could have enjoyed them any more than we did because of the players and their families, how relational they are." The final piece in the backcourt was a familiar one, and someone May targeted the second he saw him in the portal. His FAU teams played guard Rubin Jones and North Texas many times, and Jones al- ways caught May's eye. "I could go on and on about Rubin Jones," he said. "We thought Rubin Jones was the best perimeter defender in our league [the AAC], the most im- pactful defender in our league. He's been injured the last couple years — he's missed significant time in every season almost. He played in the last half of this last season with a torn hamstring, so he was probably at 50 to 60 percent. When you factor in his efficiencies and things like that with his injury, it's pretty im- pressive. "But at his size, he's just somebody that's built to win. His impact, I think he'll be very productive on the court, but I think his impact will be even greater outside of those 35 games or so we're hopefully going to play this year. " Offensively, May said, Jones has be- come a very good perimeter shooter, developing his three-point shot where he can shoot well off the dribble and off the catch. "In the paint, he's got to work on his finish," May said. "That's one area we're going to attack this summer, but his ability to pass off the pick and roll, we think because of the pieces we're putting around him, he'll flourish in our system." BIG MAN BOON Complementing the backcourt are three big additions up front that should Auburn's Tre Donaldson was targeted early on by May and his staff as the point guard they most wanted to get from the transfer portal. PHOTO COURTESY AUBURN ATHLETICS ❱ Michigan Basketball Newcomers For 2024-25 Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown / Last School Durral Brooks CG 6-2 180 Grand Rapids, Mich. / Catholic Central Lorenzo "LJ" Cason PG 6-3 190 Lakeland, Fla. / Victory Christian Tre Donaldson PG 6-3 200 Talahassee, Fla. / Auburn Roddy Gayle Jr. SG 6-4 210 Niagara Falls, N.Y. / Ohio State Vladislav Goldin C 7-1 240 Nalchik, Russia / Florida Atlantic Rubin Jones SG 6-5 190 Houston / North Texas Justin Pippen SG 6-3 180 Chatsworth, Calif. / Sierra Canyon Sam Walters PF 6-10 198 The Villages, Fla. / Alabama Danny Wolf C 7-0 255 Glencoe, Ill. / Yale