Vlad Goldin reflects on his basketball career with Dusty May

The Michigan Wolverines‘ first season under Dusty May came to an end in the Sweet Sixteen with a loss to the Auburn Tigers. That also led to the end of the college career for Vlad Goldin, who had followed May from FAU to Michigan.

Following the loss, Goldin had the chance to reflect on his career playing for May. In particular, he praised May for improving him as a player and helping him to build lasting relationships.

“It’s been great,” Vlad Goldin said. “I love all of my decisions that I came in and decided to play for this man. Obviously, I can see I got better player than I were before. Probably more important for me is the emotions I got, the relationships I built, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Goldin started his college career at Texas Tech. There, he played in 10 games before hitting the Transfer Portal and landing at FAU in 2021. It wasn’t a coincidence that shortly after that, the Owls began a string of Cinderella runs in the NCAA Tournament. That notably included a Final Four run for the pair in their second season together. Then, after transferring to Michigan, Goldin would become a First-Team All-Big Ten selection and helped the Wolverines make the Sweet Sixteen.

That Sweet Sixteen run was part of a remarkable turnaround for Dusty May in his first season coaching Michigan. In the 2023-24 season, the Wolverines went 8-24 overall and 3-17 in Big Ten play. After leaning on the transfer portal, May was able to get Michigan to go 27-10 overall and 14-6 in Big Ten play. That was good for second in the regular season standings and Michigan would even go on to win the Big Ten Conference Tournament. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Vlad Goldin would be named Big Ten Tournament MVP, representing one of the most important players in the turnaround for Michigan.

Vlad Goldin started all 37 games for Michigan in the 2024-25 season, playing 27.5 minutes per game. He would average 16.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game. All of those were career-high averages for Goldin on a per game basis. He also shot 60.7 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from three-point range, and 73.1 percent from the free-throw line.

Now, Goldin will likely turn his attention to preparing for a potential professional basketball career. May, meanwhile, will need to find a way to replace his leadership and production at Michigan for next season.