Dusty May wants more out of Michigan PG Tre Donaldson: 'He needs to run our team'

Michigan Wolverines basketball junior point guard Tre Donaldson scored in double figures in 20 of his first 24 games this season but has done so just once in the past five outings. His assists are down lately, posting 2 or fewer in four of his last six appearances, and has been seemingly less involved in creating shots for himself and others.

By all accounts, Donaldson, Michigan’s 6-foot-3, 195-pound Auburn transfer, has had a standout season. He’s averaging 11.9 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game, while shooting 50.7 percent on twos and 38.9 percent on 131 three-point tries.

But as the Wolverines attempt to find a late-season groove, the Wolverines could use more from their lead guard.

“He needs to run our team,” Michigan head coach Dusty May said on the ‘Inside Michigan Basketball’ radio show. “He needs to play much, much harder on defense.”

The Wolverines have implored their guards to “rebound down” all year, and May is hoping for more from Donaldson and the back court on the glass. Illinois grabbed 19 offensive rebounds against Michigan on Sunday, providing a good example for the Wolverines.

“When you look at their 1, 2 and 3, the cumulative rebounds being 26 for their starting 1, 2 and 3, and then you look at ours, we just gotta be quicker to the ball, we gotta play with more aggression,” the Michigan coach continued.

“We’ve gotta get outside of, if the ball’s going on, I’m gonna play hard; if it’s not, I’m gonna kinda float and not feel as determined to do what winning requires.

“But that’s across the board. I need to coach better, we need to play better. We need more from everyone.”

Some improvement, or a return to form, could go a long way for Michigan. He was a catalyst with 18 points in a huge road victory over Indiana, scored or assisted on the final nine points of a comeback triumph against Penn State and has had other big-time moments.

College basketball coaches are fighting human nature

Speaking on the topic of Michigan blowing a chance for its players to impress the dozens of NBA scouts in attendance for the 20-point loss to the Fighting Illini, May discussed the challenge of players pushing for team success rather than individual stats or accolades.

“That’s the most difficult part now,” May said of the sport. “The championship level teams — and there are probably five in college basketball now. There are 366 teams, and there are probably anywhere between three and 10 that have real championship DNA, and they have that leadership. And within that leadership, the guys that are speaking, they’re the ones that do it every single day and they prioritize the team over themselves. So, when they speak, everyone listens.

“And I’m not being critical of the transactional nature of all this, it’s the NBA, it’s college — it’s just becoming a lot more individual. So, we gotta figure out a way to make sure our guys know that they benefit individually, too, with our cumulative success.”

May said Monday that the area Michigan needs to improve at most is to not left whether or not a shot goes in offensively impacts the level of intensity and focus on the defensive end. In that respect, the Wolverines’ staff — and all basketball coaches — are fighting human nature. But this would be the perfect time of year for U-M to turn a corner in that respect.

“We refer to that top one percent, that top two percent. There are miles between a championship team and a second or third place team,” May said. “And right now, today, we’re not performing with the discipline. And what that discipline is your offense not being connected to your defense. 

“Unfortunately in today’s climate, there’s a lot more emotion through individual success, through your shot going in, than it needs to be if you’re going to be at a championship level. But we’ve even talked about, at this point in the season, the percentages are what they are. You can’t think about your percentages anymore. 

“The NBA scouts are looking for two things: guys who impact winning and guys who play efficient basketball, so that’s offense and defense connected. We try to separate the two, we try to reward the guys that defend and rebound regardless of their shooting percentages.

“But all young guys need to find a way to disconnect offense from defense, but I’m not sure it’s realistic right now, unless you’re dealing with that one percent.”