Why Michigan HC Dusty May thinks Buckeye transfer Roddy Gayle Jr. is 'a special guy'
Michigan Wolverines men’s basketball has been transformed over the last month or so thanks to head coach Dusty May, who has hit the ground running since he took the job. Among the six transfers he has brought in, former Ohio State guard Roddy Gayle Jr. may be his most intriguing piece.
Coming over from the Buckeyes, Gayle averaged 13.5 points, 4.6 assists and 3.1 rebounds as a sophomore last season while fighting through some nagging injuries. Health and coaching stability could be key factors in taking his game to the next level at Michigan.
May discussed what stood out the most about Gayle’s game, and why he fills a key need for the roster moving forward at Michigan.
“Well, I watched him play a few times randomly throughout the season, and I liked his game. He’s got the unique ability to get downhill and draw fouls,” May revealed during a Tuesday session with the Michigan media.
“The first couple years at FAU, we couldn’t get to the free-throw line. We just couldn’t get there, and I’m reaching out to the best coaches and teachers that I know and I have access to. And finally, a good friend who I lean on a lot for advice just said, ‘Hey, you’ve got to recruit that.’ That’s something you have to recruit. And so it always kind of stuck with me. And then the guys that I’ve coached that got to the foul line, it was usually something that they had well before for college and something that they did, organically, I should say.
“That was the thing that most excited me [about Gayle]. His ability to get downhill, offensive rebound, he runs in transition. He plays off the pick and roll well, he’s very efficient playing off the pick and roll as a passer, he’s efficient with his movements and his games, he doesn’t over dribble, and I believe in his jump shot. I know he didn’t shoot a great percentage last year, but I think he’s a much better shooter than that, and when you watched him in transition, when he had a clean look, he knocked it down a very good percentage of the time. We were excited about him on a number of levels. I could probably go on for about another 30 minutes talking about Roddy. I think he’s a special guy.”
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Last year, Gayle shot 51.3% on two-point shots (140-of-273), 28.2% on triples (29-of-103) and 83.2% on free throws (119-of-143). As May said, Gayle’s three-point mark last year may be misleading and they trust his shot, which saw him make 21-of-49 attempts (42.9%) from three during his freshman year in Columbus.
“I’m really high on Gayle,” Lettermen Row’s Andy Backstrom told The Wolverine last month. “I thought that him entering the transfer portal was a big loss for Ohio State. He’s got NBA potential, even more so than a guy like Bruce Thornton, who’s a really good college player. Gayle is 6-4 and he’s got insane athleticism. He’s the kind of guy that can have a game-changing dunk at any moment.
“He’s as good of a two-way player as he wants to be. Sometimes he doesn’t play to his potential on the defensive end, but he’s a guy who likes to be coached hard. He likes to be held accountable and when a coach can get the most out of him.”
It sounds like the Michigan staff checked the boxes on that front, so his best basketball could be ahead of him.
