Charlie May Reveals Michigan’s Biggest Strengths This Season

[Hail Media Group presents Go Blue Hoops, where Michigan basketball’s past, present, and future all come together in one show. Hosted by former Wolverine great, 10-year NBA veteran, and longtime ESPN and NBC college basketball analyst Tim McCormick. Each episode goes beyond the box scores from championship memories and recruiting stories to sharp breakdowns of the season ahead. Insight, legacy, Michigan basketball. This is Go Blue Hoops. Hey everybody, today’s broadcast is brought to you by the leaders and the best at Michigan Medicine. There’s a difference between an answer and a Michigan answer. Visit MichiganAnswers.org to find your answer.

So, I want to welcome everybody to the Go Blue Hoops podcast. This is episode number 33. I can’t believe we’ve done 33 episodes and what a great year to do it. I miss the games. I miss the players. Um, if you love Michigan Hoops though, you can’t get enough of it. Where do you go? The Go Blue Hoops podcast. We’re here to talk about Michigan, the mighty national champions. Also, every week we identify a a member of the Michigan basketball family and we talk for 20 minutes or so about hoops and about their background. We share stories. We talk about their dreams and the upcoming season.

And today we have a really good one for you on the Michigan Man interview. I’m so excited to talk this week to Charlie May, uh Dusty May’s son. He’s got a future as a coach. He’s getting ready to head down to Athens and be on the staff as a grad assistant for the Georgia Bulldogs. He’s got a great future in coaching and we want to hear his memories on the national championship as well. Um, and most important, Michigan won this year for a lot of different , 1 secondreasons. One of them, Michigan had a phenomenal scout team.

Charlie’s going to share with us about what it’s like to be on a scout team and how much he had to learn and how their job was to prepare the starters when they got into game situations. So stick with us for the Go Blue Hoops podcast and the Michigan Man interview. So let’s start off with a little bit of good news this week. We expected it, but still a good reason to celebrate Elliot Cadeau pulled his name out of the NBA draft. This solidifies Michigan’s backcourt as one of the best in the Big Ten. with Elliot and Trey. I think that Michigan’s backcourt along with Illinois will be equally strong. Michigan’s backcourt is either first or second.

And I think that that they are going to get better and better because McKinney is a McDonald’s All-American. I think he’s going to play a lot of guard as well. Michigan will have some depth at that position that they didn’t have last year when L.J. Cason went out. So, when I look at McKinneyey and Cadeau, I think they’re going to complement each other so well. Um, they’re both going to be go-to guys. I think that Trey McKinneyey can lead the Big Ten in scoring. I think Elliot Cadeau can lead the Big Ten in assists. They are going to play dynamic basketball. Get by your guy, be physical, quick, smart.

And I also think that when when I look at their pace of play, they’re going to be quick, maybe even quicker than this year’s team. So, as I think back about the best backcourts in Michigan basketball history, here’s where I would rank them. Best guard tandem number one, easy call. Before I say it, who would you pick as the best guards? I choose Jalen Rose and Jimmy King. , 1 secondbig-time playmakers, huge swagger, back-to-back final fours. Those are Michigan’s best guards ever. Number two, Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr., Big Ten champs, final four. I’m biased because I loved watching them so much.

And then the last number three, I would have to go with the general and the judge. Gary Grant and Antoine Joubert had massive firepower. Both were elite scorers. They could defend. They were really good passers. Unbelievable memories of the judge and the general. I also would have to put a couple of guys on the list that I mean they’re they’re outside my top three, but I have to give them credit. 1976 national championship loss to Indiana. Ricky Green, Steve Grote, Wayman Britt, Dave Baxter. That was really my first Michigan team that I watch and they have , 1 secondto get some recognition as the best guards ever.

So, I smile when I think about the talent and the depth of this current Michigan team. So, how do Elliot Cadeau and Trey McKinneyey get on the list next year? I promise you if they’re able to get to back-to back final fours, I will make sure I find a way to get them on my top three. Next up, it it’s way too early to start looking at ESPN and Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology, right? No way. I I look year round. It’s a yearong process. And right now, Michigan’s first game is November 6th at TD Garden in Boston. It’s the first round of the Players Era tournament. Michigan, the reigning champs. Remember, they won it in Vegas last year.

We are 172 days away from Michigan’s first game against UConn. Mark your calendar. Michigan. UConn 172 days from right now. So, what does Joe Lunardi think of Michigan right now? Joe has Michigan as the number one seed in the Midwest. To me, that means that they’re probably Big Ten champs, top three in the country. Really exciting stuff. UConn, which will be a tough matchup on opening night, is a number two seed. Dan Hurley’s squad will be loaded. Braylon Mullins from last year’s team will be back. Silas Demary returns and they loaded up on the transfer portal. Great hall for them.

I think it’s early to break down that matchup, but I’m already excited to see Michigan and UConn at TD Garden in Boston on opening night. Also, the Pistons are done for the season after an embarrassing performance last night against the Cavaliers. If you root for Michigan players in the playoffs, you can forget about that. There are no more Michigan players for us to root for. Kudos to Duncan Robinson and Caris LeVert. Both had solid years. Duncan Robinson, 14 points per game versus the Cavaliers. He shot 58% from three. A darn good player. And Caris LeVert has that two-way ability.

And as for the current Michigan roster, where are the players? What are they doing in May? For the most part, they’re all at home. They’re in the weight room. They’re on the track. They’re in the gym working on their bodies, working on some flaws, and also getting some time with family and friends. The Michigan team will report for summer workouts. A lot of those are without coaches. They’ll be back in Ann Arbor in about 3 weeks and start that journey for back-to-back national championships. Hey Michigan fans, we will be right back. But first, a word from our sponsor. When prenatal surgery is your baby’s best chance.

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It’s time for the Michigan Man interview, and I’m looking forward to talking some basketball with Charlie May, a senior, a graduate, a national champ and a key component of Michigan’s scout team this year, and also the the son of Dusty May. Hey, Charlie. Thank you and welcome. How how’s everything going with your summer? Everything’s been great. It’s been pretty busy, but I got a slow week, so I’m trying to enjoy it right now. So, you just graduated, right? I’d like to know what you got your degree in. And then you’re heading down to Georgia to be a grad assistant on on their staff. Is that accurate? Yes, that is.

So, I just got my degree in communications and I’m getting my masters in financial planning while being a graduate assistant for the team. That’s good. How are you expecting to be a coach? It’s a big jump going from being a player to a coach. Um, yeah. I mean, I’m I’m looking forward to it. It’s definitely going to be a little bit of a scenic uh change for me. Um, but I’m excited to kind of ease into it and see how it goes. You can leave your winter coat here in Ann Arbor. Yeah, I know. I am. I’m leaving I’m leaving all my winter stuff with my parents for sure. So, Charlie, you you had a key role in Michigan’s national championship.

Michigan practices. They’re they’re highly highly competitive. Many listeners may not know what a scout team’s responsibilities are. Can you take us through a normal week? Let’s say you’re playing against Purdue. What does the scout team do? What do they need to learn? Uh, yeah. So, we usually do two days of prep leading up to a game. So, if we play on Thursday, we’ll do Tuesday, Wednesday prep. Um, it’s usually we show up to practice or before film 30, 45 minutes early. And um there’s a coach who’s assigned that scout. There’s a coach or two that are there and kind of assigned roles.

And so we’ll be player personnel and we’ll kind of talk about their tendencies and what they do. And um then we go through anywhere between five and 15 of their plays including um their half court sets and out of bounds sets and kind of go through those together before we run them in practice and actually do them against our team. So, it’s kind of like um a little pre-practice practice for the scout team where we just come in early and get prepared and help give our guys a good look at them. So, you want to be a coach and what a unique opportunity. Your dad is Dusty May.

You’ve had an apprenticeship with one of the best coaches in all of college basketball. How has he helped prepare you to be a coach? Do you guys ever break down film or or talk about opponents? or is it more like you’re a player this year and next year you’ll be a coach and it’s a different responsibility? Uh, well, I would say it’s definitely a different responsibility between being a player and a coach, but I would say he’s just prepared me his whole life just by me being able to see what he does and see his process and also just always be in the gym with him, always around the facility, whatever school or city we’ve been at.

And I think it’s just that’s prepared me pretty well. Charlie, I watched a lot of practices this year and I I have to tell you so many times I I wondered what’s it like being a coach’s son. Um it’s probably difficult to leave basketball on the court when practice is over when you’re having a family dinner. How do you balance basketball coaching, being a student, being just being part of the team? Um I mean, if I’m being honest, there’s not a lot of balance. A lot of my life is revolving around basketball for so long.

Um, I mean, we have usually classes in the morning and then practice after and then weights after that and then usually it’s going home and watching whatever games are on at night. So, there’s definitely there’s not a lot of balance, but we enjoy it as a family. It’s it it’s a topic of conversation at dinner often. And so, it’s it’s a lot of basketball in the family. Another random off-the-wall thought I had is I was wondering, your dad’s not a tall guy and you’re 6’5. Where did your height come from? Uh, both my parents have some height in their family. Um, my dad’s dad is probably 6’2 or 6’3. His mom is just 5’1.

So, there’s some height on my mom’s side and my dad’s side. And they just unfortunately were a little bit shorter than some of their siblings and stuff. And I guess maybe just skip a generation with them. I don’t know. Yeah. So, against UConn, what was that game prep like? Uh, was it any different than any other games? I know there’s difficulty in managing the attention and the anxiety and and the huge stage. What was that challenge like and how was it different? Well, from a scout team perspective, it was a little more intricate than other games because of how complex and how many half court sets UConn has.

So there was a little extra prep there besides it just being obviously the national championship game. Um there’s also obviously so many distractions going on. So I think a lot of focus we put into just limiting like everything outside of just focusing on one goal as a team and just trying to stay together and and just enjoy that last 40 minutes we had together and be as locked in as possible. So, you’ve got a lot of coaching inside of you already. And as you were going through the scout team, prepping your guys to play UConn. How confident were you going into the game? Did you feel like we’ve got this, you know, we match up well?

What What were your thoughts? Yeah, I mean, we’re always pretty confident with I mean, with our personnel and our track record this year, we’re always pretty confident going into the games. I think a lot of the fans could see that and just see it in the way we play. And so I think we tried to just think of it as like let’s just go out there and play good ball every possession at a one session at a time and just see how it goes. We’re we were pretty confident we were going to win that game. The clock hit zeros and the confetti started streaming down. Take us through what you were feeling at that point.

I mean it really started once Trey McKinney hit that step back jumper on the wing. Um, that’s really when we could start to taste it a little bit. And I just remember just being so excited and just kind of running out on the court and I just remember Morez Johnson just like shoving me and just being like, “Oh my god.” Like just a crazy surreal feeling. It’s almost like you black out for a minute and I just remember being on the stage and then all of a sudden we’re singing Happy Birthday to Aday on the court at midnight. So it was a wild it was a wild night for sure.

Did you get a chance to share a special moment with your dad and do do you remember what he said? I I just remember him being like, “Did we really just do that?” Like this is this amazing feeling like our whole my whole family was there and just I remember just once everything settled down a little bit. I don’t know what time in the night it was. We were just kind of hanging out for a bit and just like, man, we just we just won a national championship like that. That’s something we’re always going to have together. And obviously, we we accomplished our goals this year and it was just a surreal feeling. Yeah.

What um what what time did you get to bed after the game? I would probably say 4:00 a.m. maybe something like that if generously. Yeah. Who Who was your roommate? I was with Will Tschetter. Yeah. I bet. Yeah. Will Will probably talked the whole night, didn’t he? Yeah. Know, he he is always super energetic before and after games, so he’s always yapping. Yeah. I’m talking about Will, he he’s a big fisherman, and when he was a guest, he said that he takes a lot of his teammates fishing. Did Did he take you fishing? Where did you go? H how how was that experience with Will?

Yeah, so actually when I first got to Ann Arbor, one of the first things I did with Will two years ago was go fishing. And so we would start out going to just any lakes or ponds like he taught me to fly fish at this small pond. I forgot where it was. Um we actually would fish at some golf courses like in the ponds they have and it’s there’s so many fish in there and no one’s fishing those little areas of water. So it was just it was a lot of fun. And then obviously last summer he got a boat and started going out more towards Detroit and then he he I mean he takes it out every every weekend there’s sung.

So yeah me and Oscar Goodman would go out with him a lot. Aday Mara a few times and he took a lot of people on the team out on the boat for sure. Could you guys hang with Will? I mean, he’s he’s got a bass boat so he’s probably pretty good. No, no, we No one No one could hang with Will. I mean, he’s he can make money fishing if he wanted to like start going to tournaments and stuff like he could do it for sure. All right, Charlie May. One of my favorite moments of the year. Um, anybody that loves Michigan basketball would would share the same moment. Up 30 against Tennessee in the Elite 8.

You nailed a left corner three and your entire team lost their mind. It was such a great moment. Walk us through that shot and what you remember. I’m going to be honest with you, I don’t really remember much. It was kind of a blackout moment. Um I remember going back and watching a video of it and hearing the crowd pop and it was like I just I didn’t hear that at all in the moment. Like obviously it was just it was surreal and it was a lot of fun but it was just like I was almost so like excited that everything blacked out. Like I just I didn’t remember the next like five minutes after that.

You know the the reaction of the team I I immediately said that’s a sign that they really like Charlie May. They would not have gotten that excited if you were not a favorite on the team. Do you feel that way? Uh I mean I feel like we’re all we’re all brothers. I mean, everyone everyone on our team was so um kind and just like caring with everybody. We were all so compassionate for each other. I mean, it’s it’s a true brotherhood and I think it’s just a testament that if any of our walk-ons when Howard came in and scored a bucket, I forgot what game it was in December, everybody was losing it.

I mean, it’s just a testament to our brotherhood as a team. Good. There was a little bit of talk after the championship. I think it was after the the the banner ceremony and after the parade that that the team was going to get a national championship tattoo. Did anything come from that? Did Did anybody get a tattoo from the the the natty? So, it started out as like a whole team was saying they were going to do it and then it was supposed to be about six of us and then myself and Morez Johnson got a tattoo and then we’re waiting on Yaxel, Elliot, Roddy, and I think a couple more said they’re going to but just haven’t found the time yet.

Is it in a spot you can show us? Yeah, I just got the number 12 on my arm a little bit. Something small. It’s my first tattoo. Not not from a tattoo family. So, wanted to go small. Just something that means something to me. So, I just got my number from this year. Did Did your dad get one? He said he was going to, but And then Rez called him out in the media last week, but I don’t We’ll see if it happens. I don’t know. All right. Um, we spoke to Ricky Liburd um about the fact that after practice you guys have a sort of a a scout team and coaches scrimmage. What What do you guys call that? Uh they call it the Suns games. The what games?

The Suns games. Why Suns? So it’s it’s actually it was the freshman this year. So it was it was Malik Winters Ricky and then sometimes Oscar and they would play with some of our coaches and they um try to play just good basketball passing the rock and stuff and so they would say they look like the 06 Suns or whatever like Steve Nash and Stoudemire and like they would just they just started calling themselves that and they there’s a lot of jokes that go around our facilities. They just started calling the Suns games. So your your dad played in these five on fives. You’re going into coaching.

You’ve got to give us a scouting report on your dad’s game. be honest, he doesn’t move very well anymore. So, I would say I would say you got to just let him let him shoot a little bit and if he gets it going, then put a hand up and make him go left. He doesn’t have any brace. His knees, his shoulders, his hips are all bad, so just stay with him a little bit. Just a beat up old guy, right? He pretty much at this point. Did you cover him? No, it’s usually there’s some managers and stuff. It’s not It’s not It’s almost not even a full speed game usually.

Um he doesn’t play much anymore whenever we play like the All-Star games and stuff which is more full speed up and down a lot more. Um he used to play in those probably five or six years ago. He’s he’s tapped out now. So Ricky Liburd and Oscar Goodman are a couple of guys we haven’t seen them a lot. Um I think they’ve got great potential. What would you tell us about both of their games and their chances to play next year? I think they both have great opportunities to play next year and there’s obviously some spots open in our roster where we need someone to step up. Um, for Oscar, I think he can do a little bit of everything.

I mean, he can shoot it. Obviously, he’s a ridiculous athlete, has good feel for the game, good defender, super strong, and then Ricky is also a little bit of everything. Plays so hard, so athletic, can shoot the ball. Um, great feel. Just like he’ll go till he he’ll pass it out on the court. Like he just he goes all out every time he steps on the court and I think that’s something Michigan fans will definitely appreciate next year. That’s good. Great stuff for sure. I’m curious about I’ve spent enough time with Dusty May and I’m I’m wondering how in the world does he turn it off?

you know, he’s got a press conference and then he’s got practice and then he’s got to break down film and what’s it like at the end of the day, family dinners or is he just he comes home and he watches film? Um, he watches a lot of film even at home. I mean, even if we’re watching another Big Ten game, he’s usually also scouting someone on his computer. But, I mean, we usually, if I’m at my parents house, usually we’ll play games of some sort. I mean, they have a pool table. So, he’s always competing in some way. Our whole family is. It’s just how how we are.

We’re just we’re a game family, whether it’s sports or board games, pool, cornhole, anything. So, he he does so many things that that I like, but I I believe the way he’s built a culture and he he comes up with unique ways like what was it called? April April habits. April habits. And he talked about the middle area for a championship banner. Yeah. As you get into coaching, what are some of the things that that you’ve learned from your dad that will make kind of make your own?

I would definitely say the first thing that comes to mind is being process-oriented and just being about the right stuff and doing the right things every day and then eventually you’ll get to where you want to be. You look up and you’re you’re in you’re where you want to be. And then I would just say just the unselfishness of our our team this year and our program. I feel like just always uh sacrificing a little bit of yourself for the greater good of the team is always something that will stick with me.

And if I’m coaching down the road, I always preach that it’s just you’re going to have to sometimes take a dip for your personal numbers and whatever you have going on for the greater good of the team. And I think a lot of dudes did that this year. And like you said, we hung in our banner because of it. Very well said. Uh growing up as a coach’s son can’t be easy. travel, recruiting pressure. What What are the challenges looking back on your journey that that you would say, “Yeah, that was that was pretty tough growing up a coach’s son.” Um, I would just say the only thing that comes to mind is just always bouncing around a lot.

I mean, by the time I was , 1 second10, I lived in six states. Obviously, I’m very grateful for the journey I’ve had, and I have no complaints about it, but obviously as a kid, sometimes that’s tough when you’re just being pulled out of elementary schools to move around, but it’s it’s been a great experience overall. I met your mom at the Zach Bryan concert right after they they took the job, and she’s a rock star. That that must be so impressive. Usually the the wives, the moms are the are the the rock stars of that group. Seems that way, doesn’t it? Yeah, definitely. She is. She’s she’s amazing.

She’s always helped us, always been there for us, and she’s definitely the rock of our family. Three years from now, Charlie, which Michigan basketball player from this year’s team will be the best NBA player? Best NBA player? That’s so tough cuz I feel like even this year, we were saying we have so many guys on our roster with NBA potential. Obviously, your mind wants to jump to one of the three top 20 picks we’re probably going to have this year, but I mean, you never know. There’s there’s so many guys that from our roster for this year that could make a great living playing basketball down the road.

So, you’re not going to pick one for me, right? I’m not I’m not I can’t do that. They’re all they’re all my guys. I can’t do that to them. All right. So So you uh went on the road this year, the Big Ten is brutal. Which is the toughest venue? Michigan State, Purdue, Indiana, or Illinois? Um you know, obviously Michigan State’s really tough because it’s Breslin. It’s a big rivalry, but I I got to go with Purdue with how how loud Purdue gets. I’ve never experienced something like Mackey Arena.

Um I remember my junior year we got punched in the mouth and it’s like it’s so loud in there you can’t hear yourself think like it’s just so like you you have no idea what’s going on other than just like see on the court cuz it’s so loud and there’s so many people yelling coming from every direction. Um but there’s some crazy environments in the Big Ten. I mean it’s it’s I think it’s the best road environment conference there is. That’s who I would pick too, Charlie. I think I think you’re right about that. You have have experienced so much in such a short period of time.

When you think back to your Michigan experience, what will will pop out as the kind of the the the lasting trademark of what Michigan basketball and Michigan culture means to you? I would just say like how much Ann Arbor feels like home. I mean, obviously I lived in nine cities or whatever it is, but just the fact that Ann Arbor feels so special to me, I think will always stick out and obviously I’m a Michigan Man now and it’s always something I’m going to carry with me for the rest of my life. So, I I would say that that’s good. And then you’re going down to Georgia and and you’re going to be a coach.

What What are you looking for from that experience? me, you’re going to get more big-time football and a different conference in the SEC. And what what is uh what is the the Georgia experience that that you’re hoping to get? Yeah, I mean, I’m definitely excited for the some warm weather again. Uh I was in Florida for a while, so I’m getting back down south, so I’m excited for that. And also just how amazing their staff is and how they’re great people and great coaches. I want to learn from them. Obviously, I want to get another degree. I’m looking forward to that and experiencing the SEC.

Also, I’ve been in the Big 12, I’ve been in the American, been in the Big Ten now. So, I want to see the SEC and how it compares to other conferences. So, I’m excited. Final question. Your relationships with your teammates are are so special to you. Who is your your best buddy? Who’s the guy that you’re going to miss during the season? Man, I’m going to miss I’m going to miss everybody, but it’s hard it’s hard for me to sing anybody out, but I’m definitely going to miss Will Tschetter a lot. Roddy Gayle is my guy. Morez Johnson, Yaxel Lendeborg, all the seniors. I mean, there’s there’s I can go down the line, everybody.

I’m going to miss that rail team. Well, I really appreciate you coming on, Charlie. And next year, I’m going to make sure I tune in the the Bulldogs to see you on the bench, and I can see you as a great coach. Maybe someday you’ll be on Michigan staff. I appreciate it. All right. Thanks, Charlie. Appreciate it. Go Blue. Thank you. Go Blue. I want to thank all of you for sticking with us in the off season. We are so proud. Our numbers are absolutely soaring on YouTube. We want to thank our Michigan Man interview with Charlie May. He’s fascinating. We thank our title sponsor, Michigan Medicine.

And more than anything else, we’ll be back next week and we’ll have more Michigan basketball content for you on the Go Blue Hoops podcast. Go Blue. If you like this kind of content, please like, share, follow, and subscribe.]