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College basketball insider reveals how modern era impacted Dusty May decision to leave Michigan for NBA

Months after cutting down the nets as a national champion, Dusty May left Michigan for the NBA. He is taking over as the Dallas Mavericks’ head coach in a move that made waves across college basketball.

May is the first sitting college coach to take an NBA job since John Beilein did so in 2019 when he left Michigan to become the Cleveland Cavaliers’ head coach. That means it’s the first such move since NIL and the transfer portal became parts of the landscape, and CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander said the modern era played a role in May’s decision.

During his time in Ann Arbor, May spoke about the challenges coaches face in the new era. In fact, he recently said he didn’t “feel like a national champion” because of how quickly the staff had to pivot to the transfer portal. While Norlander said May had the mentality to navigate the ever-changing space, the lack of clarity and “guardrails” was a key part of the move to Dallas.

“Spoke to a source close to Dusty May just a short while ago and it is the college environment that is pushing him to this decision,” Norlander said Monday after the news broke. “It’s not an easy one. It’s an extremely difficult one. He met with Dallas on Saturday when they made their final pitch and, essentially, offered him the job. He took all day Sunday to make that decision. Decided late last night that yes, indeed, it will be the case that he is going to take the Dallas job.

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“… But ultimately, the state of college sports and where things are with a lack of guardrails and a lack of, like, really true, firm infrastructure is a major catalyst – in addition to the obvious. If you’ve got the chance to coach an NBA franchise and the Dallas Mavericks. Cooper Flagg could prove to be one of the five best players in the NBA by the end of his rookie contract, potentially. Then, why wouldn’t you take a swing at that if offered the opportunity?”

Matt Norlander ‘not surprised’ Dusty May left for NBA

During his two years at Michigan after leaving Florida Atlantic, Dusty May helped spearhead a historic turnaround. The Wolverines went 64-13 overall record during his time at the helm, including a 37-3 record during the 2025-26 season. That ended in Indianapolis with the program’s second-ever national championship.

However, rumors swirled around May and the NBA throughout the offseason. Although he agreed to a contract extension at Michigan, he reportedly did not sign it. Still, Matt Norlander cited a previous conversation with May about NBA aspirations and said the feeling was he would go to the league at some point. To do so soon after winning a title, though, was part of the reason it was such a surprise.

“Did we think we were going to get to the point where he was taking an NBA job in 2026? No,” Norlander said. “But I did think that if he was going to be able to keep Michigan consistently relevant, a Top-10 team, I thought we’d be here in this spot next year because I think Michigan under Dusty May would have been one of the best teams in the country, obviously. So I’m not surprised to see this. These are champagne problems, let me be clear about this.

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“It’s just not easy being a head coach of a power conference program, football or men’s basketball, women’s basketball, in college sports these days. There’s just so much that comes with it. Now, some coaches are better equipped and wired to handle it than others. Dusty May is equipped and wired to handle it, but you’re trading one set of problems for another by taking a crack and taking a swing at going to the NBA. So I’m not surprised whatsoever.”

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