Dallas Mavericks hiring Michigan’s Dusty May as coach is not their biggest gamble
An NBA team hiring a head coach who has no prior pro experience has historically gone as well as your average juice cleanse.
Sounds great, until shortly after starting the ambitious venture the person realizes, “Why did I do this? This is a terrible idea.”
The Dallas Mavericks hiring University of Michigan head coach Dusty May could land them in the same discussion as other NBA teams who hired hot college coaches, such as Jerry Tarkanian, Butch Beard, Tim Floyd, Fred Hoiberg, Mike Montgomery, Lon Kruger and so many others who bricked in the league.
May’s record in college is spectacular, nearly spotless; this hire is another expensive step team owner Patrick Dumont has approved to power wash the franchise from The Trade. And hiring May is not the biggest risk Dumont is taking.
Dumont, whose professional background is in owning and operating casinos, is gambling that his franchise can use a 34-year-old guard who is coming off another major injury whose forte is surreal quickness and dribble-drive penetration as the primary complement to Cooper Flagg.
Since he was introduced as the president of basketball operations, Masai Ujiri has made it clear that he intends to keep Kyrie Irving; as much as this team is committed to “starting over,” they are equally committed to watching Irving play with Flagg.
“It’s the body of work. I think it’s (Irving’s) approach to the game,” new Mavericks general manager Mike Schmitz said in a recent session with the local media. “He’s been doing everything humanly possible to maximize his talent; to see his approach and how he’s attacking things every day has been incredibly impressive.”
The Kyrie Irving risk is different this time
When the Mavericks traded Dorian Finney-Smith, Spencer Dinwiddie and future draft picks to Brooklyn in February 2023 to acquire Irving, the risk was not the player but the personality. Whether it was his time in Cleveland, Boston or Brooklyn, Irving’s mouth created problems that nearly negated his considerable game.
Since arriving to the Mavericks, Irving’s personality has been no problem. Whatever was done in his previous locations he did not continue with the Mavericks. He has even owned up to that he created problems for himself, and his teams.
With the Mavericks, he has been a good citizen, and teammate. He was a major factor in the Mavericks reaching the NBA Finals in 2024.
The risk now is whether he can stay healthy, and return to the level of production and play that will put him in the Hall of Fame.
Since coming to the Mavs, Irving has missed far more games than he has played. He has appeared in 113 of 274 regular season games; he missed all of last season because of a torn ACL he suffered in March of ‘25, about one month after the team traded Luka Doncic to the L.A. Lakers.
At the time of Irving’s injury, he was playing as well as he ever has.
The team has repeatedly said he has worked hard at rehab; they fully expect him to be ready, and at his previous version, when training camp starts.
All of it may be true. Just as true as this is a 34-year-old man whose knees have a lot of mileage.
What version of Kyrie Irving will play for the Mavericks?
When Irving is right, he is a combination of prime Dwyane Wade, Allen Iverson with a lot of Rod Strickland. There have been few ball handlers in the history of the game who can penetrate and finish at the rim like Irving.
All of those players, and quick guards for that matter, eventually lose their first-step that made them unguardable. It’s not for a lack of work, desire, or preparation. Just age.
Players are increasingly defying age by playing well deep into their 30s, and the Mavs are gambling that Irving will fall into the LeBron category. They are also desperate for a point guard. Anyone who watched the team last season witnessed the hole that was their point guard spot.
The plan is that Irving can age gracefully, and if/when he loses that first step he will retain his skills as a ball handler, passer and shooter. If he can stay on the floor, and do this, the risk to see him play with Flagg can work.
The Mavs’ commitment to this gamble is hardly nothing; Irving has two years remaining on a contract that will pay him approximately $40 million both seasons.
Hiring a college coach is the obvious risk, but so is counting on a 34-year-old with bad knees.
