‘We’re going to need everyone’: Why Michigan’s depth is built for Big Ten stretch run

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The main focus surrounding the Michigan men’s basketball team, as it has blown out ranked teams, put the clamps on opponents, and set program records, has been the Wolverines’ frontcourt consisting of Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr., and Aday Mara.

That’s a major piece of Michigan’s success, of course, but this team wouldn’t be close to where it is without its depth. Coach Dusty May spoke to the media Monday and, fielding questions about individual slumps and bench guys standing out, kept coming back to the importance of the Wolverines’ nine-man rotation.

Take Roddy Gayle Jr., for example, the senior guard whose offensive output has been on the decline since the New Year. In Sunday’s blowout win in Columbus, Gayle didn’t convert a single one of his field goal attempts, all of which came around the basket.

“I thought Roddy was an inch on three different finishes from having a really good line,” May said. “He’s connecting, he’s trying to win, our team plays well typically when he’s on the court. … I think the last couple weeks, even though his stat line hasn’t looked like it did in Vegas and whatnot, he’s taken on more of a connecting role, and so has Will Tschetter. When you look at our team, I feel like there’s a much better rhythm to the game on offense. And if he’s not out there, does it look like that? I don’t know, but when he is, it does.”

May is right. Two of Michigan’s three most recent games, some of its best offensive performances since Big Ten play began, took place with Gayle playing 20 and 17 minutes, respectively. In May’s eyes, it’s not as simple as just looking at his stats and making conclusions and lineup adjustments from there.

“We’re going to need everyone on our roster that’s in our rotation to play, and once again, we could sit up here and ‘result’ every single game,” May said. “Nimari Burnett, if he misses shots, do we just not play him anymore? If he has another two-game cold streak? No, we trust the work he puts in. We’re trying to generate this shot.

“So what does our rotation look like going forward? If guys play really well, they’re gonna probably play 25 or 26. If they’re having just an okay game and someone else is playing well, they’ll probably play 14 or 15. So I would say it’ll look very similar to that, the same with the rest of our eight or nine rotation guys.”