For Michigan basketball's Vlad Goldin, Dusty May makes America 'feel like I'm home'

As the landscape changes in college basketball, there seems to be less loyalty in the game than ever before.

With players now allowed to transfer both with immediate eligibility and as many times as they'd like, there are fewer reasons to try and stick it out within one program. Simultaneously, coaches know they need to essentially re-recruit their team year-over-year — not to mention the usual demand of high school recruits — and they too are frequently trying to climb the ranks, as evidenced by the 68 Division I jobs which were vacated and filled this past offseason.

Everyone has been affected by this new landscape, including new Michigan basketball center Vladislav Goldin. He's expected to play a major role for the Wolverines next year, and when appearing on the latest episode of the Wolverines' podcast 'Defend The Block' with team broadcaster Brian Boesch, he made some particularly noteworthy comments.

"First of all it’s a great program, probably one of the greatest athletic histories for all the NCAA teams," Goldin began. "The second reason is probably, you can know, coach May and the coaching staff. I prefer relationships over anything else, so that was a pretty big deal for me.

"It’s hard to say how impactful he’s (been) my entire career."

Goldin, a 7-foot-1, 240-pound center from Nalchick, Russia, is entering his fifth collegiate season in America. After his first season at Texas Tech (where he was teammates with current Michigan teammate Nimari Burnett), he transferred to an upstart program — Florida Atlantic — with a coach who had a way of connecting with players.

From his sophomore to his senior season, Goldin developed into one of the premier centers in the country. He went from 6.8 points per game to 15.6 points, boosted his rebounds per contest from 4.9 to 6.9 and improved his field goal shooting by 12 points (55.4% in 2021-22 to 67.3% in 2023-24) as he was named to second-team All-AAC.

It was no coincidence, then, that shortly after May, 49, accepted a Mach offer from Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel to become the Wolverines' head coach, Goldin put his name in the NCA's online database in search of a new home.

Rated the No. 41 transfer prospect in the nation, per 247 Sports, Goldin was highly sought after by a handful of teams. But there wasn't another program in the country which could replicate his bond with his coach.

"He gives me family," Goldin said of May. "I haven’t seen my family for five years, but he’s one of the people who gives me family, let’s me feel like I’m home. It’s unbelievable, he means a lot to me."

Better yet, May wasn't the only staff member to make the move from Boca Raton, Florida, to Ann Arbor; he brought with him director of player development Drew Williamson, general manager Kyle Church, director of basketball operations KT Harrell and special assistant Brandon Gilbert, which Goldin said has only helped the transition.

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"It’s actually interesting because it’s a new program, new everything, new people, but then you see these guys and it’s like, 'Oh, you actually know somebody,'" he said with a laugh. "But it’s helped because I know how they talk, what type of conversations we’re going to have, so it’s been amazing just because you see the familiar faces."

Of course, his new teammates he's not so familiar with. Yes, he played alongside Burnett four years ago in Lubbock, but the two were teens then, still learning the college game and growing into their own.

This summer begins the initial steps as he tries to mold his game to fit that of his five fellow transfers — Tre Donaldson, Roddy Gayle, Rubin Jones, Sam Walters and Danny Wolf — and the three incoming freshmen the Wolverines acquired as they overhauled their staff and roster from last year's worst team in program history.

Not everybody has made it onto the court yet — some are dealing with minor nagging ailments, others have one university-required transfer video to complete that won't be available for another week — Goldin has been encouraged by the early summer progress.

"Everybody is so good," he said. "It’s insane how we’ve only had a couple practices, the first practices and everybody fights, everybody plays so hard. It’s amazing because you can’t teach to play hard, you cannot teach somebody how to be competitive right away."

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Goldin projects to play as a traditional center and in a recent sitdown with the Free Press, May gushed about who he is as a leader. Though not a vocal presence, he's someone who will lead by example and fight for his guys, May said, which is why the coach couldn't stomach the thought of him playing somewhere else.

"He's continued to put his teammates either on an even plateau or oftentimes ahead of himself," May said. "What he does, setting screens on the court, supporting them off the floor, he's just a great human being."

That was on display when May and U-M added another 7-foot center in Wolf. An All-Ivy League standout, Wolf averaged 14 points and 7.1 rebounds per game for a team that upset four-seed Auburn in the NCAA tournament.

Many players wouldn't want someone with such a pedigree coming in to compete for their exact spot. Inherently, there's only so many minutes to go around. Goldin said that's how May has long done things — "In my perfect world, we win. If we win and I play 25 minutes, I’m happy. If I play 24 minutes, I’m happy."

That's why Goldin was elated to see Wolf choose the Wolverines.

"I'd seen (Wolf's) highlights, so many posts about him and how great he is as a player," he continued. "But when I talked to him from my official visit, that’s why I was like, ‘Leave everything behind’. It doesn’t matter how good of a player you are, if you’re not a good person it doesn’t mean nothing.

"So when I talk to him and other guys I was like, ‘Wow, that’s worth more than anything else.'"

Going from the AAC to the Big Ten won't be a cakewalk, even for a player who projects to play professionally (either overseas or in the NBA) for the next decade. There will undoubtedly be a learning curve and growing pains with so many new pieces coming together.

Goldin has been there before and it's what May told him then that makes him feel comfortable about now.

"At some point, I didn’t play the best game, we probably lost because of me, because I didn’t block out the guy on the opposite team," Goldin said. "I just want to talk to him and ask, ‘What should I do?’ because I don’t know and he would reassure me — ‘I trust in you more than you trust in yourself and whenever you trust yourself as much as I trust you, that’s when you will make a bigger impact.'

"Since that time, I’ve believed in myself more."

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan basketball's Vlad Goldin on Dusty May: 'He gives me family'