DHJ Quick Take: Morez Johnson Jr. Shocked by Dusty May’s Move to the Mavericks
Morez Johnson Jr. said he was stunned to learn Dusty May was leaving Michigan for the Dallas Mavericks, only to be drafted by Dallas a day later. The No. 9 pick reunited him with the coach he won a national title under months earlier.
- How did Morez Johnson Jr. react to the May hire? He said he was “insanely shocked” and did not see it coming.
- Why does the reunion matter? Johnson won the 2026 national championship under May at Michigan.
- What does Johnson want to bring to Dallas? The closeness and No. 1-ranked defense of last season’s Wolverines.
- When did the hire happen? Dallas finalized May’s hiring one day before the draft.
DALLAS — Morez Johnson Jr. said he never saw Dusty May‘s jump to the NBA coming, and that learning his college coach had taken the Dallas Mavericks job made being drafted by Dallas a day later all the more surreal.
Johnson won a national championship under May at Michigan this past season before the Mavericks selected him No. 9 overall in the 2026 NBA Draft. The hire, finalized one day before the draft, set up a reunion neither the player nor most of the basketball world anticipated.
Morez Johnson Jr. Reacts to the Dusty May Hire
Johnson said the news of May leaving Ann Arbor blindsided him, before the draft reconnected them.
“I was insanely shocked when I saw Dusty was going to be coach of the Mavs,” Johnson said. “I did not see it coming at all.”
The reunion quickly turned his surprise into anticipation, with Johnson pointing to the title the two won together months earlier.
“And now for him to be my coach again, I’m excited. I’m excited. It’s insane,” Johnson said. “We just won a national championship together. I can’t wait to get there and go to work with him again and ultimately win again.”
Morez Johnson Jr. Wants to Carry Michigan’s Defense to Dallas
Johnson said he hopes to bring the closeness and defensive identity of last season’s Wolverines into the Mavericks’ locker room.
“Coach Dusty had us very close last year,” Johnson said. “That was the closest team I ever been a part of.”
He pointed to the defense May built at Michigan as the foundation he expects him to install in Dallas.
“Coach May is going to focus on defense and bringing defense to the Mavs,” Johnson said. “We were the No. 1 defensive team in the country last year. So I can’t wait to lock in with my brothers.”
Johnson transferred to Michigan in April 2025 specifically to play for May, then started all 40 games as the program won its first national title in 37 years. He now joins a young Dallas core entering a rebuild under May and president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri.
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