Roddy Gayle Jr. proving reliable down the stretch for Michigan

The 2024-25 season is bringing an abundance of transitions for Roddy Gayle Jr.

The junior guard changed his team colors from scarlet and gray to maize and blue. He recrafted his 3-point shot. He’s also taking on a more veteran role as an expected everyday starter. And now, as evidenced by his performance in the Michigan men’s basketball team’s exhibition win over Toledo, he’s starting to settle into a go-to role late in games. 

While all these transitions may seem daunting, he’s handling them with ease and making his mark early on as someone Wolverines coach Dusty May can trust down the stretch.

“He’s performed incredibly well,” May said at Michigan Media Day Oct. 18. “ … Roddy has been someone that, if we can get him the ball in space, he’s been able to convert. He gets to the foul line. He’s shooting it. He’s shooting the basketball well. But it would be very realistic to say that Roddy is that guy in the last two minutes of the game to get the ball and he can get us a basket.”

Gayle has already shown flashes of that reliability before the first regular season game. When Gayle was subbed back into the second exhibition game against the Rockets with just over five minutes left, he made an immediate impact. Hauling in the defensive rebound on the first possession off a timeout, Gayle pushed quickly in transition and pulled up from three. He drew a shooting foul, ultimately making all three free throws. 

Again, with just under three minutes to go and Michigan up by only one point, Gayle dove under the basket and received a well-placed pass from junior forward Danny Wolf. Gayle then pump-faked, causing one defender to fly by before physically attacking the next one to draw an and-1. 

“He finished through contact,” May said after Michigan’s win Friday. “We’re not a super physical team by nature. We have typically, you’re either skilled or you’re super physical. I’m not saying we’re not physical, but we’re not as physical as we need to be, so potentially, that’s why we struggled to finish around the rim, but I think late, our guys went with more aggression and more pop.”

As Michigan struggled to put the Rockets away with 1:38 remaining, Gayle hit a dagger of a three to create a six-point lead, large enough for the Wolverines to close out the game. That final dagger capped off Gayle’s 3-for-6 shooting clip from deep in the two exhibition games — and while a small sample size, it’s much higher than his 28.4% mark from a year ago.

Gayle adding 10 points in the last five minutes to drag Michigan to the finish line was an exclamation point on a 20-point overall performance. His impact goes further, though, as May isn’t just using Gayle during crunch time, rather Gayle played the third and second most minutes for the Wolverines in the first and second games, respectively. 

Through his reliability in the waning minutes of the game and overall presence of authority, Gayle’s teammates are taking note and looking to him the same way May has been.

“(I’m) coming in here, trying to learn every single day,” freshman guard L.J. Cason said. “And playing against Roddy, learning from a veteran and just going day by day, (I’m) trying to be the best player I can be.”

After the transition from Ohio State to Michigan, Gayle has remained constant. Adjusting his 3-point shot and stepping into a go-to role are lofty aspirations, but Gayle has shown signs of early success in each category.

Gayle’s unwavering presence has already instilled confidence in the coaching staff to turn to him for big buckets down the stretch. And with the impending season, the transitions will likely continue to come to fruition and will do so even more as he becomes more confident in his new colors.

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