Dusty May must succeed where Jason Kidd faltered with the Mavericks

New Mavericks Head Coach Dusty May has much to prove in his first professional basketball role after 21 years in collegiate basketball. May's time as a college coach has been one of the most rapid success stories in recent years. He led the FAU Owls to their first Final Four, setting a program and Conference USA record for wins in the process, and won a national title with Michigan in just his second year with the Wolverines.

May's success in recent years with FAU and Michigan will hopefully carry over to a new team in the midst of a rebuild. While the college-to-NBA coaching pipeline comes with risks, the Mavericks brought in May to lead the team into a new era. The hope is that May will bring a breath of life to the team as work begins on building around the young superstar Cooper Flagg.

Dusty May is leading Dallas into a new era

Recently, his predecessor, Jason Kidd, has been under fire after former Mavericks assistant Igor Kokoskov spoke about his time working alongside Kidd. Kokoskov criticized Jason Kidd as both a person and a coach, while suggesting that Kidd got several of his coaching positions off "his name and reputation as a legendary player."

May doesn't have Kidd's name or pedigree, but that's likely why they brought him in to coach this team. The only reason to turn to someone like May is if you believe he can change the culture and the mindset of the team and its fanbase. The Mavericks were in the NBA Finals just two seasons ago, and now they're completely rebuilding. That's a hard pill to swallow if you were a player on that team or a fan who was there for the finals run.

May can't become another Jason Kidd if the Mavericks want to succeed

Kokoskov also pointed out how Kidd has truly done less with more throughout his career. His talented squad in Brooklyn couldn't get the job done; his time in Milwaukee ended without an appearance in the second round, and his reign as Mavericks coach ended with a whimper. Coach May has been brought in to fix a team that isn't as talented as the team Kidd took to the finals. On top of that, more roster turnover should probably be expected before this team truly forms its own identity.

Kidd likely couldn't lead a team like this anyway; his personal issues were apparently already making him difficult to be around when they were actually winning ball games. So, May is likely an improvement personality-wise, no matter what he does on the court, but obviously Mavericks fans will be looking for something more substantial from the new head coach.

Coach May is taking over a team that needs a leader, so who better to lead the Mavericks into the next era than someone who has led two squads of young men to the very heights of college basketball? May will need to be what Kidd could not: a man who puts the team above himself. A man who can succeed where others fail. A man who can lead the team being built around Flagg to an NBA title.

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