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Michigan State Basketball: Is Nick Ward ready for the NBA?

By Connor Muldowney

EAST LANSING, MI - JANUARY 26: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks to Nick Ward #44 of the Michigan State Spartans during a game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Breslin Center on January 26, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI - JANUARY 26: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks to Nick Ward #44 of the Michigan State Spartans during a game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Breslin Center on January 26, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /
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Michigan State basketball received NBA news for the second straight day, this time as Nick Ward announced he’d be entering his name into the draft.

For the second straight day, Michigan State received some news that could impact the 2018-19 roster. Sophomore big man Nick Ward has entered his name into the NBA draft but has chosen not to hire an agent.

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The Gahanna, Ohio, native made the announcement via Twitter and Instagram, thanking Spartan Nation for the past two years in East Lansing.

What does this mean for the big man and what are the next steps? Essentially, this means that he’s testing the waters. It’s something that happens often in college basketball these days as guys just want to see what NBA scouts think of them, get a draft projection and don’t hire an agent, ultimately coming back to school to work on weaknesses.

Ward has a strong NBA-type of body at 6-foot-8 and 245 pounds, but without a consistent jumper and defense that needs work, he will likely get a late-second round projection, if anything. Scouts will want to see more consistency from him, and a 15-foot jumper wouldn’t be bad to add.

Many believed Ward would leave Michigan State after this season for some professional level because of an apparent up-and-down relationship with Tom Izzo. While they may have gone back and forth all year, Izzo’s a hard-nosed coach who has had these types of relationships with plenty of Spartan greats and they turned out thankful. I’d expect the same here.

The sophomore averaged 12.4 points and 7.1 rebounds per game while shooting 65 percent from the floor in 2017-18, but he still has plenty to work on although his post game is solid. While his frame can handle NBA bigs, his height may be looked at as a weakness. Not many 6-foot-8 bigs without jumpers translate well to the NBA.

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Expect Ward to test the waters without an agent and get some advice from NBA scouts and then head back to Michigan State for his junior year — at least in my opinion. He has until May 30 to pull his name from the draft.

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