Michigan State Holiday Wish List 2018: Wish No. 12 for Spartan fans

Michigan State’s 25 wishes list continues today and will run for the next two weeks. What is the No. 12 wish for all Spartan fans?

Here is wish No. 12 on our Michigan State fan wish list as we count down to wish No. 1.

Wish No. 12

Nick Ward will be the most dominant big man in the Big Ten.

After watching Michigan State basketball this season, not only do the Spartans have a great backcourt duo in Cassius Winston and Joshua Langford, but also Matt McQuaid and Kyle Ahrens have, when healthy, done a good job of keeping opposing defenses honest with their increasingly offensive output.

Nick Ward however, has to be dominant if the Spartans have a good chance of making it back to another Final Four this season.

Ward, in his first two season at Michigan State, has averaged between 12 and 13 points a game and averaged just under seven rebounds per game. Also as a freshmen and sophomore his field goal percentage was approximately 62 percent.

This season, he is averaging more points per game at 15.6 and averaging an assist per game. His rebounds per game is at an all-time low at 5.9 as well as his free throw percentage and his turnovers per game.

However, he has been very productive in the post with his back to the basket. He’s drawing double teams and his personal fouls per game average is the lowest it has been since he has been at Michigan State.

Ward has for the most part been efficient on the offensive end. Five players average more minutes per game than him so far this season but out of his three seasons with the Spartans, this is the first time he’s averaging more than 20 minutes a game. He playing well and dominating on the offensive end and not being a liability on the defensive end is very important for Michigan State’s success this season.

By Ward being double-teamed in the post, it allows him to find the open man and possibly getting Winston and Langford open looks beyond the arc or finding a cutting Ahrens or McQuaid going to the basketball. Even if Ward is not double-teamed, he can score with efficiency from the post and if he misses a high percentage shot, players like Kenny Goins or Xavier Tillman can get the rebound and put back.

Most importantly, Ward needs to average 25 minutes or more a game, near 18 points per game, and near 10 rebounds a game to be considered dominant.

Tillman and Goins have roles on this team and have contributed to the team’s success thus far this season. However, Ward being first-team All-Big Ten and being the most dominant big man in the conference will go a long way in helping the Spartans earn back-to-back Big Ten titles.

I put the probability of Wish No. 12 on our wish list of coming true at 20 percent. Even though there are not as main prominent and high profile big men in the conference as the last two seasons, doesn’t mean that Ward will automatically ascend to being the best big man in the Big Ten. However, this wish happening next season may not be likely but it does have a chance of coming true.