Michigan State Basketball: Marcus Bingham Jr. showcases improving skillset
Marcus Bingham Jr. has been one of the most important players for Michigan State basketball this offseason because of needed growth.
When you see “6-11, 235 pounds” on the roster next to Marcus Bingham Jr.’s name, you’re probably led to believe that’s either a typo or an extremely generous weight.
The slim forward from Grand Rapids, Mich., came to Michigan State looking like he weighed around 200 pounds for a 6-foot-11 big man and didn’t exactly grow a ton throughout his freshman season. Actually, that’s why he didn’t play much despite having sky-high potential as a raw four-star recruit.
There’s talk, however, that he’s been adding weight this offseason and that’s led to speculation that he could take over in the post as a four, or five, next to Xavier Tillman.
Thomas Kithier and Malik Hall has been talked about as potential starters to replace Kenny Goins, but Bingham Jr. has been hitting the weight room hard and has even showcased an impressive skillset at Moneyball over the past few weeks.
Wednesday night’s performance was his best yet.
https://twitter.com/Marcusbingham0/status/1154210609833172992?s=20
Bingham Jr. dropped 49 points and showed off some new ball-handling moves and ability to create his own shot. He threw down some monster dunks and just looked like a new player.
If this is the Bingham Jr. we see in 2019-20, there’s no possible way Tom Izzo keeps him on the bench for 37-plus minutes. No more will we see him play in just 24 games, averaging 3.5 minutes, but rather he’ll be out there looking like a baby Jaren Jackson Jr.
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The sky is the limit for this kid and he’s starting to realize that. Better late than never.