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Michigan State Basketball: 10 bold predictions for 2019-20 season

By Connor Muldowney

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 31: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans is defended by Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils during the first half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 31: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans is defended by Tre Jones #3 of the Duke Blue Devils during the first half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 31, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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Michigan State basketball opens the season on Tuesday against Kentucky and the Spartans have high hopes for 2019-20. Let’s get bold.

The season is finally here. Now that a tumultuous football season nears its end, Michigan State fans have been counting down the days until the Champions Classic.

Well, the next basketball game is now closer than the next football contest. Michigan State will play Kentucky in a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup on Tuesday evening to kick off the 2019-20 season. This has fans more than giddy.

Expectations are at an all-time high heading into the season and that just means predictions have to be even bolder than usual.

Let’s get bold ahead of a huge 2019-20 season.

10. Rocket Watts starts slow, finishes averaging 10-plus points

Tom Izzo is ready to throw Rocket Watts into the fire and see how he fares. Sometimes that’s a bad thing for freshmen, but the Hall of Fame head coach feels like he has something special in the Detroit-native, and I tend to agree.

There are people out there who believe Watts could be a two-and-done type of player but it might take him a little time to adjust to the collegiate level the same way Aaron Henry adjusted. He has an impressive upside but is likely a couple of months away from being the player he can truly be: a pure scorer.

Watts is the perfect replacement for Josh Langford, though, and although it will take him a couple of months to truly get going, he’ll remain in the starting lineup and eventually average over 10 points per game, putting his name into the race for Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

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