Michigan State Basketball: Predicting stat leaders for 2020-21 season

Points per game: Rocket Watts

As a true freshman, Rocket Watts finished fourth on the team in scoring and that was after a rough start to his season. He averaged 9.0 points per game and shot just 39 percent from the floor and 28 percent from deep, so the room for growth is there.

Plus, he’s replacing an All-American point guard.

Watts is going to be relied on heavily to get the job done at the point guard position and with a freshman and unproven junior backing him up, there’s a good chance he’ll have to take care of most of the production from the backcourt.

Remember when Tom Izzo used to say he wanted Miles Bridges to be a little more selfish and hunt for his own shots? We’re going to see him use the same approach to Watts.

This time around, however, I think Watts will excel and become a serious Big Ten Player of the Year candidate, leading the Spartans in scoring at about 16 points per game. Don’t be surprised if he goes one step further and approaches 20 points per game.