Michigan State Basketball: 10 bold predictions for 2020-21 season

Michigan State's Marcus Bingham Jr., right, celebrates with Rocket Watts during a timeout in the second half on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.200225 Msu Iowa 209a
Michigan State's Marcus Bingham Jr., right, celebrates with Rocket Watts during a timeout in the second half on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.200225 Msu Iowa 209a /
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Dec 3, 2018; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans guard Joshua Langford (1) gestures during the second half of a game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Breslin Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 3, 2018; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans guard Joshua Langford (1) gestures during the second half of a game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Breslin Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports /

7. Joshua Langford makes All-Big Ten team

About a year and a half has passed since Joshua Langford saw the floor for Michigan State. In fact, he went out in December of 2018 and 57 games have passed since the senior guard has been in the Spartans’ lineup — that’s a long time.

The nagging injury he suffered seemed to end his basketball career abruptly, but he decided to return for a fifth year and prove that he still has something left in the tank.

But there are some doubts.

Langford was having a career year before he went down with an injury during his junior season. He was averaging 15 points per game and shooting over 40 percent from deep. It’s tough to return to that kind of form, especially if you have to adjust the way you play with a lower body injury.

Expecting him to be the same player and see similar minutes to his junior year just isn’t likely, but he’s going to be a serious scoring threat for the Spartans.

No, Langford won’t be on that elite level, but he’s still a shooter and will be able to score at a relatively high clip. He won’t make first-team All-Big Ten but he’ll be at least an honorable mention selection this season.

And that’s impressive considering how long he’s been out.