Michigan State Basketball: Ideal starting 5 for 2021 Big Ten Tournament

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - FEBRUARY 25: Rocket Watts #2 and Aaron Henry #0 of the Michigan State Spartans walk onto the court after a time out in the first half of the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Breslin Center on February 25, 2021 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

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BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA – FEBRUARY 20: Joshua Langford #1 of the Michigan State Spartans celebrates during the 78-71 win over the Indiana Hoosiers at Assembly Hall on February 20, 2021 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

A staple of the starting five all season, Joshua Langford will almost surely get the nod at shooting guard and he has the ability to handle the ball at times.

Langford is one of the top leaders on the team and the senior captain may be coming off a quiet game against the Wolverines — outside of a huge game-clinching 3-pointer — but he has the ability to fill it up, play stingy defense and even rebound from the wing.

The senior guard takes a lot of pressure off whoever is running the point and in this case, he’ll take a load off Rocket Watts’ shoulders.

Tom Izzo can trust Langford to make smart decisions and he’s one of the best mid-range shooters in college basketball. If Michigan State wants to stick with just a little bit of continuity in that starting lineup, Langford needs to be in there.

We’ve seen him bounce back from his injury nicely this season and this is his chance to put together a special run.

Is there a more trustworthy, sure-handed player (not named Aaron Henry) on the team right now?

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