Michigan State basketball the favorite to land 4-star PF Jaxon Kohler

As soon as September rolls around, all eyes turn toward Spartan Stadium as Michigan State basketball news and developments take a backseat at least until October.

But Tom Izzo, and the football fan he is, has been taking advantage of new life that Mel Tucker injected into the program. He is now able to host recruits for weekends in the fall which include a trip to the football game and also tours around the facilities as last year was essentially a wash with COVID-19 preventing any type of visits.

Izzo hosted recently-offered power forward Jaxon Kohler over the weekend and it seems to have paid major dividends as he got to see what the atmosphere is like in East Lansing during a football Saturday in the fall. And it looks like he loved it.

According to some new crystal ball predictions on 247Sports, Michigan State is the new favorite to land the four-star forward from Utah.

Keep in mind, Michigan State just offered Kohler on Sept. 1 and hosted him just 10 days later, so you have to believe that Izzo has put in some serious work and is feeling the pressure of the 2022 class potentially getting away from him — Isaac Traudt and Jaden Schutt have committed elsewhere.

Kohler would be a heck of a backup plan.

How could Michigan State basketball round out the class?

After watching some highlights of Kohler, I’ve become a big fan of his game. He’s not the best athlete out there and he’s just 6-foot-8 so he’s limited height-wise, but he uses his 250-pound frame to just bully defenders in the post. He’s got soft touch around the rim, can step back for a mid-range jumper, and has a surprising repertoire of post moves.

So let’s say Kohler (the No. 71 recruit in the nation) does end up at Michigan State, who could join him to round out the class?

The Spartans currently have one commit in Tre Holloman who was on campus with Kohler this weekend and he’s ranked the No. 69 overall recruit and No. 9 point guard in 2022, according to the composite on 247Sports.

The final target outside of Kohler and Holloman that I could see joining the class is four-star small forward Ty Rodgers (No. 56 nationally) who would be a heck of an addition and would give Izzo a solid three-man group with room to hit the transfer portal for 1-2 more spots.

Although the class doesn’t resemble what we expected, it still has a chance to be one of the best in the nation.