Michigan State basketball: Will Jaden Akins, AJ Hoggard return?

We’re getting close to that time. Michigan State basketball fans have been patiently waiting for good news to come out of East Lansing regarding Jaden Akins and AJ Hoggard.

According to the NBA draft timeline, the deadline for underclassmen to withdraw from the process is May 31 at 11:59 p.m. ET. So by June 1, fans should know just what Hoggard and Akins have decided.

We’re getting close to hearing the news, but there really hasn’t been much talk about what either of them will do. The consensus feeling is that both will return, but we truly don’t know.

With the NBA draft less than a month away, these two likely know what their stock looks like and while Akins is more likely to remain in the pool, I would be surprised to see him leave.

Will Michigan State basketball be complete on Wednesday night?

Fans are going to be glued to their computers on Wednesday as Akins and Hoggard will be down to their last few hours to decide what to do. They could have already made a decision and opted to keep it under wraps until the deadline passes, but we truly don’t know.

Heck, we saw Hoggard enter the NBA draft without much of an announcement so nothing would surprise me.

If I had to put numbers of the chances I think each returns next season, I’d venture a guess for Akins to return at 70 percent and Hoggard at 95 percent. There could be a team that promises to draft Akins and he opts to take the chance and remain in the field, but that would likely be late in the second round. Neither have been on draft board.

Both of them returning would mean big things for Michigan State in 2023-24.