Jeremy Fears faced the toughest decision of his life less than two weeks ago: should he stay in East Lansing for at least one more season or should he leave and hope to get selected in the 2026 NBA Draft?
Michigan State fans were on the edge of their seats awaiting the decision and it finally came just two hours before the deadline to withdraw from the NBA draft. He kept it interesting.
With the decision to return, Fears essentially told college basketball that he had some unfinished business and he even posted a picture of him and Tom Izzo with the caption alluding to staying loyal to the coach who gave him a chance on his Instagram shortly after the news broke.
Fears knows how badly Izzo wants to win that second national title and he’s even famously stated that he wants to win worse than the Hall of Fame heac coach does.
That drive to win a national title is fueling Izzo and it’s apparently the main reason that Fears decided to return to East Lansing. He was asked what the driving force behind the return was and his answer is exactly what fans want to hear: “Just trying to win a championship.”
"Just trying to win the championship."
— Owen Oszust (@Owen_Oszust) June 10, 2026
Jeremy Fears Jr. spoke with @wilxTV on his decision to return to Michigan State and what the driving factors were.
More: https://t.co/kYHvcjdQQY pic.twitter.com/R6YixMuADF
Fears also alluded to the coaching staff and his teammates as main reasons as to why he decided to come back as well as self-improvement. He said he wants to help the team and it’s obvious that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get Izzo his second title. If he’s able to lead Michigan State to a national title, he’s going to go down as one of the best Spartans of all time.
That Spartan Mount Rushmore would need an update in that case.
Jeremy Fears is facing a legacy season
We’ve seen players opt to return for another season or two instead of entering the NBA draft and it’s often paid off but the last prominent returnee was Miles Bridges and that didn’t work out well for the Spartans. Michigan State was shockingly bounced in the second round by Syracuse, ending what could have been a special season with a loaded roster.
Fears has to avoid that fate.
In order to do that, he needs to work on his own game while simultaneously making his teammates better. He’ll need to outperform his monster sophomore season and likely add a consistent 3-point shot to his game. With a deep NCAA Tournament run, Fears’ Spartan legacy could skyrocket.
Everyone already thinks of Fears as one of the best point guards to play for Izzo, but a Big Ten title, Final Four, and national title would cement him right at the top with Mateen Cleaves.
Ironically enough, that’s who Izzo has compared Fears to.
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