As someone who has been paying close attention to the transfer portal, there have been a few guys who have entered who I’ve really liked for Michigan State and I made sure to make note of them.
One was John Blackwell from Wisconsin, but that was more of a dream scenario fit, and not a realistic one because there’s no room for him in the backcourt (although I think you make room for him no matter what). Tom Izzo likes Blackwell a lot, but he’s not going to recruit over his current loaded backcourt.
Another was Aiden Sherrell who I’ve written at length about over the past couple of weeks. I mentioned him as a dream portal get before he even officially entered. The Alabama big man was a top Spartan target in the 2024 class and he’s from Detroit.
The third one that I can remember was Cincinnati transfer Moustapha Thiam. The 7-foot-2 big man has already played for two programs in his career, but he’s looks like a potential future pro. He has the frame and the former top-50 recruit from the 2024 class is averaging 11.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks over his two-year career. He’s also made 38 threes.
Izzo must have read my mind. The Spartans are reportedly in the mix for Thiam.
Michigan State is going to be going toe-to-toe with several blue bloods for the 7-foot-2 center from Cincinnati, according to Jeff Goodman. UConn, Duke, and Kansas are all in the running for Thiam as well as Gonzaga, St. John’s, Texas A&M, Tennessee, and UCF (where he began his career).
Tom Izzo is keeping Michigan State’s options open
To me, this is the best development of the offseason so far. Not only is Michigan State firmly in the mix for Sherrell, but a potential backup plan could be Thiam who was my second-favorite transfer center outside of someone obvious like Flory Bidunga.
The Spartans are also in the mix for Anton Bonke of Charlotte who’s another 7-footer and they were pushing for SMU’s Samet Yigitoglu as well.
Options are open and that’s all you can really ask for as a Michigan State fan who has been begging Izzo to get an elite center in the portal.