Michigan State reportedly contacts freshman transfer who averaged a double-double

In case you haven’t been paying attention over the past few days, the transfer portal opened up earlier this week and Tom Izzo and Michigan State are going to be searching for a center.

The early talk has been Aiden Sherrell, but there’s going to be plenty of talk about other options as the weeks progress. Izzo knows better than to put all of his eggs in one basket because that gets coaches burned more often than not. He knows better and has learned the hard way not to go all in on a guy that’s going to be pursued by several big-time programs.

Sherrell is at the top of the list, but there are other centers separating themselves as top targets for Izzo and Co.

The Spartans like to play portal season close to the chest and that’s why you don’t often hear about them involved with transfers when it seems like every other school is. But one big man revealed that he’s been in contact with Michigan State, among others.

Tomislav Buljan, a 6-foot-9 Croatian who spend last season at New Mexico, is reporting that he’s received interest from Michigan State among almost a dozen programs.

With a name like Tomislav, it’s surprising to see that Illinois isn’t making a run at him.

All jokes aside, the freshman forward from Croatia had an impressive first collegiate season with the Lobos, averaging 13.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and he shot 54 percent from the field and 30.8% from three. He’d be a really solid addition with three years of eligibility left.

Tom Izzo needs to act fast on a center

Unfortunately, landing an ideal center in the transfer portal is easier said than done because while Sherrell may be a perfect fit, he’s going to command a huge NIL deal and there are already several big-time programs vying for him like Duke and Baylor.

Having back-up options like Buljan is smart but having a roster in place and getting everyone on the same page early on is important.

We’ve already seen several teams land elite transfer bigs, including Michigan, so for a team that’s truly just a top-tier center away from being a national title favorite, the Spartans need to act swiftly. This could be the difference between a Final Four run and another second-weekend exit.