Michigan State basketball leads the nation in a significant recruiting stat

Michigan State basketball has always been one of the top programs in the Big Ten when it comes to recruiting. However, it’s no secret that MSU is still usually a step below the top teams in the country such as Kansas, Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina.

That’s why when I saw this stat online the other day I was absolutely shocked to see that Michigan State led the entire country.

The above post shows that Michigan State leads the country in average top 100 recruits on their team in the last five years at 8.2 per season. That’s right, the Spartans have more top 100 recruits on average than the likes of Duke, North Carolina, UConn, and Kansas over the last five years.

Now I know what you’re probably thinking, how is that even possible after the rough stretch that Michigan State’s been on in recent years? And I think I have the answer to that question.

Tom Izzo is an elite recruiter, nobody in their right mind would deny that, but he typically doesn’t get the best of the best in the recruiting classes. There are times where he has done that, like the class of 2023 with Xavier Booker or the 2016 class that featured Miles Bridges, Joshua Langford and Cassius Winston, but more often than not Izzo loads up on the next tier of players below that very top tier.

I also believe Izzo does this by design. There’s a drastic different between how Izzo runs Michigan State compared to the Dukes and Kentuckys of the college basketball world. Those schools get the NBA ready players that will come for one year then leave for the pros while Izzo targets guys that will likely stay in the program for 3-4 years. That naturally causes Michigan State to have a build up of talent compared to these other programs that churn out NBA players every season.

Whether you prefer for Izzo to operate like these other schools is a different conversation, but the fact of the matter is that he is the best in the country when it comes to stacking top 100 talent. Now the hope is that Izzo can either recruit at an even higher level or the guys that he’s getting in this “second tier” pan out more over their careers.