Tom Izzo checks in on 4 elite recruiting targets at Link Academy

Over the past few months, Tom Izzo has seemingly gotten his recruiting spark back. While he never truly lost it, it felt like he was putting in that extra effort on the trail, and it paid off.

The Hall of Fame head coach picked up a commitment from four-star point guard Carlos Medlock Jr., who is originally from the state of Michigan but is now playing in Missouri at Link Academy. He's joined by a handful of other top prospects, but he's leading the way as the senior point guard who happens to be committed already.

Some of his teammates may join him in East Lansing, though.

Izzo is working hard to create a Link Academy-to-Michigan State pipeline, much like he tried to do at La Lumiere. He already has one commit from Link in the 2026 class, but he may not be done yet.

According to 247Sports' National Basketball Director Eric Bossi, Izzo and a couple of his staff members are in Missouri on Wednesday to check in on Medlock and some of his teammates who also happen to be top Michigan State targets.

Izzo and a couple of his assistants are in Missouri at what looks to be a Link Academy practice or open gym, with top targets like Ethan Taylor (five-star center in 2026), Tristan Reed (four-star center in 2026), and Davion Thompson (five-star point guard in 2027) participating alongside Medlock.

The Spartan staff is putting in a serious effort here to make sure they don't leave with just one Link Academy commit in the 2026 and 2027 classes. They're working to land at least a couple.

Medlock will be on campus this weekend for Grind Week, and both Taylor and Reed will be visiting this fall at some point. Thompson will likely be visiting unofficially at some point, but I'd be shocked if Michigan State didn't get an official visit next year.

Time to get that Link Academy pipeline up and running.