Tom Izzo has gotten a healthy dose of criticism over the years regarding his approach to the transfer portal and his inability to land the big-money transfers.
A year ago, he went with a modest approach to the portal, landing coveted forward Frankie Fidler and then settling for Szymon Zapala as a center option. There were a number of elite centers in the portal and that was a position of need for the Spartans, but Izzo opted to go with a guy who wouldn't take too many minutes from Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper.
It was an interesting approach, but it caused some confusion.
On Wednesday at former Wyoming coach Larry Shyatt's coaching clinic, he explained this approach in a way that makes sense for those who have been critical of his portal usage.
Tom Izzo at Larry Shyatt’s coaching clinic: “When I go in the portal, the first place I go is to my locker room. I want to keep most of the guys on my team.” pic.twitter.com/T705ISGFHf
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) August 20, 2025
We've heard him hint at this portal mentality in the past, but now that he's saying it out loud, it makes sense that he'd rather keep his locker room intact and his players happy than to chase after transfers who are only looking for a bag and who don't know the culture of Michigan State.
Fortunately, Izzo has been able to keep this mindset while also exercising an approach of going after guys who fit in with his program and who wouldn't disrupt the culture.
Heck, just look at the quality of transfers he's gotten over the years from Tyson Walker to Joey Hauser to Szymon Zapala. He gets low-risk, high-reward type players who don't believe that they're bigger than the program and who are more than willing to soak in Izzo's coaching style. These guys are always embraced by his current players, too.
So next time you wonder why Izzo isn't dropping bags to land the top transfers in the portal, just realize that he's prioritizing his own guys and he believes in his own guys.