The transfer portal has opened and closed and Michigan State hasn’t had any activity — yet.
Tom Izzo told the media a couple of weeks ago that he didn’t anticipate any departures, and there’s currently a rumor spreading about one, but it looks like Jeremy Fears Jr. and Co. will remain mostly intact. Izzo will be returning essentially everyone from a Sweet 16 team that went 27-8 and finished second in the best conference in college basketball. The Spartans also bring in a top-five recruiting class and they’ll get back two transfers from season-ending injuries.
That all sounds like a national title favorite roster, right? It sure does, but unfortunately, there’s one glaring need on the roster and the answer to that problem is currently in the transfer portal.
Unfortunately, Michigan State is a starting center short of having a legitimate case to be the No. 1 team in the country heading into next season. Seth Davis has Michigan State as his projected No. 1 team, but I think he’s even expecting that Izzo will land a transfer center.
Izzo knows what he’s doing more than the fans, but it feels pretty obvious that he’s a legitimate center away from having his best chance at No. 2 in over a decade.
Tom Izzo wants to do it his way
Although he doesn’t want to hear it, Izzo has the means to win his second national title, but he’s more worried about not causing any rifts in the locker room instead of realizing these guys want to win.
You’re telling me that if Izzo made the best available center option (Moustapha Thiam, in my opinion) to be a top 1-2 highest-paid player on the team, giving Michigan State a top-three roster in the country, that the guys in the locker room wouldn’t understand it? These guys know this is a business and if you’re going to compete, you’re going to have to pay.
Unfortunately, Izzo is avoiding any potential locker room drama by letting guys like Aiden Sherrell and Thiam slip away to other big-time programs who are serious about a national title.
If Izzo were to land Thiam, Michigan State would probably be the national title favorite, but instead he’s going to settle on either what he currently has or a guy who would normally be a backup on a contending team. He can’t let this opportunity for No. 2 with a loaded roster slop away.
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