Tom Izzo reveals which players he believes will make the biggest jumps in 2025-26

We got a bonus dose of Tom Izzo on Thursday as Jon Rothstein had the Hall of Fame head coach on his podcast as a special guest.

Izzo spoke openly about the transfer portal, the NIL era, and "dirtbag" tamperers who he and all of his fellow coaches have had to deal with in this new age of college basketball. He didn't hold back when talking about the tampering ruining the sport, and he did reflect on this past season's Big Ten champion squad being one of his closest teams ever.

The Hall of Famer also spoke about the upcoming season and what he expects from his team, including who he thinks will take the biggest steps forward in 2025-26.

Izzo revealed who he believes will be making the biggest jumps this season on Rothstein's podcast.

"Well I think those two are going to make the biggest jumps."

Rothstein did kind of lead Izzo into mentioning Jeremy Fears Jr. and Coen Carr, but he didn't make Izzo say anything about them taking the biggest leaps on the team. He did say that Carson Cooper has probably made the biggest one so far and Jaxon Kohler is "getting there" as well.

Izzo went on to say that the teams with the most talent don't always win, it's the best teams that win. That's what made the 2024-25 Spartans so special because they didn't have the most talented roster, but they were one of the most connected teams in the country.

Hearing Izzo say that he expects big jumps out of Carr and Fears, however, has me excited about the talent level rising while also maintaining that connectedness.

Don't sleep on the Spartans this season.