2022 Record: 21-13 (11-8)
Head Coach: Tom Izzo (Career Record 687-280)
Projected Rotation:
PG: AJ Hoggard (12.9 Pts, 3.7 Reb, 5.9 Ast)
SG: Tyson Walker (14.8 Pts, 2.5 Reb, 2.9 Ast)
SF: Jaden Akins (9.8 Pts, 4.0 Reb, 1.8 Ast)
PF: Malik Hall (8.9 Pts, 4.3 Reb, 1.2 Ast)
C: Mady Sissoko (5.1 Pts, 6.1 Reb, 0.5 Ast)
6: PF Xavier Booker
7: SF Coen Carr
8: PG Jeremy Fears
9: PF Jaxon Kohler (3.0 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 0.3 Ast)
10: PG Tre Holloman (1.3 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.9 Ast)
11: SF Gehrig Normand
12: C Carson Cooper (1.6 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 0.1 Ast)
Michigan State returns the high powered backcourt duo of AJ Hoggard and Tyson Walker. Hoggard is entering his 4th season with the program and had the best year of his career this past season. Hoggard has never been much of a three point shooter, but had his best shooting season last year. Where Hoggard really makes his mark is passing the ball and getting his teammates involved. Hoggard averaged nearly 6 assists per game this past season. He should take another step up in all aspects of his game this upcoming season. Tyson Walker was the leading scorer for the Spartans last season. The former Northeastern product averaged 15PPG shooting 46% from the floor and 42% from 3. He is one of the few transfer pickups in recent years as Tom Izzo is known to not use the portal often. Walker plays with a lot of confidence and he should be the best scorer on this Michigan State team.
Another returner for Michigan State this upcoming season is guard Jaden Akins. He saw a massive rise in production from his freshman to sophomore season going from 3PPG to 10PPG. Akins is another player who can really shoot the ball and along with Walker will be the best shooters on this Michigan State team. Akins could see another rise in his production and average between 12-14PPG next season. Michigan State also returns reserve forward Jaxon Kohler who should see an increase in minutes this season. Kohler shot 51% from the floor as a freshman and made an impact on the defensive side of the ball as well. PG Tre Holloman and C Carson Cooper also return for the Spartans. Holloman is a Top 100 recruit in the 2022 class and still has a ton of potential. Cooper is a developmental piece who will continue to grow as a reserve player.
The Spartans also return the frontcourt duo of Mady Sissoko and Malik Hall. Sissoko is entering his senior season and this past year was the best of his career by far. He wasn’t much of a threat on the offensive end even though he was very efficient when he took shots. Where he really made his mark was on the defensive end and attacking the glass. He could be another candidate to raise his stats dramatically once again. Malik Hall has continues to develop as a player over the course of his career. He battled some injuries last season, but came back and had some really clutch games. Hall has proven that he could be a three level scorer and make an impact on both sides of the ball.
Tom Izzo and staff also signed 4 freshman in the class of 2023. The highest ranked prospect in the class was big man Xavier Booker who was a 5 star prospect and Top 15 player nationally. Booker should be in the mix for minutes right away and could even start over Sissoko at times. Jeremy Fears was the #32 ranked prospect in the class. He could also see some playing time right away in a backup point guard role. SF Coen Carr is the most eye-popping prospect in the class. He is probably the most athletic player in the country as a freshman. He was ranked as the #46 prospect in the country and could also see action immediately. Gehrig Normand was the last member of the Spartans 2023 class. He was ranked as the #124 player in the class and could see rotational minutes.
After a few down seasons per Michigan State standards, the Spartans have a squad that will compete on the national landscape this year. They brought back 4 of their top 5 scorers and also added a few freshman that should make an impact immediately. Michigan State projects as the 2nd best team in the Big 10 although there is an outside chance that they can win the conference with their floor likely being 4th in the conference. Michigan State should have a Top 4 seed in March and could easily do some damage in the tournament.