“I’m not saying I won’t go to the transfer portal. I won’t do this or that. But the way we’ve made it to me is detrimental to the kids, maybe in the long run,” Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said.
Izzo was speaking to the Big Ten Network on Thursday during the Big Ten’s Men’s Basketball Media Day, where he laid out his distrust of the portal alongside his continued love for his team.
Tom Izzo Won’t Rebuild His Roster Every Year
Izzo is entering his 32nd season as head coach of the Spartans. He’s made the Final Four eight times but hasn’t since 2019; he’s struggled to find deep tournament success in the NIL era. That doesn’t mean he isn’t trying to adapt.
“I still like the practices, still love the guys, I still love my job. I just don’t respect my profession as much,” Izzo said. “And that’s what I’m trying to find a way to do that a little better, and hopefully it’ll work out.”
This past offseason, Izzo picked up only one new player from the transfer portal, instead adding a four-player first-year class to his roster. The one portal addition was four-star transfer Anton Bonke, a 7-foot-2 center from Charlotte who is expected to start. Izzo is fine with adding a couple of transfers, but if he had to replace his whole team, he’d call it quits.
“I give credit to the people that have eight, 10, 12 new guys every year. It just wouldn’t be for me. And if it gets there for me, I’ll be visiting you (Bruce Weber) in Florida,” Izzo said, speaking to the former Illinois coach who now works as a Big Ten Network analyst.
Carson Cooper Is Izzo’s Case For Development
The most recent developmental success for MSU was center Carson Cooper. Coming out of high school, Cooper was unranked and had four other offers from low- to mid-major schools. At Michigan State, Izzo helped develop him into a starter. He started off averaging 1.6 points per game in 6.6 minutes per game as a freshman, then finished at 11.1 points per game in 26.7 minutes per game as a senior. His hard work paid off when he signed a two-way contract with the Memphis Grizzlies on Sept. 29 after graduating.
“Carson Cooper, who was with the Memphis Grizzlies was I mean, he wasn’t recruited by anybody. And give him credit. I mean, hopefully we helped develop him, show him, but give him credit,” Izzo said. “The player does the work, you know, we just give him the direction.”
Izzo Isn’t Sold On The Preseason Hype
The Columbus Dispatch picked Michigan State second in its 10th annual Big Ten preseason media poll, behind Illinois, and Spartans guard Jeremy Fears Jr. was the panel’s pick for preseason player of the year. Expectations to reach the Final Four in Detroit have already started, but Izzo isn’t 100% sure, and the reason runs back to the portal: he hasn’t seen what the rest of the league looks like with its new transfers.
“I don’t want to downplay my team. But I think they’re really good, but some of those teams might be really, really good. I don’t know that yet,” Izzo said.
