As the NCAA Tournament comes to a close, GMS likes to review some of the power conference or power program teams that made it to the Big Dance and ask whether or not they’ve got a shot to return to the show next season. We kick things off with teams eliminated in the first round.
Recruit and Reload: Michigan State Spartans
Key Losses: Denzel Valentine, Bryn Forbes, Matt Costello, Deyonta Davis
Key Returners: Eron Harris
Key Newcomers: Miles Bridges, Joshua Langford, Nick Ward, Cassius Winston
Breakdown: When you lose one of the best players in your program’s recent history, who was the AP Player of the Year, along with his sidekick for much of the season that helped you earn a two-seed in the NCAA Tournament, bringing in reinforcements is necessary.
Thankful for Tom Izzo, he’s bringing in one of the best recruiting classes in the country. Bridges and Langford are considered as possible one-and-done candidates on the wing, while Ward and Winston look like guys that can develop within the program for multiple seasons. If Davis does not sign with an agent and returns to East Lansing, this could be another team under Izzo that hits its stride late in the season.
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