It’s been a busy summer on the recruiting trail for the Michigan State men's basketball program.
While the 2024 class essentially awaits two major decisions - with both top-50 four-star guard Kur Teng and three-star power forward Jesse McCulloch in the fold - the net cast for 2025 continues to grow, with what could end up as large as a five-man group when all is said and done.
It’s been a little while since we've got into the nitty gritty of where MSU is at for the next couple of cycles, so let’s dive in and see where head coach Tom Izzo and company stand as the Spartans look toward their future with the excitement of the 2023-2024 season fast approaching.
2024 Team Needs and Remaining Recruits
With A.J. Hoggard recently indicating in an interview that this would be his last year at Michigan State (he technically has a year left of eligibility due to COVID-19), Tyson Walker in his fifth year, and Jaden Akins with NBA aspirations, it's likely that Michigan State will need to replace all three starters in its backcourt next year.
While Jeremy Fears Jr. will take the reins at point guard, Tre Holloman will be a junior and likely slot into the two-guard spot, and Teng has the makeup to be an instant plug-and-play guy at either the two-spot or the three-spot (whether off the bench or as a starter), MSU will need to replenish its guard/wing depth in the next couple of cycles.
Insert Jase Richardson. Son of former Spartan great Jason Richardson, Jase has confirmed with Spartans Illustrated that he will make his commitment decision this Sunday, Oct. 15. A 6-foot-3 combo guard and ranking 39th overall in the country, Jase returned this summer from a major knee injury, which kept him out for eight months.
After finding his footing, he finished extremely strong at Peach Jam (Nike’s premier circuit event), averaging 20.8 points, 4.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game on 37-for-65 shooting (57%) from the field, 9-for-20 (45%) from deep, and 21-for-26 (80.8%) from the free-throw line over his last five games. Perhaps most impressively, he dished out 21 assists to just two turnovers during the stint and proved capable of scoring at all three levels.
Jase took his official visit to Michigan State in September.
While MSU’s largest need in this class was a bigger scoring wing, potentially snagging a legacy recruit who showed this past summer he’s capable of performing at an elite level on the biggest stage high school basketball has to offer, would be a welcome get.