The 2024-25 Michigan State basketball team went 30-7, with a 17-3 league record, winning the Big Ten conference by a full three games. The Spartans finished #7 in the final AP poll and they made an Elite Eight run (the deepest of any conference team) in the NCAA Tournament.
Maintaining this high a level, even at a place like East Lansing, is very difficult.
As RG.org points out, Spartans head coach Tom Izzo is nicknamed “Mr. March” due to his NCAA Tournament record of 56-25. With eight Final Four appearances, only four coaches in the entire history of the game have more. The eight Final Fours places him first among both active coaches and all-time in the Big Ten.”
So with that in mind, some decline was inevitable, and well, it’s coming.
Now that most of the transfer portal combat is over, and the NBA Draft deadlines having passed, we have a good idea of where most teams stand, more of less.
There will be more comings and goings, additions and subtractions, but for the most part, you know where you are now for 2025-26. And this Michigan State basketball team looks like a slightly above average Big Ten side.
2025-26 Big Ten mens basketball rankings.
Idea from @dterp_13 pic.twitter.com/00wQWJMhnI— jmoney (@jmoney846211) May 31, 2025
With Jeremy Fears, Coen Carr and Jaxson Kohler returning, the Spartans will have plenty of experience back in the starting lineup. However, they have also certainly lost quite a bit of talent, depth and production.
Jase Richardson, Jaden Akins and Tre Holloman were three of Tom Izzo’s best players.
It’s safe to say that this Michigan State basketball team is middle of the pack, league wise, at worst. Honestly, they should end up somewhere around a #5 to #8 seed in the Big Ten Tournament.
And no doubt they’ll play a very tough preconference schedule, because that’s what Michigan State basketball does.
My Way-Too-Early Big Ten Basketball Power Rankings – Version 2.0. pic.twitter.com/nr6G5n771u
— Dylan Terpstra (@dterp_13) May 31, 2025
Sparty will end up a #6 or #7 seed in March Madness, after winning 22+ games through rebounding and defense. Because again, #SpartansWill.
This will be another Michigan State basketball team that perfectly fits the mold of all of Izzo’s teams. Despite all that they have lost, they will find a way to get it done.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter