Michigan State Basketball: Spartans find their guard of the future in Rocket Watts
Michigan State Basketball already has one of the best backcourts in the country for 2018-19. The future looks good too, with 2019 guard Rocket Watts joining.
For the elite NCAA Basketball programs to stay great on an annual basis, they must not only have quality players for the present, they must also have their replacements coming into the fold to keep the train going.
Michigan State Basketball is a great example of that. In the frontcourt, the Spartans have been able to sustain the losses of lottery picks Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. with a few top-100 forwards, along with returning starting center Nick Ward.
In the backcourt, the team was already pretty set with the returns of juniors Cassius Winston and Joshua Langford along with rising senior Matt McQuaid. Joining them for this season is Foster Loyer, a top-100 rated point guard. But two years from now, Michigan State will look very different from the perimeter, which is why a plan has two already be in place.
Top-30 senior Rocket Watts has announced his commitment to Michigan State.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) September 22, 2018
No. 6 point guard in the 2019 class.
And as expected, Tom Izzo and the coaching staff came through, with the verbal commitment of Mark “Rocket” Watts, a top-35 combo guard according to 247sportsComposite. The Detroit, Michigan native choose the Spartans over teams such as Florida State, Louisville, Oregon, and rival Michigan.
At 6’2 and around 180 pounds, Watts can play both guard spots on the court thanks to being able to both shoot the ball at a high level, combined with his impressive court vision. Assuming he’s the real deal, Michigan State can slot him at the two-spot while Langford plays the traditional small forward position for the 2019-20 season. At 6’5 and over 200 pounds, Langford can defend opponents at that spot while still able to spread the floor with his shooting range.
Predicting all 32 regular season conference champs. dark. Next
That scenario would give the Spartans an early nomination for best overall backcourt for the season after this (assuming there’s no unexpected departures for them). And what makes it better is that it’ll consist of both experienced seniors (Langford and Winston) and for now, a pair of talented underclassmen guards (Loyer and Watts) who’ll play a crucial role in the coming seasons.
That’s why Michigan State continues to reign supreme in the Big Ten and continues to have a national presence come the NCAA Tournament.