Michigan State Basketball: Breaking down the 2018 recruiting class

PG Foster Loyer – Clarkston, MI

One of the top point guard recruits in the nation, Foster Loyer (No. 94) comes in as a highly-touted player. Although he does not boast tremendous size (6-foot-0), he is an outstanding playmaker who has no trouble filling up the basket either. During this past high school season, Loyer took the state by storm. He averaged 25.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 6.4 assists per game. He also played through an injury (slightly torn meniscus) for the last month of the season. To cap the year off, Loyer was named Mr. Basketball in Michigan. Along with Cassius Winston and Deyonta Davis, Loyer is the third MSU commit to win Michigan’s Mr. Basketball in the last four years.

A dead-eye 3-point shooter, Loyer impressed during the prep circuit last summer. While playing in 21 games (EYBL and Peach Jam), Loyer averaged 16.8 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. He showed tremendous balance for a guard with these statistics and also shot efficiently from the floor, shooting 46.8% overall from the field. Breaking this down further, Loyer buried 41.7% of his 3-point attempts (50-for-120) and 98.1% of his free throws (102-for-104). This efficiency, especially from the charity stripe, definitely shows Loyer’s ability as a shooter.

Due to Winston still being on the roster, Loyer will have to wait before the reigns of the starting point guard spot are handed to him. For now, though, he could provide some valuable reserve minutes at the position. The primary backup to Winston last season, Lourawls “Tum Tum” Nairn Jr., graduated this offseason, leaving his 16.7 minutes per game behind. It is reasonable to expect Loyer to swoop in and take most of those.