NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early top 25 power rankings for 2022-23 season
486. . . . Spartans . 24. team
2021-22 season record: 23-13 (11-9 in Big Ten)
Coming into this past season, the question for Michigan State Basketball was who was going to be the go-to guy and star of the team. And for half of the year, it was Gabe Brown. His production dipped but still ended up as the lone double-digit scorer on the roster overall. He’s gone, along with starting big man Marcus Bingham Jr.
The good news is that just about everyone else of importance should be coming back, including freshman guard Max Christie. The former five-star prospect had his ups and downs but is the leading returning scorer at 9.3 ppg. He has 1st round draft pick potential but needs another year and more production to prove it. If he has a sophomore breakout campaign, that alone will make this team top-25 caliber.
Alongside Christie in the backcourt will be Tyson Walker, who produced 8.2 ppg and 4.3 apg. His scoring production was a bit disappointing but was just fine everywhere else. AJ Hoggard may actually be the better player but if Christie can become a better scorer, I could see all three play together successfully.
The question will be who they add to the frontcourt. The returning trio of Julius Marble, Joey Hauser, and Malik Hall is good for depth but there needs to be someone who breaks out. It’s likely not top-50 freshman commit Jaxon Kohler, although he’s someone to watch as a future Spartan star.