Tom Izzo defended his approach to building Michigan State's roster at Big Ten media day on Thursday. He told ESPN that relationships remain central to his decisions, even as transfers have become a routine part of college basketball. The Spartans' current roster offers a useful way to test what that means in practice.
Jeremy Fears Jr. and Coen Carr are still there. Fears has been named the Big Ten's preseason player of the year after leading the nation with 9.4 assists per game last season. Carr is listed as a senior on the official 2026-27 roster. Their return gives Izzo an established point guard and forward around whom to arrange new teammates. Continuity has a basketball use when the players retained have jobs that shape everyone else's possessions.
The same roster lists Kaleb Glenn, previously at Florida Atlantic, and center Anton Bonke, whose previous schools include Charlotte and Providence. Izzo has accepted help from the portal while keeping Fears and Carr. The question is how much the newcomers can improve the team without asking the returners to abandon the roles that made them worth retaining. A team can value relationships and still need a new center to defend a ball screen.
That last issue has already surfaced publicly. After Michigan State's October 2 exhibition, Izzo said his bigs had work to do on ball-screen coverage, as CBR reported from his postgame remarks. The center discussion involves Bonke, Jesse McCulloch and freshman Ethan Taylor. It should not be mistaken for a settled rotation. Izzo's media-day comments explain his recruiting preference, while the exhibition supplies a narrower on-court question about the players he has assembled.
Michigan State's schedule puts UConn in East Lansing for an October 20 exhibition. That game can show how the returners and additions work together against a stronger opponent. It cannot settle a full Big Ten season. Izzo's preference is clear. The lineup evidence is still arriving.
