Draymond Green said he almost committed to Michigan, so why didn’t he?

Draymond Green told a story about how he was set to commit to Michigan but changed his mind after a late visit.

If you look up the definition of a Spartan you likely will find a picture of Draymond Green. Nobody embodies what makes a Spartan more than Draymond. His toughness, hard work, and never-give-up attitude are what make Draymond a true Spartan. Add in all the success he has found on the court and Draymond is undoubtedly one of the greatest Spartans of all time.

But what if I told you he almost wasn’t a Spartan? What if I told you he instead was almost a Wolverine?

Draymond says he almost committed to Michigan

Draymond was a guest on a recent episode of the Club 520 Podcast and spoke briefly about his recruitment out of high school. In true Draymond fashion, he didn’t hold anything back.

However, I didn’t expect his recruitment story to go how it went. Draymond began by saying five or six days before his commitment date “I was gonna go to Michigan.” Shocking right? He said he was 100 percent set on becoming a Wolverine, but the current Michigan players and staff still wanted him to make one more visit to Ann Arbor.

Draymond initially refused, knowing he was going to commit to them soon anyway, but eventually caved and visited their campus about three days before his commitment date. On this visit, Draymond played in a scrimmage with the current Michigan team, and it was during this scrimmage he changed his mind.

What happened during this scrimmage?

During the scrimmage, Draymond said he was dominating the Wolverines. That wasn’t a huge surprise since he was a highly-rated recruit. This, however, wasn’t the reason he chose Michigan State instead. Draymond said during the scrimmage that he “was talking crazy to them boys and nobody said a word.”

Just like at Michigan State and in the NBA, Draymond Green talked a lot of trash in high school, too. He did so during this final scrimmage, but no Michigan players matched his energy.

He compared this to his visits to Michigan State and said, “But I go to Michigan State and I’m talking crazy to them and we all about to fight. That’s home for me.”

That’s what ultimately made Draymond change his mind to commit to MSU instead of Michigan. The culture Tom Izzo had in place where everyone wanted to compete at all times is what changed Draymond’s mind. And how lucky we are that this happened.

Draymond went on to play at Michigan State and make two Final Fours, winning three regular-season Big Ten championships and one Big Ten tournament title. Draymond also has already had his jersey retired at MSU, cementing him as one of the all-time greats.

I will forever be thankful that Draymond Green committed to MSU instead of Michigan. Who knows what success he would’ve found in Ann Arbor, but I’m sure Michigan would’ve been much better. But we don’t have to worry about that, and thankfully we get to enjoy all the memories he gave us during his career in East Lansing.