Michigan State Basketball: Is the 2023 class the best in program history?

Michigan State basketball signed the No. 4 class in the nation for 2023. Is this the best class in program history?

Tom Izzo is once again working his magic, this time on the recruiting trail. The Michigan State basketball legend has always been able to recruit some of the best athletes out of high school and has a history of putting together some elite classes. The 2023 class is no exception.

After many wondered if the game had passed Izzo by, he is once again showing why he is one of the best ever both on and off the court. The 2023 class is No. 1 in the Big Ten and No. 4 in the country, behind blue-bloods Kentucky, Duke, and UConn.

Having one of the best classes in the country is nothing new for MSU, but how does this class rank all time compared to other great MSU classes?

Michigan State’s 2023 class consists of four elite players, headlined by five-stars Xavier Booker and Jeremy Fears. Four-star Coen Carr has shot up the rankings recently and is ranked the No. 31 prospect in the class, making him a fringe five-star prospect as well. Rounding out the class is another four-star Gehrig Normand who is ranked No. 118 in the country.

Where do these recruits stack up on the all time MSU list? This class has three of the top 11 recruits in program history, which says a lot considering all the great players MSU has had the last two decades.

Booker leads the class and comes in as the third-best prospect in program history, one spot ahead of Spartan great Miles Bridges. Jeremy Fears and Coen Carr slot in at spots 10 and 11, respectively, with Gehrig Normand rounding out the class at No. 44, one spot ahead of fan favorite Tum Tum Narin Jr. On paper, this class is no doubt one of the best in program history, but does any other class rival it?

The 2016 class is the class that MSU fans point to when talking about the best in history. This class also had four prospects including two five-stars in Miles Bridges and Joshua Langford. This class also had Spartan legend Cassius Winston as well as Nick Ward. All four of these athletes rank in the top 25 all time in program history with Bridges No. 4, Langford No. 9, Winston No. 17 and Ward No. 25.

The 2016 and 2023 classes are very close, but I think 2016 still edges 2023, on paper. The 2016 class also is one of the more decorated classes in program history, winning three straight Big Ten regular-season titles and making a Final Four. Will the 2023 class find similar success on the court? That is yet to be seen, but all signs point towards the class getting off to a fast start in year one as the Spartans are favorites to win the Big Ten and make a run to the Final Four this year.

I would argue that, on paper, the 2023 class is the second-best in program history since recruiting rankings began.

At the end of the day, however, none of this truly matters as results on the court are the only thing that matters. The 2023 class has a tall task in front of them if they want to exceed the success the 2016 class found, but the star power is there for them to accomplish it.

How good of a start is the 2024 class off to? The two commits in the class, Kur Teng and Jesse McCulloch, rank No. 15 and No. 49 all time. Izzo does have his eyes set on some recruits who would rank top 10 in program history, so if he has anything to say about it, this class could rival both the 2023 and 2016 class the best ever at MSU.