Michigan State basketball: It’s time for Tom Izzo to adjust to the times

After another disappointing Michigan State basketball loss that could have been avoided, it’s time for Tom Izzo to adjust or retire.

The college basketball landscape has drastically changed in the last few years for two main reasons. Name, image, and likeness (NIL) and the transfer portal. These two changes coincide almost perfectly with the decline of the Michigan State basketball program.

Now I’m pretty confident the NIL programs for the MSU basketball team are more than suitable, so that isn’t the problem. So that leaves us with the transfer portal.

Tom Izzo, to put it frankly, has not adjusted to this aspect of the new landscape of college basketball. I don’t believe it’s possible to win anymore without utilizing the portal. And Izzo’s refusal to use the portal, when it was abundantly clear he needed to, is cause for major concern in East Lansing.

Izzo’s lack of portal use

After the 2022-23 season came to an end, it was obvious what the weakness of this team was. The Spartans got pretty much everyone back and we knew their guards were good enough to win a championship. The same, however, couldn’t be said for their bigs.

Not one big on the roster showed during the 2022-23 season that they are a legit Big Ten player. I think they could all thrive as a backup, but none are even remotely close to being the level expected for a starting big man at Michigan State. Yet Izzo chose to roll with them again, and they are now paying the price.

The trio of Carson Cooper, Mady Sissoko, and Jaxon Kohler combined for just five points and six fouls in the loss to Iowa. That’s pathetic. This issue could have and should have been addressed in the transfer portal in the offseason, but Izzo chose to ignore it.

Why Izzo’s refusal to use the portal makes no sense

Izzo’s refusal to use the portal makes no sense to me for two reasons. The first is that MSU has an open scholarship spot this year. Even if you like your team, why not use that spot to make your team even better? Especially since we all knew of the need for another piece in the post, why not get one more guy if you have the open scholarship already available?

But the biggest reason why Izzo’s refusal to use the portal makes no sense is because of the success he’s already found using it. Michigan State’s best player by far the last two years is Tyson Walker, a transfer. The Spartans’ second best player last year, Joey Hauser, was another transfer.

Izzo has seen firsthand how beneficial transfers can be to team success, so it’s baffling to all of a sudden decide not to use it.

It’s time for Izzo to adjust, or move on

A similar pattern that happened at the end of the Mark Dantonio era is now happening with Izzo. Dantonio is the best football coach in MSU history, but he also failed to adjust to the changing times in college football. That resulted in some pretty rough years as his tenure came to an end.

This is the exact point where we are at with Izzo. He will never be fired, nor should he, but something needs to change. His coaching tenure is approaching a dangerous slope that could lead to even more rough year’s down the line.

The solution is simple. Either adjust to the new college landscape or admit this new coaching style isn’t for you and retire. There’s no shame in the latter, many other legendary coaches have already retired. But there is shame in continuing to coach in a way that’s no longer as effective as it once was.

I hope Izzo adjusts and does the right thing next year. No matter what he decides to do, he will always be a legend and beloved by the university, alumni, and fans. But I prefer for Izzo to go out on top rather than just scraping by, but Michigan State basketball is getting dangerously close to becoming a program that’s just scraping by.