Tom Izzo has seen this movie before, and that matters when the noise starts to build around a player like Jeremy Fears Jr.
Michigan State’s junior guard has spent the offseason collecting preseason praise, with one outlet after another putting him in the Player of the Year conversation. At the same time, plenty of people are picking the Spartans to win the Big Ten. That kind of attention can lift a team, but it can also creep into a locker room and change the temperature fast.
Izzo has spent enough years in this business to know that expectations can turn slippery. Some players handle them cleanly. Others start hearing the outside noise, feel the pressure tighten, and end up trying to be something different on the court.
When asked how he keeps that from becoming a problem for Fears and the Spartans, Izzo pointed to experience.
“Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, how do I avoid it becoming a distraction for Jeremy or for us. Fortunately, I've been there long enough that we've had a lot of times when expectations have been high.”
His bigger point, though, was about Fears himself. Izzo said the guard has had a summer that stood out to him, and the part that impressed him most was the lack of any hint of entitlement.
“For a player, it's always a little different. I think he's been through some things that help him stay grounded.
I will say this, this summer I thought he's had one of the best summers he's ever had there. I haven't seen, you know, now you know there's a lot of four-letter words I use that I can't use here, but one (word) that's as bad as any of them is entitlement, and I think we're getting a lot of people entitled.
He has not shown any entitlement and that's what excites me the most.”
That message fits the moment for Michigan State, which is carrying a heavy load of expectations into the season. In Izzo’s 31st year, he’s coached teams that entered with Final Four dreams and lived up to them, and he’s also coached teams that came in with less fanfare and made surprise runs.
He knows the difference often comes down to how a team handles the pressure that comes with the spotlight. And he knows entitlement can be just as dangerous as the hype itself.
For Fears, the attention is not going away. He’s viewed as one of the top players in college basketball, and that spotlight will follow him all season. But if Izzo’s read on the summer is right, the guard has stayed rooted in the right place.
The hype is there. So is the expectation.
What matters now is that Fears hasn’t let either one change him.
In Other News...
Michigan States Media Day Picks Say Plenty About This Seasons Stakes
Tom Izzo is heading into another Big Ten Media Day with the kind of stakes that have become familiar in East Lansing, only this time the spotlight feels especially sharp. He will be joined by Jeremy Fears Jr. and Coen Carr, a pairing that says plenty about where Michigan State believes its season can go, with Fears already carrying preseason conference honors and Carr entering the year with obvious room to boost his profile.
For Izzo, this is year 31 in charge, and the continuity matters because the Spartans are once again trying to turn expectations into something sturdier in league play. Fears is being talked about as one of the top players in the country, while Carrs next step is tied to how much he can expand his game, which gives this media day trip the feel of a snapshot of the whole season: proven leadership, high-end ambition and a roster with enough unanswered questions to make the coming months worth watching. [Read more 🡒]
Former Spartan Divine Ugochukwu Just Walked Into A Tough LSU Situation
Divine Ugochukwus move from Michigan State to LSU already had a little extra intrigue attached to it, and his first run in a purple-and-gold uniform only added to it. In LSUs exhibition against McNeese, the former Spartan led the Tigers in scoring with 18 points and played heavy minutes in a game they had to grind out for a 63-60 win.
The bigger picture around LSU is still unsettled, though, with roster and eligibility questions hanging over the team as the season opener approaches. Ugochukwus debut offered a glimpse of what he can bring, but it also showed there is still plenty for LSU to sort out before it can feel comfortable about the rotation and the way the backcourt will function. [Read more 🡒]
Tom Izzo's Influence Reached Oregon In A Moment Michigan State Fans Will Notice
Dana Altmans retirement at Oregon adds another familiar name to the list of longtime college basketball coaches stepping aside after a run defined by consistency and staying power. After 16 seasons with the Ducks, Altman said he no longer had the energy and confidence to keep guiding the program at the level it deserves, closing out a tenure that made him the winningest coach in school history and included nine NCAA Tournament trips, capped by a Final Four run in 2017.
For Michigan State fans, the news lands with a subtle extra layer because of who helped shape Altmans thinking along the way. Tom Izzo has long been one of the sports most respected voices on knowing when the job has become too heavy, and that perspective apparently resonated beyond East Lansing. Altmans decision now leaves Oregon looking for its next leader while also offering another reminder of how Izzos influence reaches well beyond the Spartans own sideline. [Read more 🡒]