At the time, MSU head basketball coach Tom Izzo couldn't get enough of him, and would rave about the 6-foot-5 Bess for the amount of work he saw the then-freshman putting in — so much work that Bess was entering into the discussion as a potential starter for the 2014-15 squad.

However, all that hype for Bess' freshman season seemingly washed away when he suffered a stress fracture in his right foot during a late October practice — a week before the 2014-15 season was set to begin.

Bess would eventually return to the court for a dozen games in December and January, showing flashes of what he could do for the team throughout. However, when the foot started acting up again, Bess went in for an X-ray and it was discovered the foot was broken. 

Bess' season was over. He would go on to have surgery in March, meaning he would sit out of the team's Final Four run and wouldn't return to the court until June.

"It was very tough being able to really get to compete for that starting spot and then a week before our first exhibition game I go down with an injury," Bess said. "It was real tough going through that but it's kind of motivation for this year."

Prior to his injury, when Bess was still in high school, Bess' former coach Tony Staib said Bess was a guy who would show up early to school every day to work on his game, and would even skip his lunch sometimes to put up more shots. 

So when the restless gym rat was told by the MSU coaching staff he couldn't even come into the gym to practice free throws, it crushed him.

"It was real frustrating," Bess said. "They didn't want (any) other problems with (the foot). ... But I feel like at the end of the day, that helped me now, because now I'm able to get back to my routine."

While it might have been tough on Bess last year, he said teammates and roommates, Marvin Clark Jr. and Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn Jr. helped him through the whole process.

"Marvin and Tum, those are my best friends," Bess said. "(Marvin) had the (same) surgery in high school so he was able to talk to me a lot. ... Having them two with me helped me a lot."

And heading into this year, Izzo said Bess is still that hard working player, and used the word "sick" to describe the amount of time Nairn and him have spent in the gym this offseason. Izzo also offered up a comparison to former Spartan great Draymond Green.

"He brings some toughness and a little bit of Day Day in him where he's tough enough and he's got a high basketball IQ," Izzo said.

Nairn has also seen the amount of work Bess has put in to get back, and hopes Bess' improvements can help MSU be a competitive team this year.

"I've seen a lot of improvement from him," Nairn said. "I know (being injured) was very tough on him. It was tough on me, too — anytime you see one of your teammates go down, a player who works so hard and works so hard on his game. He's a great piece for our team this year. ... He's handled it pretty well and he's in the gym constantly working on his game to get to where he needs to get to help us win games."

So as Bess continues to put in countless hours to refine his skills, the sophomore said he's looking to do whatever he can to help his team.

His storied career is just now beginning.

"I want it really bad," Bess said. "I want to get to the next level and I know with me, not being as athletic or maybe as talented or skilled, I gotta try to work harder than my competition to get to that next level."