MSU men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo said he doesn’t plan on having Marcus Taylor as his point guard next season.
“I did tell you guys at the beginning that I thought he was 80 percent gone to 85 percent,” Izzo told reporters Tuesday. “Now, I think it’s 99 percent.”
When Taylor announced he would enter June’s NBA Draft in March, he said he was testing the waters and wanted to get an idea of his draft status. Now, Izzo said that isn’t the case.
“I don’t think he’s looking at that at all,” Izzo said. “He’s looking at making the NBA or he wouldn’t be going.”
Early mock drafts have Taylor being drafted, but few project him as a first-round pick. Most have the MSU junior-to-be going in the second round.
The CNNSI.com Mock NBA Draft has Taylor going No. 27 overall to the Los Angeles Lakers with the second-to-last pick of the first round.
But ESPN college basketball analyst Andy Katz said he doesn’t have Taylor rated that high.
“It’s still too early to say where he’s going,” Katz said Tuesday night.
Katz, also ESPN’s NBA Draft analyst, said he thinks Taylor could improve his draft status by playing another year at MSU.
“If he comes back, he’s got a great shot to be a first-rounder next year,” Katz said.
Izzo said he has gotten calls from Toronto, Chicago, Memphis, Detroit and Denver regarding Taylor.
He also said Taylor is still academically eligible and would be welcomed back, should he choose to withdraw from the draft. To the best of Izzo’s knowledge, Taylor hasn’t signed with an agent.
Taylor could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Izzo would not comment on whether Taylor is taking classes this summer.
In Big Ten games last season, Taylor averaged 17.7 points and five assists per game, becoming only the second player in Big Ten history to lead the conference in scoring and assists.
And Izzo said he thinks Taylor has the mental toughness to make the jump to the NBA.
“He thinks he is - and I think that’s three-fourths of the battle,” Izzo said.
