With the ever-fluctuating nature of college athletics, it is nearly impossible to predict the future of a team or season. And when it comes to next year's MSU men's basketball team, the guessing seems almost endless.
The team sustained critical damage when it lost leading playmakers Maurice Ager, Shannon Brown and Paul Davis to the NBA draft.
Last year, the three Spartan stars were the only trio in the nation to manage each player having more than 17 points per game.
Will the Spartans shock critics and pull through for '06? Is this a much-needed rebuilding year, or could this be the start of a dark age for the program?
Tony Conley, director and host of several sports programs on WVFN-AM 730's "The Game," offered an optimistic opinion about the situation for next year's basketball season.
"I think they're going to be better than people thought," Conley said. "I got a pretty funky vibe from the players that we talked to and from coach (Tom) Izzo. I think that they have a confidence that you can kind of sense. They think they're going to be better. I think they're just going to surprise people."
With Ager, Brown and Davis leaving, the team dynamic will change dramatically. New players will have to step up, leadership roles will have to be re-established and the team may run with a whole new game plan.
Unlike the point-and-click star-fueled theatrics of the past few years, the Spartans will now might have to rely on role-playing, something the players will have to meld into with a strong group effort. Conley spoke about what the players need to get done in order to pull off a successful season.
"If those freshmen can bring 10 points a piece in, if Neitzel can add five to what he already scores, we're talking 15 or more. If Suton can step up and average 10 points a game — then that's going to be where we need to be," Conley said. "I think it's going to be more like a Pistons role-playing team, but I think Neitzel is going to be the Chauncey Billups."
In a rebuilding effort, the entire team will have to scrape in order to survive. However, with the absence of former big ballers, former background players like Goran Suton, Marquise Gray, Travis Walton and, most importantly, Drew Neitzel, have to shift to the forefront.
Neitzel, a guard from Grand Rapids, has brought the ball up-court for two seasons as a starter. Now he needs to score.
"You know what the team needs now … they need a leader, and he's the guy that can take over," Conley said about Neitzel. "He's got to make sure everyone can try and get theirs, and if they don't, he's got to look to score more. He's got to look to take it over."
Channel 6 sports reporter Lisa Byington has been monitoring the team's progress. She spoke about how the Spartans need to react in the new season.
"They have to gel real fast," Byington said. "The younger kids have to mature, maybe a lot quicker than what they're used to. There is potential there for the incoming freshmen to make an impact."
Byington gave her opinion on next year's performance.
"I would probably pick them for the middle of the pack right now, sort of fighting to get into the tournament," Byington said. "If you look at a lot of the elite programs in the country, in the last five years they have either experienced an average year or a down year. So I think a lot of people have that comparison to the 2002 team. Izzo worked his magic that year, so what's to say he can't work his magic this year."
Izzone director Allison Crawford spoke about what the team's altered lineup might mean for ticket sales and Izzone representation.
"I know one of my big reasons for coming to Michigan State as a student was the Izzone," she said. "I know from my point of view as a fan, and not as a director, I really don't care about how the team is doing."
Byington is more than confident in the Spartans fans, even if the season becomes a work in progress.
"I mean, the program is at a point now that one down year wouldn't affect the fan base or ticket sales or anything like that," she said. "I think Izzo has got the program to a level where he can sustain interest in that way even if there is one down year."
