Marquise Gray has been a little prone to injury during his tenure at MSU.
In his redshirt season, the now-sophomore forward suffered a knee injury that held him out of practice. He missed three and a half months during the following offseason with a nagging ankle injury, then missed the final five games of last season with a broken right foot.
After his foot healed this past summer, he was playing what he called a "cat-and-mouse" game in a workout with junior guard Drew Neitzel when he made a sharp turn and Neitzel accidentally stepped on his foot, breaking it in the same place.
"It wasn't severe," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said of the first injury. "It was something they thought would heal. We kept him out an extra three weeks until June, and then he's back a week and then just a freak accident, and it happened again. Same foot, same place. So they put a screw in it this time, and now he's been working out pretty hard for three weeks."
Proclaiming himself fully healthy once again, the 6-foot-8 Gray is looking to make a much bigger impact than he did last season, when he averaged three points and 3.6 rebounds in 29 games, including nine starts.
He says the missed time has made him more hungry to play and improve.
"I'm back, full go, everything," Gray said. "I'm probably in the best shape I've been since I got here. I looked at (the second foot breaking) as a blessing. It helped me more than it hurt me. It gave me some time to think and think about what I need to do, where we need to be to be successful this year."
Although just a sophomore, Gray is one of the more experienced players on this young MSU team.
"I do see myself as a leader," he said. "We have a lot of guys that do not have that much experience on the court, including myself. I feel that, me being around for three years, that I do have to step up and take a part in us being successful."
Gray is expected to battle with sophomore forward Goran Suton for the starting power forward spot. And while Izzo acknowledged Gray is a question mark because of all the time he's missed, he still thinks Gray could emerge as a star this season.
"He's one of our best athletes," Izzo said. "He's got strength and toughness. He's a great rebounder. He really improved his shot a lot, and I have a feeling that Marquise is going to have a good year."
But who does Gray feel is the best man for the job?
"Well," he joked, "of course I'm going to say myself."
Staff writer Laura Collins contributed to this report.
