Why Smaller Lineups Could Become Staple for MSU Hoops This Year

EAST LANSING -- It may be some time before Michigan State basketball has a handle on which players and lineups will work best this season. This is a good problem to have.

The Spartans, who will likely be inside the top 10 nationally entering the 2026-27 season, have 11 or 12 players who could realistically get minutes this year. MSU has countless different directions that they could go with which five players they want at any point in time, but there is a good chance Michigan State could try out some small ball this year.

The Cam Ward Factor

One player who will have a big impact this year is sophomore forward Cam Ward. He's coming off an impressive freshman season that could've been even better if he hadn't suffered a wrist injury that Tom Izzo says knocked him off course a little bit.

There's a class of players on this roster where a coach sort of needs to just find ways to get them on the court. Everything sort of revolves around point guard Jeremy Fears Jr., who could be the best player in the nation this year, but Coen Carr and Jordan Scott are two other examples of guys who just need to be on the court. Good things happen when they're playing. Ward might be ready to join that list this year.

The problem is that a lot of other larger forwards will need minutes, too. Carr has to be out there. Kaleb Glenn has to be out there. It certainly seems like Jesse McCulloch has to be out there. There are only so many minutes at the four, Ward's main spot, to give out.

So, how does Ward get some more minutes? Maybe he has improved as much as Izzo says, but Ward probably doesn't have the overall quickness and shooting ability to play small forward or the three. This means Izzo may have to give Ward some minutes at center or the five, which would make things pretty interesting for both Michigan State's front and backcourt.

"Now I've got the media coaching my team, and you're right," Izzo said last Wednesday when the suggestion came up. "You're right. That's what bothers me; you're right. Yes, we will probably do that some, and we can do that. It just gives us different options against different teams, different times of the game."

MSU's Loaded Backcourt

Ward playing the five would almost certainly mean a "small ball" lineup for MSU, where the Spartans could play three or maybe even four guards.

The one is going to be dominated by minutes for Fears and then incoming freshman Carlos Medlock Jr. Things become complex at shooting guard, though. Scott was the starter there at the end of last season, but regular minutes will likely go to freshman Jasiah Jervis and junior Kur Teng as well.

It's going to be impossible to keep everybody happy when sticking with a traditional guard-guard-forward-forward-center lineup template. The luxury of having a player like Scott is that his length opens up the possibility of him sliding down to the three, which really might be his more natural location on the floor. Carr could also slide to the four, and then Ward could move to the five.

In that scenario, the one and the two could be several different players. Maybe it's Fears and Jervis. Maybe it's Medlock and Jervis. Maybe it's Fears and Medlock. That's where Izzo could ride whoever has the hot hand that day or decide who to put in, depending on the matchup or whichever player could use a rest at that particular moment.

Looking at Center

There are just so many players worth giving minutes to at point guard and shooting guard that it may just be worth having one play small forward instead. Michigan State has a bit more of a proven blend of production and high-end talent in the backcourt than it can say with its frontcourt.

This is what makes the balancing act so interesting. Ward getting minutes at the five seems great, but it also means less playing time for Anton Bonke, Ethan Taylor, and Jesse McCulloch. Those three will be absolutely crucial for MSU this year, but Bonke, Taylor, and McCulloch aren't entirely proven players at this level.

Bonke is a transfer from Charlotte. Taylor is a very intriguing true freshman whose passing ability and athleticism will get him onto the court, but he is still not that polished overall. Izzo really likes what McCulloch did this summer, and it showed in the Incarnate Word exhibition with a 20-point performance, but Ward still feels like a more known commodity right now than he does.

11 or 12 players could get minutes this year, but there simply aren't enough minutes to go around to keep every player happy, and one or two possibly deserving players may just not get any playing time at all. Some players are just givens on a nightly basis, though, and it feels like Michigan State has more players like that at guard than it does at power forward or center.