Michigan State coach Tom Izzo answers questions from the media after the 65-60 win over Northwestern on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018, in Rosemont, Ill. Chris Solari/Detroit Free Press
EAST LANSING — Tom Izzo knows he will be saying farewell to three seniors.
He also realizes Michigan State also could lose two key players soon.
Tum Tum Nairn, Gavin Schilling and Ben Carter know the No. 1 Spartans’ game against Illinois will be their last at Breslin Center on Tuesday night.
It might be the same for sophomore Miles Bridges and freshman Jaren Jackson Jr., both of whom could leave MSU early for the NBA draft.
“There’s no question that they’re both gonna have some decisions to make,” Izzo said Monday morning. “And when I think of it that way, I feel good about it. I don’t feel bad about it, I feel good. I feel like they have given me everything I could ask, and they’ve done it in a very unselfish (way) with some humility.”
After the No. 1 Spartans host Illinois (7 p.m., ESPN), the three seniors – Nairn, Schilling and Carter – will be honored following the game. All three have filled roles this season for MSU, and a win over the Illini would clinch a share of its first Big Ten regular-season title since 2012.
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A Big Ten title was one of the big reasons Bridges returned for his sophomore season after bypassing the NBA draft last April. The 6-foot-7 swingman from Flint leads the Spartans at 17.0 points to go with 6.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game.
“Last year, I thought I was sitting here, and I was even contemplating having Miles kiss the S or the Spartan head,” Izzo said, later adding that, “I wish sometimes Miles still would a little bit think of the future.
“I think he’s so much into the present of what’s going on, and he’s so unselfish. And you know, Jaren has fallen right into that.”
Jackson ranks fifth on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per game and third in rebounding at 5.9. His 6-11 height and 7-4 wingspan, with a program-record 95 blocked shots that rank third in Division I this season, are big draws for pro scouts. So, too, is Jackson’s outside shooting ability, having made 35 of 80 3-point attempts (43.8 percent) while shooting 53.4 percent overall.
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“It’s very hard to guard a 6-11 forward that can play inside and out,” Bridges said last Tuesday after Jackson’s career-high 27 points at Minnesota. “That’s what makes him so special. That’s why he’s a top-5 draft pick. If he can play like that for the rest of the season, I feel like we’ll have a great chance to win the title.”
In NBA mock drafts by Sports Illustrated, CBS and ESPN, both Bridges and Jackson are considered lottery picks, projected to fall somewhere between the fifth and 12th picks.
“I think Miles has helped Jaren, too, because they came in with a similar ranking and similar pressure on them,” Izzo said. “And I think Miles has done an incredible job of helping Jaren. And Jaren is an incredible kid in his own way.
“I can do nothing but feel good about it. Will I look at it (Tuesday) night, will I wonder? Probably. Probably. Will I wonder in a negative way? Definitely not. I feel so good about it.”
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