Michigan State PG Cassius Winston Returning for Senior Season
Michigan State point guard Cassius Winston will return to the program for his senior season, Winston announced on Friday.
Winston, who is coming off a Final Four appearance earlier this month, decided to bypass the NBA draft process to come back to MSU, with his Spartans considered early front-runners for the 2019-20 national championship.
“Playing in the NBA has always been my dream. But I have other dreams as well,” Winston said in a release. “This was an incredible season with an amazing group of teammates, but I believe there is still more to accomplish. From the moment the season ended, I started thinking about what else I could do and how I could improve, to help us reach the goals we want to reach."
The 6'1" Winston averaged 18.8 points, 7.5 assists and 3.0 rebounds in 33.5 minutes while playing in all 39 games. He was the Most Outstanding Player in leading MSU to the Big Ten tournament title and earned first-team All-America honors by The Associated Press.
“It was surreal to be compared to some of the all-time great Spartans during the tournament because in my mind I still have something left to prove," Winston said. "Those goals will motivate me throughout the offseason. It will always be my goal to play in the NBA, but that’s a dream that can wait a year. I look forward to improving as a player, and continuing to get stronger. I know my teammates are equally committed to improving and I can’t wait for what our future holds.”
The Spartans finished the regular season 28–6 and advanced to the Final Four before losing 61–51 to Texas Tech.
