Tom Izzo, Michigan State men's basketball host 5-star forward out of Flint

Tom Izzo's program has recruited extraordinarily well over the last few cycles, and the Spartans are in the mix for one of the top players in the 2025 class...

Michigan State men's basketball may be entering a new golden era on the hardwood. 

Not only could the Spartans be a preseason Top 5 squad come October, but Tom Izzo's squad is considered one of the favorites to compete for a national championship in the 2023-24 season.

Much of the hype surrounding Michigan State's upcoming basketball season is centered around how well Izzo and his staff recruited the 2023 class, landing a Top 5 overall crop with five-star forward Xavier Booker, five-star point guard Jeremy Fears and four-star wings Coen Carr and Gehrig Normand.

The Spartans are also off to a great start in the 2024 recruiting cycle, with four-star shooting guard Kur Teng and high three-star forward Jesse McCullock already committed in the class.

It's never too early to start working on that 2025 class however, and that's exactly what Izzo and MSU basketball have been up to this week. Five-star Flint (Mich.) St. Mary's small forward Trey McKenney, the No. 14 overall player in the 2025 class, took a visit to Michigan State on Aug. 1 and appeared to enjoy his time in East Lansing.

Izzo, of course, is no stranger to recruiting the Flint area for top-end talent. The roster which led the Spartans to a national championship in 2000 was built around the trio of Flint natives in Mateen Cleaves, Charlie Bell and Morris Peterson. They, along with 1999 graduate Antonio Smith were affectionately known as the "Flintstones" during their time at MSU.

Could McKenney be the next great Spartan to come out of the Flint area?

Time will tell, as the 6-foot-4 and 225-pounder is entering just his junior year of high school this fall. McKenney is considered the No. 1 small forward prospect in the country in his class, and the No. 2 player from the state of Michigan. He's received 17 scholarship offers thus far, including from UCLA, Michigan, Alabama, Indiana, Illinois, Miami and Ohio State, in addition to the Spartans and others.

Given Izzo's track record of success in the Flint area, and what's expected to be an excellent season on the court for the Spartans this fall and winter, Michigan State could be on the verge of landing another dynamite prospect on the recruiting trail.

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