MSU Officially Misses on Top Portal Target Aiden Sherrell

Michigan State has officially swung and missed on a top transfer portal target.

On Wednesday afternoon, Alabama transfer Aiden Sherrell officially picked Indiana over the Spartans. This is somewhat stunningly the second MSU target to choose IU in two days. SMU transfer Samet Yigitoglu committed to the Hoosiers' program on Tuesday, likely meaning he'll be the five and Sherrell will end up being the four.

Where MSU Goes Here

The new target for Michigan State appears to be Charlotte transfer Anton Bonke. MSU reportedly set an in-person visit with Bonke for Friday, which is the first public report of a transfer portal prospect visiting East Lansing.

Bonke is ranked by On3 at 105th overall and 12th among centers. Bonke also visited Kansas on Wednesday, though.

Overall Thoughts on Missing Sherrell

Mar 27, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide forward Aiden Sherrell (22) looks on in the first half against the Michigan Wolverines during a Sweet Sixteen game of the Midwest Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Missing Sherrell is certainly very disappointing. He was one of the top-ranked centers in the transfer portal this cycle, and it seemed like it almost made too much sense for him to come to Michigan State. Sherrell is from Detroit and took an official visit to MSU during his high school recruiting process.

Yigitoglu would've felt like an acceptable resolution, too, but it feels like the Spartans are going to be settling now, unless they make a surprise push for another prospect, such as Cincinnati transfer Moustapha Thiam. Bonke is an OK pickup, but he had a year at Providence where he hardly played and is still raw as somebody who only started playing basketball at age 16. He's not the proven, high-major big that Michigan State truly needs.

Mar 11, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Southern Methodist University Mustangs center Samet Yigitoglu (24) tries to get past Louisville Cardinals forward Sananda Fru (13) during the second half at Spectrum Center. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Sherrell would've been that "splash" acquisition Michigan State has needed to make to take that step forward. Yigitoglu wouldn't have been as big a splash, but people would have gotten wet. Losing not one, but two guys to Indiana, a team MSU handled twice this past season and hasn't made an NCAA Tournament in each of the last three years, is a serious miss.

I wrote about this when Michigan won the title: you have to be aggressive and go for bigger fish in the portal these days to win a national championship. The Wolverines did it this year, Florida did it last year, and UConn had key portal contributors during its back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024.

Michigan State had to find a way to just "get it done" here and get a big acquisition, and it seems like it won't do so. There is definitely a financial side that makes it tricky, but it reaches a point where it feels like MSU is placing handcuffs on itself in some ways.

The Spartans still have a roster that can definitely contend for a Big Ten title and a Final Four next season. But Michigan still raised the bar with its recent title. To be the last team standing, you can't settle for "good enough" in the transfer portal. That's the way things seem to be trending right now.

Mar 27, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide forward Aiden Sherrell (22) shoots in the first half against the Michigan Wolverines during a Sweet Sixteen game of the Midwest Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Add us as a preferred source on Google