Tom Izzo and Michigan State Basketball Made the Best Assistant Coach Hire in Saddi Washington
Saddi Washington has joined the Michigan State basketball staff after being at the University of Michigan since 2016. Being the son of former Spartans legend Stan Washington as well as being a Lansing native, Saddi Washington knows the Spartan program well.
On June 5th, coach Izzo welcomed Washington to the coaching staff.
"I'm very excited to welcome Saddi to our staff and to bring him back home to the Lansing area," Izzo said. "I've known him since he was in junior high school, where he had Doug Herner as a teacher and I've had a great relationship with him and his family for a long, long time. Obviously, he's got some deep ties at Michigan State as his parents and his brother are all alums and his father, Stan, was one of the greats of our program.”
Washington also released a statement when the hiring was announced.
"I'm very thankful to join the program at Michigan State and to come back home," Washington said. "My family and I are excited for this move and becoming a Spartan is a bit of a full-circle moment for me since my parents and my youngest brother are MSU alums. I grew up down the road in Lansing, coming to watch games at Jenison Field House and my father is one of the original "Spartan Dawgs," so it is surreal for me to carry on his legacy.”
Other than coaching at Michigan, Washington also coached at the University of Oakland, as well as Romulus High School under current Alabama head coach Nate Oats.
While at Michigan, Washington was a great recruiter who brought in alot of talent. Bringing in five star players like Caleb Houston, and Moussa Diabete were big players at Michigan who went to the NBA. Washington also managed to get players like Tarris Reed jr, Kobe Bufkin, and all-american Hunter Dickinson.
These players who have NBA potential but could reach their full potential while at Michigan. The one thing about Izzo is he never has gone after the top players coming out of highschool. With Washington on staff, this should want to encourage top players to want to come play at Michigan State and play under a hall of fame coach like Izzo.
After Mark Montgomery left to take the head coaching job at Detroit Mercy University, there was a hole that needed to be filled. Not only was this hire a patch, it will be a hire that doesn't need to be filled again.
Don’t forget to follow the official Spartan Nation Page on Facebook Spartan Nation WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be a part of our vibrant community group Go Green Go White as well WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.
LUKE JOSEPH