Why Odds of Return to MSU for Jeremy Fears Jr. are High
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Lots of Michigan State fans will be awaiting this decision for a while.
On Friday, MSU's All-American point guard, Jeremy Fears Jr., announced that he would be entering his name into the NBA Draft process. The important part, though, is that he is maintaining his two remaining years of college eligibility.
The Spartans need Fears, to say the least. He was so valuable to the 2025-26 team that it felt like Michigan State was too reliant on him. Alas, Fears was able to lead MSU to a tie for second place in the Big Ten and the Sweet Sixteen.
All season, Fears and the Spartans were within shouting distance of the nation's elite. Michigan State had second-half leads against eventual national champion Michigan (twice) and against eventual runner-up UConn in the Sweet Sixteen. Keeping Fears is instrumental for MSU's hopes to get back over the hump next season and reach the Final Four for the first time since 2019. Michigan State fans shouldn't be too worried for a couple of reasons:
Dollar, Dollar Bills
NIL and revenue-sharing dollars are two of the main things keeping college stars in college. Money is the main reason why to believe Fears will return to Michigan State.
The stock for Fears in the NBA Draft isn't very high. On Thursday, ESPN's Jeremy Woo ranked Fears as the No. 73 overall prospect in this season's draft. That means Fears would likely go undrafted.
Even if Fears kept his name in the draft, a pretty optimistic projection would be around 55th overall, right before the end of the draft. Players picked that late are getting salaries comfortably beneath $1 million per year and are usually on two-way deals that make the player spend most of their time in the G League, which doesn't come with as much glory as playing at the Big Ten level.
Fears will be a richer man if he stays at MSU. No inside info here for Fears specifically, but players like him can easily command several million dollars per year nowadays. Fears being so irreplaceable gives him some additional leverage.
The type of center Michigan State eventually picks up in the portal could alter Fears' figure, too. Fears --- armed with that leverage, again --- is perfectly within his rights to ask to be the team's highest-paid guy.
Whatever the number for that addition is, whether it be Alabama transfer Aiden Sherrell, SMU transfer Samet Yigitoglu, or somebody else, Fears will probably be able to take that person's final number and then add a little on top of it. That's what teams should do when retaining their leader and point guard who just averaged 15.2 points and 9.4 assists per game as a redshirt sophomore.
Still Recruiting
Players who are expecting to be playing somewhere else next year are generally not going to care too much about what the roster is going to look like without them. Fears' social media activity indicates that he's taking an interest in who MSU might pick up at the center position.
On Instagram, Fears currently follows both Sherrell and Yigitoglu. It's not totally clear if Fears followed either of them before this portal period, but there are no other obvious links between Fears and both of Michigan State's leading center targets right now.
Shorter Statement
Fears' statement on social media when he declared for the draft was pretty brief, spanning just two total paragraphs. It just doesn't really come across as a "goodbye" message, or even as somebody who feels totally split between taking a shot at the NBA and staying in East Lansing.
When you compare it to the announcement from Jase Richardson last year, it becomes clearer. Richardson's announcement required a smaller font and spanned five total paragraphs, rather than two. There was just more detail in Richardson's message that made it pretty clear that he wouldn't be coming back.
You can even compare it to the statement posted by Carson Cooper, who everyone already knew was leaving due to the exhaustion of his eligibility. His statement spanned eight (shorter) paragraphs.
It just feels like Fears would be leaving behind a more detailed and heartfelt message if he felt like he had played his last game with Michigan State. We'll have to wait and see on his final decision. The deadline for Fears to withdraw from the NBA Draft is May 27 at 11:59 p.m. ET.
A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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