Breaking Down MSU Portal Target Anton Bonke on Visit Day
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The search for Michigan State's next big man is starting to narrow.
MSU had looked at Alabama transfer Aiden Sherrell and SMU transfer Samet Yigitoglu, but missed out on both, as both went to Indiana. Next up on the Spartans' list is Charlotte transfer Anton Bonke, who is visiting East Lansing on Friday after completing a visit to Kansas on Wednesday.
Basic Background, Stats on Bonke
Bonke's junior year was a bit of a breakout season for him. He appeared in all 34 of Charlotte's games, starting 32 of them. Bonke averaged 10.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game during his only season with the 49ers. He is currently ranked 104th overall in the transfer portal and 12th among centers by On3.
He was also pretty efficient. His true shooting percentage of 61.6% was second among regular members of Charlotte's rotation. Bonke can stretch the floor a little bit, shooting 34.2% on threes while taking one or two shots from behind the arc per contest. According to Torvik, he shot a stellar 68.2% this season at the rim, and his 65.3% mark at the charity stripe is "good enough" for his 7-foot-2 stature.
Next season will be Bonke's fourth school in four years. He began his collegiate career at the JUCO level for Eastern Arizona College. Even though he averaged 9.8 rebounds and 5.8 rebounds there, Bonke did enough to earn a spot in the Big East with Providence. Bonke barely played for the Friars, only appearing in 16 games, and making the move down to the American Conference and Charlotte pretty sensible.
Basketball is still a very new concept for Bonke, who will likely be playing at a high-major school next season—whether it's at MSU or somewhere else. He's from the tiny island nation of Vanuatu, with a population of just about 300,000, and didn't take up the sport until he was 16. He turns 22 in August.
Diving Deeper Into Bonke's Game
The fact that Bonke is still newer to basketball than the vast majority of other Division I players is what can make him an interesting addition. A jump in his play can simply be observed from his freshman year at Eastern Arizona College to his junior year with Charlotte. In just two years, Bonke averaged more points and rebounds during a season while playing in a decent mid-major conference than he did while playing at a junior college.
Also, you can't teach size. Bonke, quite literally, has a ton of room to keep improving at 7-foot-2 and 260 pounds. Someone with that frame who is still learning about the sport can take off at the right location with the right system around him.
There are already some things to like about Bonke's game. That ability to stretch defenses out to the three-point line is something Carson Cooper didn't provide. He can be another reliable lob threat while running the pick-and-roll with Jeremy Fears Jr. Bonke has a decent post game and can use either hand at the rim, though his layup package isn't quite as deep as Cooper's.
The number of minutes Bonke can play is also not a concern. He averaged 25.6 minutes per game this season and averaged 29.4 across Charlotte's final 10 games. A lot of guys with a similar size to Bonke's size cap out at the mid-20s, but he's able to get up into the low-to-mid 30s if he really has to. That's important for a prospective big man who is being considered by Michigan State, given Izzo's emphasis on pushing the pace on every offensive possession.
Bonke's rebounding numbers are also very promising. The surface-level 8.3 rebounds per game are already decent, but the more advanced numbers are also promising. At KenPom, Bonke is 40th in the country in offensive rebounding rate (14.5%) and 53rd in defensive rebounding rate (23.7%).
No transfer portal prospect is perfect, though. Bonke doesn't really move as well laterally as Cooper, which will limit his switchability and also MSU's ability to ask every big man to effectively hedge ball screens. Bonke is still an effective defensive piece, but he tends to serve more as an anchor in the middle, rather than a more versatile defender like Cooper, who can defend well outside of the paint.
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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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