MSU's Fears, Carr Ranked High on College Hoops Returners List

Michigan State has a pair of stars coming back next season.

All-American point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. will be back. So will the all-world athleticism of Coen Carr. The two of them were two of the Spartans' top scorers last season, and they might be two of the best players in college basketball next season.

The Field of 68 Returners List

Michigan State's Coen Carr locks in on his defensive assignment during a game against Michigan at the Breslin Center on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

College basketball site, The Field of 68, posted a list of the top 50 returning players in the sport this past Friday. Fear is all the way up at third on the list, only behind Florida's Thomas Haugh and Vanderbilt's Tyler Tanner.

Carr is further down on the list at 25th. He's the fifth-best returning player from a Big Ten school, according to the list. No other returning players from MSU made the cut.

Why Each Player Was Included

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. takes a breather before a free throw against Michigan on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, inside the Breslin Center. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

Fears certainly belongs in the upper echelon of returnees to college hoops. The real debate is probably whether he deserves to be higher. Haugh and Tanner returned despite having higher NBA stock than Fears, but some numbers and stats still suggest Fears is probably the better college player.

Popular analytics sites KenPom and EvanMiya.com have Fears as the best returning player, going off their numbers from last season. The latter of the two sites had Fears as the third-best player overall last year, only behind Duke's Cameron Boozer and Michigan's Yaxel Lendeborg (both NBA-bound). The former had him at seventh—all six players ahead of him are NBA-bound there, too.

Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr. looks on during the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Louisville at the KeyBank Center on Saturday, March 21, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

Haugh and Tanner weren't quite so high. KenPom had Tanner at 10th overall in the country last season; Haugh was ranked below that (the rankings cut off at No. 10). EvanMiya had Tanner at 12th and Haugh at 26th.

Carr was actually down at 169th overall on EvanMiya.com last season. He still averaged 12.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. His insane athletic ability is also a factor that some analytical sites cannot measure quite so well. Those dunks he has at the Breslin Center just swing things in a way that a box score doesn't capture.

Michigan State's Coen Carr looks on during a game against Michigan at the Breslin Center on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

He's also just a box-office attraction. Carr's highlight tape is probably the most fun watch in all of college basketball. If he gets that three-point shot down, things will only get easier for him moving forward.

Carr also got better as a rebounder and defender last season. He was relatively one-dimensional when he first got to Michigan State, but better off-ball movement and awareness on defense are great ways to get more minutes on a team coached by Tom Izzo.

Michigan State's Coen Carr watches a free throw go up during a game against North Dakota State during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the KeyBank Center on Thursday, March 19, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

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