NBA Draft Watch: Michigan State's Jeremy Fears Jr.

Jeremy Fears Jr., brother of current NBA standout Jeremiah Fears, is a 6-foot-1 returning upperclassman for Michigan State.

Last season for the Spartans, Fears averaged 15 points and nine assists on 43-32-88 shooting splits. Fears led the NCAA in assists per game last season while starting for one of the best teams in the country. This past spring, he tested the waters for the 2026 NBA Draft but ultimately decided to take a bet on himself and attempt to improve his draft stock by coming back to college basketball.

Of all returning players, Fears had the third highest box-plus-minus. He also had the highest assist rate in the country at 53%. Fears had a turnover rate of just 16% and an impressive 3.9 assist to turnover ratio. Both significant improvements, relative to his freshman season. His three-point percentage fell a little bit from 34 to 32%, but his volume doubled from 2.6 attempts per 100 to 5.7.

Fears is a true point guard in every way. He has control of the pace of the game at all times. The pace he plays with in transition is advanced because it's not fast, but it's not slow at the same time because he's still able to finish through congestion and contact. Letting the game come to you is such an underrated skill he has because of his balance of knowing when to score or when to set up his teammates.

Fears is far from perfect though, especially for an older prospect. He's a small guard that struggles switching onto wings and bigger forwards. This can lead to heavy mismatch hunting, which is even more likely to be an issue in the NBA. He also lacks the necessary burst or athleticism to create space off the dribble when trying to break down his defender. These are reasons why he's never really expanded past being just a traditional table setter.

Fears is one of the best guards among all upperclassmen in this year's draft. Michigan State could be sneakily good, and he is yet again going to be in a position to put up some gaudy numbers. He looked good at the combine last year and had he kept his name in that draft, he likely would have heard his name called in the top 40. This year, in a weaker draft, the path is there for him to punch his name into the first round.

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