After his exit in the NCAA Tournament, Tom Izzo said he has to adapt. It appears the Michigan State basketball coach is doing just that.
On Thursday, 247HSHoops posted about schools that Colorado transfer J’Vonne Hadley has heard from. Surprisingly for some people, Tom Izzo and Michigan State basketball were included on this list.
The Buffaloes’ guard was a crucial piece that helped Colorado reach the Round of 32, and I believe he would fit in well with the Spartans.
What to know about J’Vonne Hadley
J’Vonne Hadley is a 6-foot-6 wing who averaged 11.6 points per game last season. More excitingly for Spartan fans, Hadley also has averaged 5.9 and 6.0 rebounds per game in his last two seasons at Colorado respectively. Hadley was a crucial piece in the Buffaloes’ upset of Florida in the Round of 64 in the NCAA Tournament, putting up 16 points as they squeaked by the Gators.
Hadley was underrated and underrecruited out of high school and as a transfer at first. He had no stars as either a senior in high school, nor as a JUCO after transferring out for his sophomore season. Out of junior college, Hadley chose the Buffaloes over a few other D1 offers, including Texas Tech, Oregon State, Buffalo, BYU, and Butler.
Hadley’s other statistics have me intrigued.
The tweet shows Hadley as a 41 percent shooter from beyond the arc, but this statistic comes after he attempted only 48 shots from there last season, and none in 2022-23. He also dramatically improved from the charity stripe in 2023, going from a 56 percent free throw shooter to nearly 84 percent.
What this means for Michigan State basketball
At first glance, I thought Hadley would be more of a depth piece for the Spartans if he elected to join the program. Now, looking over him more, I can see a clear path to the court for him. Hadley would likely slide to the three, moving Jaden Akins to more of the shooting guard role. This puts Tre Holloman or Jeremy Fears Jr. at point, and Akins and Kur Teng or Gehrig Normand at the shooting guard slot. Hadley would likely be backed up by Normand or Teng, as both have the length that they can play three.
I hope the Spartans land Hadley. He is a Power Six player who averaged double-digit points per night for a team that made the Round of 32 in the tournament. He has a ton of upside and the Spartans would only be committed to him for his final season. With the emergence of Fears and Holloman last season, Hadley would be a better piece depth-wise for the Spartans than another season of the likely-gone AJ Hoggard. Obviously, this is all still very hypothetical, as Hoggard still has yet to announce a decision and Hadley is still deciding which one of the over 20 schools that reached out to him fit his best interests.
One final piece of information for those at home: Hadley has a ton of MSU ties. Hadley went to the same high school as Tre Holloman, with the Spartan guard being a few classes below. Also, Hadley transferred to Colorado from the Northeastern Huskies. He was a teammate of Spartan star Tyson Walker for the 2020-21 season. After a season there, Hadley went the junior college route, and then drew interest from the Buffs. I would not be surprised if Tom Izzo has quizzed Holloman and Walker about Hadley. Something tells me both had a good review of Hadley, considering the Spartans’ noted interest.
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