Tom Izzo explains his feelings on transfer portal, challenges MSU fans
Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo explains his frustrations with the year-round transfer portal and asks MSU fans to be different.
- Jase Richardson will remain in the 2025 NBA draft and not return to Michigan State.
- Richardson’s measurements at the NBA combine were lower than his listed college measurements, impacting his draft projection.
- Recent mock drafts place Richardson in the middle to late first round.
The remote possibility of Jase Richardson returning to Michigan State basketball is now nil.
Richardson will remain in the NBA draft pool after the NCAA’s deadline to return for the 2025-26 season passed at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, according to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.com. Richardson entered the draft in early April.
In his one season with the Spartans, the 19-year-old combo guard averaged 12.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per games over 25.3 minutes. Richardson hit a team-leading 41.2% of his 3-point attempts and shot 49.3% overall. That included averaging 16.1 points and 30.5 minutes in starting MSU’s final 15 games of its Big Ten regular-season championship season and run to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. He shot 42% from 3-point range while grabbing 4.6 rebounds and dishing out 1.7 assists per game over that span as the Spartans finished 30-7.
At the NBA Scouting Combine in Chicago earlier this month, Richardson measured at just 6-feet-1/2 and weighed 178.4 pounds. Both were significantly lower than the 6-3 and 185 pounds he was listed at on MSU’s roster for his freshman season.
Those diminished measurements have dropped Richardson, the son of former MSU star and NBA player Jason Richardson, in a number of mock drafts out of the lottery — he had been projected as a potential top-10 pick before the combine — and toward the back half of the first round for the June 25 draft. ESPN, Yahoo! Sports and NBCSports.com dropped him to No. 16 (Orlando) in recent mock drafts, while Sports Illustrated and On3.com have him going at No. 20 (Miami). USA Today’s For The Win on Thursday listed Richardson at No. 26 to Brooklyn.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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