Michigan State's Future Is Bright With Foster Loyer, 2018 Class

The buzz surrounding Michigan State right now might be at an all-time high and the season hasn’t even started. Not only do the Spartans boast the No. 2 team in the land with a stacked roster of young talent, but they also just signed a five-player recruiting class to secure the program’s future on Wednesday.

How good is this 2018 class for head coach Tom Izzo? Well, it can be its own starting five down the road.

On the first day of the early signing period, MSU officials announced the signings of point guard Foster Loyer (above), wings Aaron Henry and Gabe Brown, and big men Thomas Kithier and Marcus Bingham to join the program for the 2018-19 season.

“I think each one of them brings something different; each one of them gives us something that I think will blend in with what we have,” Izzo said. “Foster will start out a great backup to Cash (Winston) and I think when you look at Henry and Brown, they’re great athletes at that [6-foot-7], 6-6, 6-8 height. And then with Bingham, you know the 6-10 guy, 6-11 guy who has incredible potential as long as he keeps getting bigger and stronger.”

With a Hall of Fame coach in Izzo, the Spartans were going to be in good hands regardless, but adding these prospects means they inked one of the top classes in the entire nation once again.

Michigan State has high expectations for this year's team, as already seen on FloHoops in two exhibition games against Ferris State and Hillsdale, and it's safe to say the future is bright, too.

Foster Loyer (Guard, 6-0, 165, Clarkston, MI/Clarkston)

2016-17 Statistics Per Game: 25.1 points, 6.4 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 2.7 steals

Izzo’s Take: “Foster Loyer from Clarkston (MI), already a three-time all-state honoree. Who is he like? I guess he’s got a little Scott Skiles in him, a little Drew Neitzel in him, he’s got a little Cassius Winston in him. He can do a lot of things. He averaged 25 points, 6.5 assists, four rebounds, 2.5 steals and missed a free throw… I think he missed one in 2015 and two in 2016 and maybe a couple last year. He shot 95.7 percent from the free-throw line. He doesn’t miss many free throws. He shot very well from range. He’s growing a little bit, he’s [6-foot] now. He made 119 consecutive free throws, Michigan’s longest streak and it was the second longest in the nation. Won a state title last year and was 71-5 in three years of high school.”

Thomas Kithier (Forward, 6-8, 225, Clarkston, MI/Clarkston)

2016-17 Statistics Per Game: 21 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks

Izzo’s Take: “Thomas Kithier — a guy that’s been committed to us for a couple of years. Averaged 21 points, 12 rebounds, five assists. He earned second-team all-state honors a year ago. He was the first member of this class. We look at Thomas as a 6-8 225-pounder that every time we see him, we think he’s improved some. The game is important to him, he’s a good student. He’s a guy that can shoot the ball up to 15-16 feet, maybe longer. Very multi-skilled, kind of like Matt Costello. Some of the 6-8 kids we’ve had that can do a lot of something, and yet not maybe overly talented as far as athleticism and things like that. We think another good addition to this class.”

Aaron Henry (Forward, 6-6, 200, Indianapolis, IN/Ben Davis)

2016-17 Statistics Per Game: 14.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists

Izzo’s Take: “Aaron Henry we got in on a little late. He won a state championship at one of the best schools in the state of Indiana – Ben Davis. He averaged 14 points, 6.5 rebounds, but almost four assists, so he’s a player that we think is multi-skilled, can do a lot of different things. He shot 42 percent from the three, and yet, I think some of that is he has selective shooting. In other words, he doesn’t take a lot of threes, he doesn’t force a lot of shots. He’s a winner that does the little things. The word ‘winner’ is how his coach at Ben Davis — who has had a lot of players over the years — talked about him, and I’d have to agree.”

Gabe Brown (Forward, 6-7, 185, Belleville, MI/Belleville)

2016-17 Statistics Per Game: 15.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.4 blocks

Izzo’s Take: “Gabe Brown is the guy hardest for maybe you guys to know much about. He was a first-team all-stater, but he didn’t play in the summer, he got injured. He averaged 16 points, five rebounds and 1.5 blocks and shot 50 percent from the field and 41 from the three. I think he’s kind of a Morris Peterson-type player. He’s left-handed. He too has grown a lot in the last couple of years, so he has pretty good guard skills, pretty good athletic ability. Every year we seem to do something different. We had the [Derrick Nix] era and the fact that our own player right now in Nick Ward had to lose a lot of weight, we’ve got a couple of guys that have to gain some weight. He’s one of them. He grew from 6-3 to 6-7 in one year and I think he’s still growing after I saw him a couple of weeks ago. We think Gabe, even though he missed with a little slight knee injury most of the summer, he’s got a chance to be one of the more versatile guys.”

Marcus Bingham Jr. (Forward, 6-10, 195, Grand Rapids, MI/GR Catholic Central)

2016-17 Statistics Per Game: 16 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks

Izzo’s Take: “Marcus Bingham – he’s a 6-10, 6-11 guy with a long reach, kind of like a Jaren Jackson. Probably shoots the ball as good as any big guy we’ve had. He’s grown eight inches in the last couple of years so he actually has guard skills where he can handle the ball, dribble the ball. He’s gained some all-state honors, and yet there’s a guy that’s just kind of in the making. If you look at him on potential, you might say he’s the best player potentially, because he has great potential. He’s got to gain 30 pounds. He’s got to do some things, but the kid was very well coached in high school and he has great, I think, skills to develop into something special.”