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Four will be honored at Michigan State Senior Day, but three could decide to return

On3 imageby:Jim Comparoni•03/02/23•

JimComparoni

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Tyson Walker will be honored at Senior Day on Saturday, but will decide after the season whether he will opt to return for another season.

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State will honor four seniors on Senior Day, Saturday afternoon, but there’s a chance three of them could come back next year.

That was the case last year, as well, and only one of the three – Joey Hauser – elected to return, while Marcus Bingham and Gabe Brown elected not to pursue a final year of eligibility.

This Saturday, when Michigan State plays host to Ohio State at noon, Hauser, Malik Hall, Tyson Walker and Jason Whitens will be honored as Spartan seniors. 

“I think the only one that is definitely out of time is Jason Whitens,” Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said after practice on Thursday. “Other than that, everybody has some decisions to make after the year. 

“Nobody is for sure going anywhere and nobody is for sure staying anywhere. Those guys have some decisions to make. 

This Saturday, when Michigan State plays host to Ohio State at noon, Hauser, Malik Hall, Tyson Walker and Jason Whitens will be honored as Spartan seniors. 

Hall and Walker have a COVID year of eligibility that they can utilize next year if they wish. Hauser could apply for an extra year of eligibility for medical reasons.  

“I haven’t even talked to him (Hauser) about it,” Izzo said. “I will, just because he would be a good guy to figure out where he’s at, and what are his chances to play beyond here. 

“It will be interesting to see how he feels. He has improved a lot. There’s people that are going to have some interest in Joey Hauser now. If there’s enough interest, I would say sayonara. If not, I say let’s see what happens. But that’s totally, totally up to Joey.”

Hall missed 11 games this year due to injury. He has started only four games and hasn’t had the level of consistent impact that he was hoping for. 

Hall has averaged 12 points per game in his last four. Izzo feels Hall is starting to reach a level of strong proficiency heading into the late stages of the season.

“The injury this year was tough,” Izzo said of Hall. “He had an incredible summer. Whether he comes back or not, that decision will be made by him and we will all talk about what could have been. If there’s anything a coach wants to see it’s guys playing their best basketball when it matters most.”

Walker is averaging 14.8 points per game while shooting 43 percent from 3-point range. He has emerged as one of the best scoring guards in the Big Ten. 

At 6-foot-1, he doesn’t have ideal size for the NBA, but he could make a living overseas. However, in this day and age of NIL, could he make more money at Michigan State next year than he could professionally? 

Those are things that will need to be discussed – but Izzo and the players are stressing that those discussions won’t take place until after the season.

“I haven’t thought about anything,” Walker said. “I have no idea.”

They are focused on beating Ohio State and preparing for the tournaments.

“All three have incredible families,” Izzo said. “It’s always frustrating to go through some things, like Joey earlier, or Tyson in his first year, and Malik with his ups and downs, but when you see them come out of it, it is very rewarding for a coach.”

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