Izzo Strikes Gold: Michigan State Lands No. 1 Class for 2026

The dream team is taking shape in East Lansing thanks to Tom Izzo’s newest haul. Michigan State has officially landed the No. 1 recruiting class for 2026, overtaking Kansas after five-star center Ethan Taylor committed to the Spartans on Thursday.

Taylor is the No. 2 center in the class and the 27th-ranked player nationally. According to 247Sports director of scouting Adam Finkelstein, “Taylor is a rapidly improving big man with elite physical tools. Measuring at 7-feet with a 7-foot-3 wingspan and a solid frame that is only just beginning to fill out, he has massive size. But he’s also a good athlete for his size who runs fluidly, gets off his feet powerfully, and even has some agility.”

Finkelstein went on to highlight Taylor’s potential dominance:

“He can spin off contact in the post, rise up for emphatic power dunks, and be a consistent lob threat… His passing is the most underrated part of his game… Defensively, he projects as a drop-coverage or ‘ice’ ball-screen defender, but moves well enough to hedge or even switch at times.”

Taylor joins an already electric group: Julius Avent, Carlos Medlock Jr., and Jasiah Jervis — three four-star prospects who together form one of the more imposing classes Izzo has ever assembled.

Taylor says MSU plans to use him in the mold of former Spartan bigs. “They plan on using me like Xavier Tillman and Jaren Jackson. They understand I don’t play exactly like them, but they showed comparisons on how they used them.”

He’s also already familiar with new teammate Medlock Jr. “I'm still getting to know the other guys in the class, but obviously I'm very familiar with my teammate Carlos Medlock. I think we have a pretty good class. I'm excited to get to know those guys, get to work with them, and I think we can do something really special.”

As for what Spartan fans can expect?

“They can expect me to hit the ground running and work my butt off. I'm going to bring maximum effort to everything I do. I'm really pumped to be a Spartan. I can't wait to get to work.”

These four players represent the future of Michigan State basketball — and the future looks bright. Even after 30 years, Tom Izzo hasn’t lost a step. His 2026 recruiting class tops the national rankings, and for anyone tired of Michigan State’s 25-year run of relevance… it might be another 25 years before that stops.