What Tom Izzo said to Orlando Magic president about Jase Richardson before the draft
On Wednesday night, the Orlando Magic selected Michigan State star Jase Richardson with the No. 25 pick in the 2025 NBA draft. Apparently, the Magic have been eyeing Richardson for a while, which makes sense considering their league-worst three-point shooting last year. Dan Savage, Director of Digital News for the Orlando Magic had a scoop on Thursday morning that, prior to the draft, Tom Izzo reached out to Orlando Magic president Jeff Weltman to give personal, resounding endorsement for Jase Richardson.
According to Savage, this is the message Izzo sent to Weltman:
'(Jase Richardson) is a great player, a better teammate and person. He has a quality that many don't have anymore, a high basketball IQ. And winning is very important to him.'
This is cool stuff from Izzo, and coincides with what Jase Richardson said about Izzo recently, that it was the Spartans' legendary head coach who pushed his decision to leave school over the edge, telling Jase 'you need to go' to the draft. Now, we also know that Izzo was advocating for Richardson directly with NBA teams and helping him find a good landing spot at the next level. In the modern game of college basketball, things like this mean something, especially considering Richardson's extremely talented brother Jaxon has yet to make his college commitment.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Andrew Brewster on Twitter @IAmBrewster.
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