Arguably the most iconic player of the Tom Izzo tenure at Michigan State, Mateen Cleaves led Izzo and the Spartans to a national championship in 2000. Now, the time has passed, and it is Mateen Cleaves Jr.’s time to be recruited to play college basketball.
Naturally, Izzo and the Spartans are a top contender for Cleaves Jr., but nothing is a sure thing in the NIL era of recruiting in college athletics. The Orchard Lake (MI) native is now playing at Dream City Christian in Arizona, where he is prepping for his college career. Right now, the 6-foot-4 wing is ranked as a 4-star prospect and the No. 41 overall prospect in the 2028 recruiting class according to the 247Sports composite rankings.
Advertisement
According to On3’s Joe Tipton, Izzo was checking in on the Spartan legacy prospect, watching him live at a recent camp.
As of now, Rutgers is Cleaves Jr.’s only reported offer, but the Spartans are almost assuredly going to enter the mix.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on X @Rex_Linzy
This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Tom Izzo checks in 4-star Mateen Cleaves Jr., according to a report
