USBasket’s Kevin Cochran reports,
Michigan St. was picked as high as #2 in the preseason polls. The Spartans are now at #11 after a 9-3 start, and coach Tom Izzo feels the need to send a message to his club. Tuesday, Izzo benched point guard Kalin Lucas, the team’s floor leader, with the hope of sending a message to his club.
Izzo says Lucas needs to take more responsibility and spend time thinking about his leadership role on the team. Lucas led the Spartans to the championship game last season, where they fell to North Carolina.
Lucas is averaging almost 16 points per game, and is not being suspended. His status for tomorrow’s game with Texas-Arlington is unknown.
Is benching your point guard, your team leader, an affective strategy for recovering a talented by struggling team? It will be interesting to see how Izzo’s strategy works out.
As for how it will affect play, I wouldn’t worry too much. Izzo has recruited and developed an exceptionally deep squad at MSU.
Update (12/30/09):
Lucas played 29 minutes and scored 16 points today against Texas-Arlington. These stats are right at his season average.
