Magic and Jud

The 1979 team actually took a bus together from the Lansing Sheraton to campus on Saturday. They toured the new football facility, watched the current Spartans practice and spent some time with the media. And Earvin "Magic" Johnson owned the room as usual.

    Amid the stories and jokes, Johnson was asked about this year's team.
    “Preparation and focus," he said. "The team has been, it’s funny how this team has looked so good and then looked so bad. So we’ve been having an inconsistent year, but when we’re good we’re as good as it gets. And then the other times when we don’t play well like at Purdue and a couple home games we lost … you know, Penn State should never beat us at home. Northwestern should never beat us at home. So you understand that it’s focus and paying attention to detail and they’ve got to get better at that.
    "And especially coming into tomorrow, it’s a big game. Wisconsin’s not gonna beat themselves so you really have to be on top of your game. Now, right now is the time to put your foot on pedal.
    "This is really important part of the season for this squad and I think too, we have to be on more of an attack mode. Sometimes we settle too much for the outside shot and we’ve got to attack the basket. When we have our game going we’ve usually have both going. … When we rely on the 3-point shot too much, that’s when we usually get blown out.”
    You think maybe Johnson has been paying attention? For someone with as much going on as he has, it was impressive to see how into this team and program he is.
    “I’m as close as you can get," he said. "I watch ‘em, I talk to to ‘em, I’m gonna help recruit. …
When I was home for the holidays I came and watched them practice. I know who we’re recruiting, I know who our class is, I know how they fit, I know everything about it.
    "But this has been my best Spartan year in a long time because our football team is better. I was sitting home cheering. … man, I was Spartan all the way. I was happy -- coach Dantonio has done an incredible job, our recruiting class was amazing.  I’m still sitting here saying ‘Wow, we got one of top 20 classes, it’s amazing for MSU to get that type of recruiting class to come here.'
    "The blessing is you've got somebody like Mark Hollis who will call and keep up, and I was bugging him: ‘Where are we going to the bowl? Where are we going?’ …  I keep up with the program, they’ll tell you, and Tom has set this thing up. … I tell you what, he’s an amazing, amazing, amazing coach and friend, I love him and his wife and they’re the best we could have here at Michigan State.”
    He had more on Izzo and the program:
    “The way he sets up his classes, he knows who he wants two to three years from now.
When you look at MSU as a basketball player, you can’t really turn it down. We’re on TV more than anybody in the Big Ten and as much as anybody in the nation. We’re winning 20 games every year, we’re turning out pros, and what else do you want? We’ve got a great facility and it’s a great school. I think Tom has utilized his success and taken advantage of (what) he’s built. I always tell people we’re a top three or four program in nation.”
    Johnson and the guys will be in Breslin on Sunday for the big one with Wisconsin, during which they'll be honored at halftime. He said he's trying to work things so he can hit the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis, and he'll be along for the NCAA tourney as usual.
    “I take Dad every year to a tournament game, that’s our annual boys trip, and so I look forward to doing that again this year. I can’t wait.”
    Jud Heathcote also spoke Saturday and gave his take on these Spartans:
    "I went down to Orlando and watched MSU just play awful against Maryland, play very good against Oklahoma State, then play awful again against Wichita State and still win, and I came away saying ‘I hope Suton really makes a difference,’ Jud said.
    “When he came back I thought they were really moving ahead, and then they get the injury to Raymar Morgan and I think they kind of plateaued, and maybe now is the time to move ahead again.”
    There was a lot more from these two and the other '79 guys Saturday, and we'll have much more on that team in the near future.
    One last thing from Jud, in his typically dry manner: He mentioned that he saw that Goran Suton said Wisconsin plays "dirty" in the newspaper.
    "I don’t say they play dirty, they play smart, because I've said all along, they check you with their stomach. ... That’s a pretty good defensive advantage if they don’t call that. So we'll have to see what happens tomorrow."