The Only Draft: Building the ultimate MSU 3-on-3 team

Alright, so 3-on-3 basketball is officially an Olympic sport.

Pretty sweet, right?

What’s even sweeter is going through the decades of MSU hoops trying to figure out what would make the best Spartan squad out there. Here to settle that debate with a snake-style draft are Matt Hoeppner, Austin Smith, Matt Sheehan and Dom Garrett.

Alright, here are the decisions that were formally made through a Twitter DM thread:

1. Hoeppner: Magic Johnson (bold)

2. Smith: Draymond Green

3. Sheehan: Miles Bridges (hype traaaain)

4. Garrett: Mateen Cleaves

5. Garrett: Morris Peterson

6. Sheehan: Shawn Respert

7. Smith: Adreian Payne

8. Hoeppner: Jason Richardson

9. Hoeppner: Zach Randolph

10. Smith: Drew Neitzel

11. Sheehan: Andre Hutson

12. Garrett: Jumpin’ Johnny Green (throwing it back to the 50s!)

13. Garrett: Greg Kelser

14. Sheehan: Kalin Lucas

15. Smith: Charlie Bell

16. Hoeppner: Steve Smith (how did he fall this far? How?)

There are notable snubs – Scott Skiles, Denzel Valentine, Gary Harris, Paul Davis, and a bunch of others. We would blame ourselves for missing those, but no – that’s MSU’s fault for having so many great players come through the program. We are collectively refusing to accept fault for this.

Alright, now read our cases for our teams and vote below and feel free to incinerate us in the comment section.

Hoeppner: Versatility is the name of the game for my team. Magic running the point creates a matchup problem for almost anyone right off the bat and Richardson’s high flying athleticism is perfectly suited for 3-on-3. Randolph gives me some post game and rebounding, while Smith provides a sweet shooting touch from anywhere on the court.

Smith: My goal was to build a team where everyone could shoot, handle the ball, rebound and play defense. Shooting? Check. Handles? Check. Rebounding? Check. Heck, we even block shots well. The only flaw is Neitzel's inability to switch defensively with Draymond and AP. But if we need some size and grit, we just bring a Flintstone, Charlie Bell, off the bench. This team may be undersized and scrappy, but we are talking about Michigan State here.

Sheehan: You can win a game if you don’t score, right? Well we’ve got buckets galore with the all-time leading scorer Shawn Respert and noted Not-Yet-NBA-Lottery-Pick Miles Bridges leading the charge. Oh yeah, and Andre Hutson to drop it to in the post. With Kalin Lucas coming off the bench to slash, drive and shoot from downtown, my team is here to win.

Garrett: We all know that 3-on-3 basketball is a beautiful game but it is all about timing and teamwork. While you trot out a 5-man squad you can stick the weak man in the corner, that is not the case with this game. That being said you need chemistry and who has better chemistry than Mateen Cleaves and Morris Peterson? No one. But this is not 2-on-2, it is 3-on-3 and someone needs to be on the glass. That man is Jumpin’ Johnny Green. Green still holds the record for average rebounds in the NCAA tournament (19.7 per) and was the leading rebounder in school history until our fourth player came along. Mr. Greg Kelser. The man was in the shadow of the number one overall pick, Magic Johnson, Kelser left MSU as the leading man in points and boards. My team beats your team.