Michigan State in the mix for two coveted 2018 basketball recruits

The Michigan State Spartans basketball program already boasts a highly-coveted recruiting class, which ranks third nationally according to 247Sports — behind only USC and Notre Dame. However, it may soon add even more talent.

Four-star shooting guard Luguentz Dort narrowed his list of schools down to six, and Michigan State made the cut. Dort is the No. 3 ranked shooting guard in the nation.

The Canadian-born Dort originally hails from Montreal, Quebec, but now plays in Orlando at The Conrad Academy. He has continued to fly up the ranking boards this year.

Dort is also considering Oregon, Miami, Indiana, Baylor and Arizona State. Oregon is currently the huge frontrunner, with a 247Sports Crystal Ball Prediction of 100 percent.

However, that doesn’t completely rule out the Spartans, who originally offered Dort in May, just yet.

Here are Dort’s thoughts on the Michigan State program, Per Rivals:

"It is a great program. We have all heard about that. I like the way that they play together. Tom Izzo just knows how to make pros."

So you’re telling me there’s a chance, Luguentz? Dort may be a long shot for the Spartans, but the fact that he considers them in his top-six after receiving nearly 20 offers is enough to make me believe.

Additionally, the Spartans made the top-five finalist list for three-star small forward Aaron Henry. Henry is ranked No. 6 overall in Indiana and No. 53 among small forwards nationally.

Michigan State is accompanied on the list by Butler, Xavier, Ohio State and Illinois. Henry was actually just offered by Tom Izzo and company one week ago.

Henry seems like a much more reachable get compared to Dort, and almost a sure thing at this point. His 247Sports Crystal Ball Predication is leaning 100 percent toward the Spartans as of press time. Again, that is not the end-all-be-all, always accurate assessment of college recruiting, but it is close.

This is nothing more than a coincidence, but Henry plays his high school ball at Ben Davis in Indianapolis, which is the same school that Spartans football legend, and recent inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Morten Andersen played. Henry helped lead Ben Davis to a Class 4A state championship in Indiana this past season.

According to the Indianapolis Star, Henry plans to make a trip to East Lansing in the near future, but there has not yet been a date set. He will take his unofficial visits to Ohio State and Xavier later this month.

Another recruit to keep in an eye is Talen Horton-Tucker, whose Crystal Ball Predication favors the Spartans at 67 percent. However, perennial power program Kansas just offered Horton-Tucker a couple of days ago. Illinois is also still in the running for their in-state prospect.

The 2018 class currently consists of four players: four-star forwards Marcus Bingham Jr. and Gabe Brown, four-star point guard Foster Loyer and three-star power forward Thomas Kithier.

It is important to note that Michigan State has already met its allotment of 13 scholarships for the 2018-2019 campaign. However, it is almost certain that at least one underclassmen will leave the program after the 2017-2018 season, and likely more. Thus, more scholarship spots would open up for the 2018 class.

The Izzo-led program is going to be fun to watch these next couple of seasons, all.