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In most cases it takes freshman some time to find their footing especially when they first arrive to campus. Michigan State basketball has plenty of new faces for the 2026-27 season, and one such player is Ethan Taylor.
The five-star center who is going to have a major role quickly, especially with his 7-foot-plus frame, may have come to East Lansing with some thinking he wasn't going to be a quick study.
Boy were the doubters wrong. If you haven't seen what he has been doing at the Moneyball Pro-Am, Taylor is going to be a fun player to watch — especially with such great guard play around him. It was a smart choice to pair Taylor with Jeremy Fears Jr.
Taylor spoke recently about how he's fitting in at MSU thus far, when speaking with WILX News 10 in Lansing.
"Amazing, getting to go up against these guys every day," Taylor told Channel 10. "It's been really easy to get into the mix."
Ethan Taylor’s freshman role may be bigger than expected
The comfortability and the growth he's showing appear to be making a big case that Taylor is going to have a big role this season. In fact, the Spartans having both Taylor, and fellow seven-foot transfer Anton Bonke working well in the post, only makes this team even more dangerous.
Coach Tom Izzo doesn't often start freshman, the last of which was Max Christie was a starter from day one in 2021, let alone a possible starting center. That's unheard of outside of someone like Jaren Jackson Jr. in 2017-18 who seamlessly transitioned from the high school ranks to Michigan State.
This group has arguably multiple guys it could start, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, the fact that Taylor has become comfortable as quickly as he has, it's going to be hard to not have him seeing the floor as quickly and often as possible. That is massive news for the Spartans hopes and their chances of getting to Detroit next April.
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This article was originally published on spartanavenue.com as Highly-touted freshman Ethan Taylor finding comfort at Michigan State.
