Denzel Valentine Guarantees Michigan State Basketball Will Win National Championship

After a win over Ohio State on Saturday, Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said he believed his team has a legitimate chance to win the national championship this year. Six straight wins to end the regular season, all by at least 12 points, and a 26-5 record as the No. 2 seed in this week’s Big Ten tournament has optimism high in East Lansing, and rightfully so for the most part.

Well, star guard Denzel Valentine has taken things up a notch with his own comments about the Spartans’ chances. When asked if he was going to guarantee a national championship win like former Spartans guard Mateen Cleaves did back in 2000, Valentine did not shy away.

“Maybe I can say that now,” Valentine said to the Detroit News. “National championship guarantee, right now … We have the team to do it. The only thing that is gonna stop us is us.”

Based on history alone, Izzo and the Spartans are automatically a solid bet to make a deep NCAA tournament run. Valentine is the star and leader as a candidate for both Big Ten and National Player of the Year, but fellow seniors Matt Costello (three straight double-doubles) and Bryn Forbes (33 points against Rutgers on March 2) will be big factors in any tournament run the Spartans make.

Experience and proven talent generally rise to the top during the Big Dance, and the Spartans have a lot of both along with a veteran coach that will push the right buttons. I’m not ready to declare that Michigan State will win the national championship this year, but they do belong toward the top of any list of teams with the best chance.