The Michigan State Spartans and head coach Tom Izzo have hit a really crappy streak lately, going from 12-5 to 13-10 in six games. Yes, three of those losses were to ranked teams (#22 Illinois, #13 Purdue, #18 Wisconsin), but one of them was also to a 72-52 loss against Iowa, a 10-13 team. That’s not what you really expect from a team who just a season ago made it to the Final Four. Yes, there’s some kind of dropoff after players decide to go to the NBA Draft, but there should be some kind of foundation so you don’t go from really good to really sh-tty in just one season.

Izzo is getting yelled at from fans and the Spartans are basically unwatchable right now. Hey, what’s that?! Up in the sky! It’s Dan Gilbert with his amazing angry yelling powers! Look what he did to motivate the Cleveland Cavaliers after they lost LeBron! Actually, don’t look. You might throw up due to how ugly it is now.
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Michigan State’s basketball team has already lost seven games (including one to Penn State… who lost to Maine) and have dropped out of the Top 25. The last thing they need is trouble within the team, which is exactly what they got when coach Tom Izzo suspended Korie Lucious for the rest of the season. This isn’t completely out of the blue, however, as Lucious has already been given a second chance after a DUI last August.

“Man did I really mess up this time…off 2 the gym I go!,” Lucious posted on his Twitter account shortly before the school announced his suspension late Tuesday night.

“Unfortunately, Korie Lucious displayed conduct detrimental to the program,” Izzo said in a statement issued by the school. “My focus is on this team for the remainder of the season.”-ESPN.

If we’ve learned anything about athletes, it’s that going to Twitter after having problems with your team is always the best decision. Nothing ever goes wrong when that happens, and no one ever “hacks” their accounts.

“Conduct detrimental to the program” could really be anything. Later in the article, it says that the police have “no active cases” of any kind filed against Lucious, so it must be something that happened in school. We can start taking bets here if you’d like. I’ve got 1000:1 odds that it was a food fight, and I wouldn’t even be mad if I lost, because food fights in college haven’t happened in so long.

Photo via.

At a press conference last night, Michigan State University President Lou Anna K. Simon proudly announced that men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo would be staying with the Spartans, thus putting an end to the latest prevalent saga in the LeBron James Chronicles. Izzo’s decision means that he has turned down Cleveland’s 5-year, $30 million offer and left the team with the best regular season record in the NBA without a coach as the free agency bonanza nears. Somewhere Mike Brown is giggling. Mainly because he’s watching Saved by the Bell in his PJs.

This marks the second time that Cavs owner Dan Gilbert has attempted to land Izzo sans success, and now the attention is turning to former Nets coach Byron Scott, followed by a buffet of retreads and journeyman duds. Gilbert, an apparent graduate of the Glenn Frey Style Academy, says that he respects Izzo’s choice and admires his character, to which Izzo rolled over and kissed him on the cheek and whispered some sweet nothings.

Remain loyal to me, Detroit Free Press:

“Throughout the entire process, Dan Gilbert and the entire Cleveland organization has been nothing but class,” Izzo said in a statement. “His professionalism and caring nature for me, my family and Michigan State have been impressive. I wish him nothing but the best in his quest to win a world championship.”

“Just as I decided to stay home, I hope a 6-8, 270-pound forward in Cleveland decides to stay home,” Izzo added, referring to Cavs free-agent-to-be LeBron James.

Landing Byron Scott may not sound as easy as it seems, though, which is remarkable considering how easy it really sounds. Scott is rumored to be waiting out Phil Jackson’s decision on retirement, despite Jackson’s recent comments to Fanhouse about coaching in LA. However, if Jackson should retire and Scott assumes the Lakers’ coaching gig, then the Cavs would move on to such “prominent” names as Kelvin Sampson and Mike Woodson. Sampson, of course, was famously dismissed from Indiana University after the NCAA issued five major violations against the program, and Woodson was recently fired by Atlanta after the Hawks were swept out of the second round of the playoffs for the second consecutive year.

And if the Cavaliers are rifling through resumes like that… well, it’s only a matter of time:

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While Dwayne Wade has apparently fortified his relationship with the Miami Heat by actively recruiting other superstars to come join him in South Florida, LeBron James continues his one-man mystery show. Refusing to tip his cards, LeBron remains shrouded in secrecy as to his free agency fate, but it appears that “sources” close to the guy who refers to himself as basketball royalty are saying that he approves of the Cleveland Cavaliers attempting to hire Michigan State coach Tom Izzo. He approves. That’s it. No, “I’ll play for him.” Just a passing nod, apparently.

Izzo texted the Associated Press that he is still gathering information, which could possibly mean that he’s waiting to find out what LeBron’s destiny is. Izzo is believed to be waiting out this NBA dead time, with absolutely nothing else going on, until free agency begins to make his decision based on LeBron’s decision. Meanwhile, Mo Williams and Daniel Gibson just want someone to love them.

Pass this note to the doable chubby chick with braces for me, Detroit Free Press:

While no one knows what James will do, a Cleveland newspaper reports that James has endorsed Izzo. The Plain Dealer reports that “sources have indicated James approves of the highly-respected Izzo” and that “James ‘100 percent’ would endorse Izzo’s hiring.”

It’s not known if Izzo has contacted James personally – perhaps that’s the “gathering” Izzo still needs to do.

The Cavs have made Izzo an offer of 5-years, $30 million to replace Mike Brown, who won back-to-back 60-win seasons before being fired, but Izzo has also previously said that he would like to win at least one more NCAA championship at Michigan State before giving the NBA a chance. However, Izzo has been trying to get in touch with LeBron via phone, but apparently to no avail. He should try texting or Tweeting, seems to be the only way to communicate these days.

Meanwhile, David Geffen held his pointer finger and thumb to his face and said, “You need to talk to LeBron? I got him right here. What’s that Bron-Bron? You want a mansion on the moon? Done! You want a toilet made of unobtainium? Done! You want to me to resurrect Jimmy Dean to make you breakfast for the next 30 years? Done, double done and triple done! Suck on that, Donald Sterling!”

In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Jay-Z admitted that he is not actively recruiting his close friend LeBron James to play for the New Jersey Nets, of which Jay-Z is a minority owner. In the business sense. Not the… you know. Geez, this got awkward quickly. The rapper says that because of their personal relationship, he doesn’t want to complicate things by making it all about business. Instead, they’ll stick to having daily cash-burning contests while traveling to their moon mansions in their diamond rockets.

Jay-Z of course wants LeBron to play for New Jersey, as does majority owner and jet ski enthusiast Mikhail Prokhorov and pretty much everyone in New York City. Unless he wants to play for the Knicks. Hell, they’ll take him on the New York Liberty. If LeBron was 38, he could pitch for the Mets. Whatever it takes.

I’ve got 99 problems and LeBron news ain’t one, Yahoo! Sports:

Jay-Z is leaving all recruiting to the new owner, Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, who first met with the hip-hop exec at the Manhattan Four Seasons. “I’d been staying there for 10 years, and I always thought I was at the top level,” Jay-Z told the magazine. “But when I met Prokhorov, they took me up to this extra, extra room that I had never even heard of before. Now there’s something else to shoot for. There’s always an extra level you don’t know about.”

While Jay-Z and the Nets bolster their chances of signing the championship-less superstar, the Cleveland Cavaliers have apparently made their first attempt at a big name coach. According to multiple news outlets, the Cavaliers have offered Michigan State men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo their vacant coaching position. Cavs owner Dan Gilbert is a MSU alum and has been enamored with Izzo for quite some time, having wanted to hire him over Mike Brown in 2005. MSU’s Athletic Director denied the reports, stating that the Cavs are merely interested, but have not made a formal offer.

Izzo has previously stated that he will not even consider coaching in the NBA until he wins another title with the Spartans. If you’re not aware of how much of a god Izzo is at MSU, fans can actually purchase Tom Izzo Fathead wall decorations. Seriously. You can have a college coach adorning your bedroom wall. Give it a shot, chicks love it.

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