Former NBA Player Thinks Xavier Booker Is ‘Ready Now’

There’s no denying that the biggest X-factor heading into the Michigan State basketball season is Xavier Booker. He struggled to see the court last season for a variety of reasons, but the team needs him more than ever to be the best version of himself.

Before last season, many knew Booker would be a bigger project than the other five-stars. But I think most were surprised by just how much of a project he was.

Fast forward to this offseason, when Booker has nothing to do but work on his game, and it looks like he’s improving dramatically and becoming the player we all thought he would be.

Stephen Bardo is a former NBA player from the mid-1990s and he recently posted the clip above to discuss Booker.

Bardo agrees with much of the talk surrounding Booker last season, saying, “He just needed more experience… Xavier Booker just wasn’t ready.”

However, Bardo is now hearing different things about Booker. He’s hearing that what we’ve all been hoping for is actually happening this offseason.

“But I think he (Booker) is ready now,” Bardo continued. “From what I’ve heard from Michigan State, he’s made a lot of progress in the spring.”

This last quote is the most encouraging because it only talks about the spring. Considering that Booker made a huge improvement in the spring, imagine how much he has improved since then now that it’s July. And better yet, the season is still only four months away, so he’s likely going to continue to improve even more.

A vastly improved Booker could be the difference between a middling Big Ten season and a title run. And by all accounts, the latter seems more likely.