Marcus Taylor To Declare For NBA Draft
3/26/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 26, 2002
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State sophomore guard Marcus Taylor (Lansing, Mich./Waverly H.S.) announced Tuesday that he would declare for the 2002 NBA Draft. Taylor led the 2001-02 Michigan State men's basketball team in both scoring (16.8 ppg) and assists (5.3 apg). In Big Ten games, he led the conference in both scoring (17.7 ppg) and assists (5.0 apg), becoming just the second player in Big Ten history to do so. For his efforts, he earned first-team All-Big Ten honors, along with NABC and USBWA All-District accolades.
"I'd like to announce that I am going to put my name in the NBA Draft," said Taylor. "It's not that It's not that I'm in a big hurry to leave MSU, because I have great respect for the coaches, players and University. I've enjoyed my collegiate experience, especially the great support from the student body. Becoming an NBA player has been one of my goals for a long time. I think everyone should look at all available options. By going to the workouts and testing my skills against other potential draft picks, I'll have an opportunity to see where I am as a basketball player. I am not going to hire an agent at this time, so the possibility remains that I could return to Michigan State for my junior season."
"Marcus, myself, his father and family have sat down and talked about his future," said Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo. "He is opting to declare for the NBA Draft. I think, as we all know, it is a trend that is disturbing to some and exciting to others, and one that worries me some but excites me in some ways. I think that Marcus is going to test the waters. He's going to go to the camps and figure out what his options are. He's going to play against some of the competition and not sign an agent, which was specified by his family. And once it's all said and done, as players have done in the past, decide whether he is going to stay in the draft or opt out.
"The meeting with Marcus happened yesterday and the tone was great," continued Izzo. "I kind of had a feeling that he may do this. When you obtain some records such as he's one of only two players to lead the conference in scoring and assists and that puts you in a different category. I think he is looking at the players out there and feels he can compete with any of them."