Michigan State University Athletics
Grinz On Green: Whatever It Takes
3/16/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
It has the makings of becoming another enduring postseason symbol for Michigan State basketball along with: "PPTPW"; the late-afternoon, pre-spring sun shining through the Breslin Center windows during practice; and the obligatory questions about the war drill at NCAA Tournament press conferences.
But before "Whatever it takes to win a championship" ranks alongside "Players Play, Tough Players Win" -- the battle cry of MSU's 2000 national championship team -- on T-shirts and arena walls, it needs to be validated.
Senior co-captain and newly named Sports Illustrated Player of the Year Denzel Valentine uttered the phrase after the Spartans hung on to beat Maryland, 64-61, in Saturday's Big Ten Tournament semifinal.
"I wasn't thrilled with how we played in that last little stretch," said Coach Tom Izzo. "And I said, ‘You want me to pat you on the back? You want me to chew you out? You want me to find a happy medium? What do you guys want?'
"And Denzel says, ‘It doesn't matter, whatever it takes to win a championship.' And I think that was a helluva a statement by a 22-year-old kid. Boy, I've got a ton of respect for that statement. So maybe, someday a few years from now that'll be in the locker room. That will be one of those lines that I didn't use, he used, and I thought it was outstanding."
It wasn't like Izzo needs the players' permission to push, drive and browbeat them going into Friday's first-round NCAA game against Middle Tennessee in St. Louis and the five games they hope will follow.
But it's instructive to know that they not only can take it, they welcome it.
"He's going to do it regardless, but hearing that from us was a good thing for him," said junior guard Eron Harris. "Basically, it's us putting all of our trust into coach because he knows what it takes. We know it's going to be tough, but we want to do what it takes to win that championship because we know that feeling will be something we'll never forget."
Valentine, who backed up his words by leading MSU to a victory over Purdue in Sunday's Big Ten Tournament title game, explained that they were borne of frustration. He was a sophomore on the 2014 Spartan team that was a heavy favorite to win the NCAA title, only to be stopped in the Elite Eight by Connecticut in New York.
Last year, Michigan State made a surprising run to the Final Four as a humble 7-seed but lost to eventual champ Duke in the national semifinal.
"At the end of the day, I've been so close to winning the championship," Valentine said. "I've been to a Final Four and I've been on a team everybody picked to win it all and we fell short. So I'm tired of coming up short.
"I just want to win the whole thing. So whatever it has to be to win a championship I'll do it and the team will do it because we're that hungry. We beat Maryland, a great team, but we're not satisfied by that. We want to talk about what we can get better at than, ‘Oh yay, we just beat Maryland.' Our plans are bigger than that so let's address the things that need to be addressed."
Eric Thomas, a nationally renowned motivational speaker who received his Master's Degree and Ph.D. from MSU and occasionally counsels the Spartans, framed "whatever it takes" in a way the players can easily understand.
"One of his mottos is, ‘What are you willing to sacrifice?' " said senior forward and co-captain Matt Costello. "Part of whatever it takes is time away from your girl or time away from Netflix, something as stupid as that, to watch a little more film or spend more time on your shot."
Senior shooting guard Bryn Forbes said the Spartans will have plenty of time to recover from the rigors of March and don't want to spend any of it on regret.
"If we've got to stay here two more hours, what's two hours?" Forbes said. "It means time and sacrificing some of the things you like to do for something that's worth more. There are a lot of things you can give to get a lot."
Izzo's approach to player-management has been known to raise eyebrows from time to time, but for players it's a rite of passage when they learn to listen to what he says instead of getting caught up in how he says it.
"The message and how he says it are two different things," said Forbes. "You've got to take the message for what it is and kind of leave the other stuff. If you can really get what he's saying you'll be fine. It's for the better. People know what to take and what not to take.
"The first day I got here it was like that."
And it gives the younger players a reason to bond with the older players over a common experience, just as players did under Izzo's predecessor and mentor, Jud Heathcote.
"I think we've all had that conversation," Forbes said. "I think some guys are better at it than others. But there's a reason he's got all these banners and things like that. I bought into it from the start. Whatever he's got to say I trust it because he has the accolades to back up what he's saying. To argue with him would be kind of stupid."
After Tuesday's practice, Izzo looked back at the source of the sunlight hitting the letters P-P-T-P-W on the bronze plaque imbedded in a corner of the Breslin court, upon which the Spartans won the national championship 16 years ago in Indianapolis.
"Best time of the year," he barked through a knowing smile that couldn't have been wider.
