Emoni Bates Reflects on Regret of Not Playing for Michigan State Basketball

It was inevitable that this moment would come.

Remember when Emoni Bates committed to Michigan State basketball, creating a huge buzz on the internet?

Many speculated that Bates would skip college and head straight to the pros, choosing to earn money while preparing for the NBA. Despite the money offers coming his way, Michigan State fans held out hope that he would honor his commitment to the Spartans.

However, the allure of the recruiting process proved too strong. Bates reopened his recruitment, effectively closing the door on any chance of recommitting to Michigan State.

Eventually, Bates chose Memphis, where he played 18 underwhelming games, despite being the former No. 1 overall recruit in the country. After one season, he transferred and ended up closer to home, playing for Eastern Michigan.

During his lone season with the Eagles, Bates averaged 19.2 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, even nearly upsetting Hunter Dickinson and Michigan in non-conference play. His performance earned him a spot with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers. Despite that, he wasn’t the top pick he had expected to be coming out of high school. It’s left some to wonder how things might have turned out if he had stayed with Michigan State.

It seems that Bates is now pondering those same questions.

On Thursday, he shared a post on Facebook reflecting on his regrets and wishing he could go back and make different decisions, with a special thanks to Andrew Cumbow for uncovering the message.

It’s clear that Bates regrets reopening his recruitment as a 16-year-old, and he acknowledges that staying with Michigan State might have been a better choice. Under a Hall of Fame coach, he could have potentially improved his draft stock. Instead, he opted for Memphis, where he had more freedom to play his way.

Bates admitted that he understands why some fans still haven’t forgiven him for his past decisions but emphasized how much he’s grown since then. It appears he’s matured considerably.

Fans should have likely let go of that past by now, as the situation feels like it happened ages ago. Michigan State has moved forward, even securing a Big Ten title from that recruiting class, thanks to Jaden Akins.

It’s surprising to think that Michigan State almost had a class with Bates, Piette Brooks, Enoch Boakye, and Jaden Akins, but the Senior Day for that group only featured one player.