FEATURE: Why Anton Bonke might be the next big thing at Michigan State, despite his unusual journey

EAST LANSING, Mich. - When did Michigan State begin to feel it had the right kind of guy in Anton Bonke? Probably around the time that Bonke began to speak Tom Izzo’s basketball language. When Bonke - the Spartans’ recent transfer portal commitment - took an official visit to Michigan State on April 17, he made a simple request. And Izzo loved it. “I asked them if I could work out during my visit, just to kind of get a feel of how they do things and how their team chemistry goes,” Bonke said. Usually, Izzo and the coaching staff encourage recruiting visitors to work out or play open gym with current Spartans. Coaches await feedback from players to help determine whether the prospect is an OKG (our kind of guy). On this occasion, Bonke wanted to know whether this was HKP (his kind of program).  It turned out to be a match. And know this: There have been other players Michigan State has considered in the transfer portal - this year and last year - who haven’t passed the OKG test. (MORE inside SpartanMag. Join SpartanMag: $1 to get started, and enjoy a complimentary year of The Athletic included with your membership. Get Deal Now! 👉 https://www.on3.com/teams/michigan-state-spartans/join/)