Michigan State coach Tom Izzo was one of several college coaches who recruited but failed to land Duke big man Jahlil Okafor, the projected No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft.
The 6-foot-11 Okafor ultimately chose Duke over a list that included Kentucky, Kansas and Baylor.
Before that Okafor was considering Michigan State, Arizona, Illinois and Ohio State.
“When’s the trade deadline up? I’d still trade,” Izzo joked about Okafor on Thursday in Syracuse a day ahead of Michigan State’s Sweet 16 matchup with Oklahoma.
“If it’s before [Friday], I’m still doing it.”
Okafor and Duke face Utah Friday night in Houston.
Meantime, Izzo praised his current roster of Spartans.
“I know one thing: I wouldn’t trade anybody as far as the way these guys have handled things this year, the class in the way they’ve dealt with things, winning and losing, the frustration of the free-throw situation we went through and how they handled that, what they are as students, what they are as people,” he said. “I’m cool with it all.”
