With Nick Ward deciding to forgo his senior season with Michigan State and head to the NBA, the Spartans have an open scholarship. That means they could go the grad transfer route.
Tom Izzo has stated that he doesn’t see the roster changing at all, but that was before the Ward decision and he now has options. Using a final scholarship won’t hurt the team at all because a grad transfer would only take that spot for next season and Michigan State’s 2019 class is already complete.
That’s where Virginia Tech’s Kerry Blackshear comes into play. He has chosen to transfer after Buzz Williams took the Texas A&M job and he’s the top transfer on the market, presumably.