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Redshirt sophomore forward Kenny Kaminski leaves Michigan State program

Kenny Kaminski

naMichigan State’s Kenny Kaminski looks to pass during the first half of an NCAA basketball game against Georgetown at Madison Square Garden, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2014, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

AP

With Adreian Payne out of eligibility, Michigan State was in need of front court players capable of stepping forward in 2014-15. One possible option was Kenny Kaminski, who scored 4.9 points in just over 12 minutes of action per game. A “stretch four,” the 6-foot-8 Kaminski shot 51 percent from the field and 49.4% from beyond the arc in 2013-14.

What Kaminski would be able to do under Tom Izzo with more playing time won’t be learned however, as the rising redshirt sophomore announced via his Twitter account Saturday afternoon that he’s no longer a member of the Michigan State program.

On two separate occasions last season, Kaminski was suspended by Izzo for “failing to take care of business” academically, with the second suspension being levied on December 14. Kaminski missed a total of six games last season for disciplinary reasons.

With Kaminski no longer in the picture, senior Branden Dawson and junior Matt Costello are Michigan State’s most experienced front court players. The Spartans add Marvin Clark, a 6-foot-7 forward who will now (in theory) have more opportunities to step forward and earn immediate playing time. With the top three scorers from a team that won the Big Ten tournament title and reached the Elite Eight having moved on (guards Keith Appling and Gary Harris being the others), Dawson (11.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg) and guards Denzel Valentine and Travis Trice are Michigan State’s top three returnees in 2014-15.

The question of who steps forward to help those three is a key one for Michigan State going into 2014-15. Kaminski was one of the possible options, but thanks to his depature the Spartans will need to find additional depth elsewhere.

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