97.1 The Ticket -- There's a new banner hanging in the rafters at the Breslin Center.
Former Michigan State Spartan Draymond Green had his No. 23 retired during halftime of Tuesday's MSU-Duke game.
Green played four seasons in East Lansing, racking up two trips to the Final Four, three Big Ten championships and one Big Ten Tournament title. Green left college as the Spartans' all-time leading rebounder with 1,096 career boards and his 1,517 points rank in the top 20 in program history.
Though the mood in the building was a bit hampered by the Spartans' 45-29 halftime deficit, Green received a rousing ovation.
"I love this place. This place is a huge part of where I am today," Green said. "The guys before me were the same way. Mateen Cleaves talked to me all the time, Charlie Bell, J-Rich. ... It's my job to do that for the next young guys."
The Saginaw native's number now hangs next to nine other Spartans who have had their numbers retired – Scott Skiles (4), Mateen Cleaves (12), Steve Smith (21), Johnny Green and Shawn Respert (24), Jay Vincent (31), Greg Kelser (32), Magic Johnson (33) and Morris Peterson (42). Green is the first Spartan to have his number retired since Peterson in 2009.
Green was drafted No. 35 overall by the Warriors in the 2012 NBA Draft and has gone on to win three NBA titles, a Defensive Player of the Year award, while garnering All-Star honors three times, and All-NBA honors twice. His head coach, Steve Kerr, and several Warriors teammates were on-hand for the game and ceremony.
Earlier in the day, tribute videos made the rounds on social media as former Spartans and Green's Golden State teammates congratulated him.
Current Spartan Xavier Tillman has worn No. 23 during his three years at MSU. He told reporters last week he had not had any conversations with Green or anyone else about changing his number after it's retired.
The Spartans went on to suffer their third loss of the early season, 87-75. The Spartans (5-3) began the season as the No. 1 team in the Preseason AP Top 25 Poll, but have stumbled out of the blocks to start the year.
