Cleaves Gets Emotional As Michigan State Retires His Jersey
2/3/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Feb. 3, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Mateen Cleaves played with a lot of passion at Michigan State.
So it was only fitting that he cried when the school retired his No. 12 jersey during a ceremony before the Spartans hosted No. 4 Ohio State on Saturday.
"I'm at a loss for words," Cleaves said to the sellout crowd that gave him a standing ovation when he walked onto the court with his family and coach Tom Izzo. "This is a very special day."
Cleaves thanked God, his brother, sister, fiance, former Spartans and former teammates, before saying Izzo was heaven-sent.
"I'll never forget when he was selling the school to me by saying, `If you come to Michigan State, we will win a national championship,'" Cleaves recalled. "He was true."
Cleaves led the Spartans to the national championship in 2000 as a senior. The point guard is Michigan State's only three-time All-American and was a two-time Big Ten Player of the Year. He was the MVP at the 2000 Final Four and 1999 Big Ten tournament.
His jersey was hoisted to the Breslin Center rafters, where it will later be put in a row with those of Magic Johnson (No. 33), Greg Kelser (No. 32), Jay Vincent (No. 31), Shawn Respert and Johnny Green (No. 24), Steve Smith (No. 21) and Scott Skiles (No. 4).
"It was only a matter of time," Kelser, now a Detroit Pistons broadcaster, said before Friday night's Bucks-Pistons game. "Michigan State went to another level during his four years there, and I'm not sure it would've happened without him."
Cleaves helped turn Michigan State from solid to spectacular, leading the Spartans to a 104-32 record, two Final Fours, three straight Big Ten titles, two Final Four appearances and a pair of conference tournament titles.
He holds the Big Ten record with 816 assists and the school mark with 195 career steals. He is 12th on the Spartans' all-time scoring list with 1,541 points.
Cleaves was drafted by Detroit with the 14th pick overall and played for the Pistons, Sacramento, Cleveland and Seattle over six seasons. He recently returned from Russia, where he was playing professionally, and hopes to make it back to the NBA.
The former Flint Northern star said crying in public wasn't in his plans, but he couldn't stuff his emotions when he saw Izzo choking up as they walked onto the court for the pregame ceremony.
"I was going to try to hold back my tears, but I looked at him, so I'll blame it on him," Cleaves said. "When I look at him, so many things go through my mind like how he helped me go from a boy to a man."
