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BASKETBALL MT adds Elias King from Miss. State/C.J. Jones leaves to play professionally

Elias King

2019-20 FRESHMAN
King appeared in six games and saw 21 minutes of court time … Averaged 1.7 points, 0.3 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game … Registered points during three of his six appearances … Connected on 4-of-7 shooting which includes a 2-for-4 mark on three-pointers … Made his career debut against Louisiana-Monroe (Nov. 14) … Ripped off a season’s best five points on 2-of-2 from the floor during the last 3:26 of MSU’s 81-56 rout of Coastal Carolina (Nov. 24) … His first career points came on a jumper with 1:56 remaining … Added two points and a rebound versus Missouri (Jan. 14) … Drained a three-pointer during the Georgia game (Jan. 18) … Entered transfer portal after 2019-20 season.

HIGH SCHOOL
A skilled shooter and passer who possesses a good feel for the game and prepped under coach Courtney Goldwire at Lincoln Academy in Suwanee, Georgia … Wing that can play the one, two and three positions … Effective open floor scorer who can create his own shot when going to the rim … Rated the state of Georgia’s No. 5 prospect and the southeast region’s No. 34 prospect by ESPN.com … A consensus 4-star selection by the major recruiting services and dubbed a Top 125 national recruit by Lindy’s Magazine … Played the AAU circuit with Game Elite Gold in the Gold Gauntlet 17U and the Georgia Stars in the Nike 17 U … Also recruited by Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Memphis, Seton Hall and Xavier … Joined by Devin Butts, Iverson Molinar, Quinton Post and Isaac Stansbury as MSU’s true freshmen class in 2019-20.

PERSONAL
Born on December 16, 2000 … Majoring in economics.
 
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I'm sure most of my questions regarding recruiting and next year's squad will be answered soon during the regular signing period starting in 10 days (if it's not pushed back) but one obvious question about this commitment:

What it the scuttlebutt about King's lack of PT last year at MSU? (nothing stands out when looking at MSU's last year roster or their signees and commitments - gotta admit I didn't watch them much last year.)
 
Well it’s hard for true freshman to find meaningful minutes in most programs, I think King just fell in that fold more than anything else.

I’ve read quotes from Howland that said he needed to become more of a complete player - saying his offensive game was fine but he had a lot of learning to do on defense. Perhaps that contributed to the lack of playing time as well.
 
Well it’s hard for true freshman to find meaningful minutes in most programs, I think King just fell in that fold more than anything else.

I’ve read quotes from Howland that said he needed to become more of a complete player - saying his offensive game was fine but he had a lot of learning to do on defense. Perhaps that contributed to the lack of playing time as well.

I think Nick King averaged like 3.3 ppg while at Alabama and 21 ppg at Middle.
 
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sWiley said:



Sounds like he will fight right in.....lol




I knew it when I said it that it wouldn’t go over well lol...

That’s how Howland is though - very Kermit-esque in that regard.
 
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Really though, this is a great take. Hope he is available sooner rather than later. He should shine in CUSA. Very encouraging work here from McDevitt.
 
What position will he play? 3? 4? He does3 seem big enough to be a good 4 in this league so hopefully he will for in a the 3 position if he can handle the ball and shoot well enough.
 
Should this commitment hold (no reason why not) and King become eligible (wishful thinking?) we will have four players rated at or above 3 star next year (not that ratings are of utmost importance). In addition to 4 star King we will have Davis, Jackson, and Fussell all given 3 stars by at least one rating service. It has been rare for MT to have multiple players with such a designation; often not even one. Apparently McDevitt will have ample opportunity to show immediate improvement.

As an aside: The two remaining JUCO guards that we offered back in Feb. both committed yesterday also. One to K-State and one to Bama. Obviously we are fishing in productive waters. Now if we can consistently find the correct bait we could have something going.
 
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Is this our final guy we are taking this year or do we have room for one more?
 
What position will he play? 3? 4? He does3 seem big enough to be a good 4 in this league so hopefully he will for in a the 3 position if he can handle the ball and shoot well enough.
From what I have read he is a good ball handler and shooter. He is also listed at 6'8" 205 on Miss. State's website. Not ideal size for a 4 in this league, but could be worse. Hawthorne played the 4 at that size.
 
From what I have read he is a good ball handler and shooter. He is also listed at 6'8" 205 on Miss. State's website. Not ideal size for a 4 in this league, but could be worse. Hawthorne played the 4 at that size.
I'm thinking he is a better version of Crump and will play the 3 mostly. Maybe the 2 a bit
 
I'm thinking he is a better version of Crump and will play the 3 mostly. Maybe the 2 a bit
Could be true, but I can see us starting the year with Dishman, King (if eligible), Jones, Davis, and Sims as the starters. That is based on what people say about Dishman and Davis being true. If it is they will most likely start. I don't see C.J. Jones not starting next year. I think the other two spots are filled by Sims, Jackson, Jalen Jordan, or Elia King. The only scenario that does not put King at the 4 is if Jackson and King start. None of this thinking means anything. Just fun to think about.
 
Input from those who would know... it should go without asking since I get bashed for my association with CNM shouldn't I also get some credit?

My Bad (LOL)! I did not mean to ask where you got your information. I should have made my question more succinctly.

Based on your information what grounds will the NCAA allow King immediate eligibility since the vast majority of undergraduate transfers between D-1 schools have previously had to sit out a transfer year? I don't remember seeing that the (proposed) rule changes have been implemented.
 
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Technically MT is in the hunt for Justice Hill who commits tonight at 8. No clue what would happen with the numbers if he committed..

Pretty obvious that they'd make room for him.. one way or another.. there are some guys on the roster with similar skill sets that are perhaps unnecessarily redundant.. not saying that's what will happen but it's a clear decision if Hill wants to be a Raider..
 
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If this holds as expected, seems like a really good addition. To me, this is further confirmation of my long held belief that CNM is a good recruiter. The big question remains can CNM coach them up to perform as one unit with toughness, motivation, and discipline? I think there are some really talented young players on the roster. It seems CNM is maximizing the only couple of slots he had available to sign. Both appear to be good young quality talents with some good height and length.

This new transfer may not have the body mass or strength to be a great fit at PF, but he still appears to be one heck of a talent for SF. To the way CNM admits that he likes to run things, this new transfer fits incredibly well into that mold of tall/long athletic that can run the floor and shoot from outside. In my opinion, great addition with good length even if he isn't a banger inside type of PF.

I see someone already beat me to the punch regarding King being similar in size & body type to Crump, albeit a much more skilled and refined player than Crump.
 
Technically MT is in the hunt for Justice Hill who commits tonight at 8. No clue what would happen with the numbers if he committed..
Yea that is true. I was just saying as it stands right now there are no more open scholarship spots. I am sure that could change and likely would if he committed. Would suck to be the guy that would be moved to make room.
 
Yea that is true. I was just saying as it stands right now there are no more open scholarship spots. I am sure that could change and likely would if he committed. Would suck to be the guy that would be moved to make room.

This is big league, D1 basketball. It happens. Every program, every year just about.
 
It happens every day in the business world. Ever heard of an “at will” employment state? Produce or find something else to do.

Four year scholarships went away in the 70’s. One year renewals.
Too bad it doesn’t apply to coaches or admins.
Yes I am aware. Not sure what the points of the comments are. I explicitly said I was NOT saying that it shouldn't happen. So I was saying it should happen, would just suck to be the odd man out. Just like it sucks when you lose your job.
 
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I assume Justice Hill is convinced he will become the next Ja Morant. Guess we'll see him play the BRs for the next three years.
Regardless, I dislike losing to Murray (or any OVC school) either on the court or the recruiting trail.

Since we didn't land any of the four JUCO guards we offered this spring I have to ask myself just how badly McDevitt and staff felt we needed guard upgrades and just what their strategy was. Perhaps they didn't feel they were "in on" any Bigs after Houston until King became interested therefore they were going after who they felt were the best available. Interesting speculation for those of us without kingaling42's inside info. It would be so insightful to sit in on the staff's recruiting meetings and see the recruiting board to understand the priorities and motivation.
 
I assume Justice Hill is convinced he will become the next Ja Morant. Guess we'll see him play the BRs for the next three years.
Regardless, I dislike losing to Murray (or any OVC school) either on the court or the recruiting trail.

Since we didn't land any of the four JUCO guards we offered this spring I have to ask myself just how badly McDevitt and staff felt we needed guard upgrades and just what their strategy was. Perhaps they didn't feel they were "in on" any Bigs after Houston until King became interested therefore they were going after who they felt were the best available. Interesting speculation for those of us without kingaling42's inside info. It would be so insightful to sit in on the staff's recruiting meetings and see the recruiting board to understand the priorities and motivation.

I'd honestly much rather have a forward like we got in King than another guard. We are set at guard next year and now with King and Fussell, starting to get a little size to our team.
 
I agree with you MTBig Blue that before the JUCO offers extended in the spring I had thought we were set at guard for next year.

No doubt those of us who bemoaned the lack of inside players along with the frustration at the 6'-6" size of Scurry and Dishman as fours should be happy that King along with Fussell will be added to Jackson next year. Perhaps even walk-on Mitchell can give some minutes.

Additionally those who were unhappy with the excessive roster turnover during the early Davis' years will be happy if this finishes next year's class. Time will tell.
 
We're still are not big enough inside in my opinion. Fussell will be a freshman . We don't know how much he will be able to contribute yet. King is listed some places as 6'-7" and some 6'-8". In reality he is probably 6'-6". He is also thin framed, so he likely won't be much help inside. We do have an undersized Dishman (6'-6") and Jackson (6'-8") returning. We desperately need some muscular 6'-9"/6'-10" post players that others school in CUSA get so easily. We won't be able to compete at the top until we do.
 
We're still are not big enough inside in my opinion. Fussell will be a freshman . We don't know how much he will be able to contribute yet. King is listed some places as 6'-7" and some 6'-8". In reality he is probably 6'-6". He is also thin framed, so he likely won't be much help inside. We do have an undersized Dishman (6'-6") and Jackson (6'-8") returning. We desperately need some muscular 6'-9"/6'-10" post players that others school in CUSA get so easily. We won't be able to compete at the top until we do.
I see what you are saying, but we are not a lot smaller at the forward position than we were Kermit's last year.

Fussell 6'10" 220 Gamble 6'9" 224
Jackson 6'9" 245 Walters 6'10" 250
King 6'8" 205 Thomas 6'9" 215
Millin 6'7" 200 Hawthorne 6'7" 205
Dishman 6'6" 220 King 6'7" 225
Millner 6'6" 215 Massenberg 6'8" 220

Yes we are smaller, but in my opinion the worst 2 players listed are Thomas and Massenberg. If King is eligible we will have all of those players contributing some with Millin the least. I still would take Millin over Massenberg and Thomas. Obviously Nick King is better than anyone we have right now and Walters is probably also, but I think we are deeper. Sure we are not as big, but it is only an inch or so and 5-10 lbs. We are a lot bigger at the guard position. Shelton-Schmidt was the tallest guard on Kermit's last team at 6'5". Next year's tallest guard will be 6'8" or taller if Crump is really growing. We are not as talented as we were obviously, but I don't think size is a big of an issue as we make it out to be.
 
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