Emoni Bates, high school basketball’s top recruit, commits to Michigan State
Emoni Bates, the nation’s top basketball recruit regardless of class, won’t be traveling too far to play his college basketball.
?✨ There’s a superstar heading to East Lansing!
No. 1 recruit @BatesEmoni commits to @MSU_Basketball ?? pic.twitter.com/aJBvy2wxAD
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) June 29, 2020
The 6’8″ rising junior from Ypsilanti, Michigan, announced Monday that he will take his immense talents to Michigan State to play under legendary coach Tom Izzo.
Bates’ commitment shocked the world of basketball, considering no one saw a college decision coming anytime soon from Bates, if at all.
Apparently, it shocked the Michigan State coaching staff as well.
Am told Michigan State had no idea Emoni Bates’ commitment was coming until rumors started this morning.
— Brendan Quinn (@BFQuinn) June 29, 2020
Bates, 16, cited his long-time relationship with Izzo and his staff as the key reason why he committed to being a Spartan with two years of high school basketball left to play.
“They’ve been showing love to me since I was in 7th grade. They’ve been recruiting me hard since then. I just know they are showing that their love is genuine. And they have been here for a long time.”
“I’m big on loyalty and they showed me all loyalty … I gotta show them love back.”
Sparty has landed one of the top players in high school basketball in Emoni Bates ? pic.twitter.com/mJ2glZMnnF
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 29, 2020
When looking at Bates’ resume, the hype is well-deserved.
He’s still only 16 but Emoni Bates is one of the most talented prospects I’ve ever evaluated. Big wing who can really create off the dribble at 6-9. Shoots it easy. Plays with a lot of confidence. pic.twitter.com/vGg4Yl2ZaU
— Mike Schmitz (@Mike_Schmitz) June 29, 2020
He is coming off of a sophomore campaign in which he averaged 33.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.3 steals. And as a freshman, he led Lincoln High School to a state championship while averaging 28.7 points and 10.2 rebounds.
He was named Michigan’s Gatorade State Player of the Year as a freshman and he took it to another level as a sophomore, winning the Gatorade National Player of the Year, becoming the first sophomore to win the prestigious honor.
Bates’ dominant play has led many to label him the best high school basketball prospect since LeBron James, who dominated during his four years at St. Vincent St. Mary’s in Akron, Ohio.
James won three state championships in high school, capped off by a national championship during his senior season.
Emoni Bates, who just announced a commitment to Michigan State, is the best high school prospect that I’ve evaluated at this stage. Considered the best high school prospect since LeBron James.
— Evan Daniels (@EvanDaniels) June 29, 2020
While Bates is committed to Michigan State as of today, he acknowledges that the changing landscape of basketball could alter his plans in the future.
“As I do know right now, I will be committing to Michigan State University.”
Emoni Bates, ESPN’s No. 1-ranked player in the class of 2022, announced on SportsCenter that he will be heading to East Lansing. pic.twitter.com/WdrG7R5tpc
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 29, 2020
After Jalen Green, the top player in the class of 2020, announced that he would join the NBA G-League in April, highly-touted recruits Isaiah Todd and Daishen Nix followed suit, and many believed Bates would take a similar path.
Reporting w/ @Draftexpress: Jalen Green is making the leap to a reshaped NBA professional pathway program, a G-League initiative that’ll pay elite prospects $500K-plus and provide a one-year development program outside of minor-league’s traditional team structure. Story soon.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 16, 2020
However, Bates has so far made it clear that if his options are between college basketball and the G-League, he is going the college route.
Emoni Bates on the G-League: “It’s good for certain players. That’s a lot of money. I don’t really plan on, I don’t think I’ll do it. It’s good for some people, but I don’t think I’ll head that route.”
He said he would rather play college basketball than go to the G League.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) June 29, 2020
With talks of the NBA potentially modifying its draft eligibility rules so that high school graduates can enter the league immediately, and the new G-League route being proposed to players, there are those who still don’t believe Bates will make it to East Lansing.
Emoni Bates to Michigan State? Ha! Stop the madness. His mother must be getting tired of the mailbox being full of college letters.
He’ll never step foot on a college campus, cut it out!
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) June 29, 2020
And of course, with Bates’ surprise commitment, there was sure to be a wide range of reaction within the basketball community.
Emoni Bates just announced that he is committing to play one year of college basketball at Michigan State.
Easily the biggest recruit in Michigan State history!
Wow
— Justin Rose (@JRoseWXYZ) June 29, 2020
Emoni Bates is really freaking good at basketball for being 16 years old.
That’s really all I have on this one. There are like 100 variables in the air with him, so I just can’t get all that enthusiastic about a college commitment.
— Sam Vecenie (@Sam_Vecenie) June 29, 2020
Emoni Bates announces he has committed to Michigan State … IF he winds up playing college.
That’s a BIG if.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) June 29, 2020
While the doubt might outweigh the optimism, our Mark Titus is choosing to take a glass-half-full approach to Bates’ commitment, which he acknowledges is a huge win for the Big Ten as a whole.
“I’m not gonna be a cynic. I’m not gonna take the pessimistic approach. I’m gonna take the optimistic approach and say the fact that this commitment kinda means nothing, means something. Because he did not have to do this. He did not need to get in front of national television cameras and announce that he wants to go to Michigan State. That’s pretty cool. That’s great for college basketball.”
“This is great for the Big Ten. This is the caliber of recruit that the Big Ten historically does not get.”@clubtrillion reacts to @BatesEmoni committing to @MSU_basketball ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/3SM0ngTcFS
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) June 29, 2020
Bates still has two years left to make his final, final decision.
We’ll check back when Emoni turns 18.
