The Early Signing Period for college basketball opened on Wednesday, and Michigan State has officially signed two class of 2025 top-100 prospects in four-star shooting guard/small forward Jordan Scott and four-star small forward/power forward Cam Ward.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo, associate head coach Doug Wojcik and assistant coaches Jon Borovich, Thomas Kelley, Austin Thornton and Saddi Washington were able to secure commitments from both Scott and Ward in October. Now the East Coast duo is locked in with MSU after signing.
Here is what to know about the two new Spartans who will join the program for the 2025-2026 season, and Izzo's thoughts on each player that he provided via press release.
-Name: Jordan Scott
-Status: Signed
-High School: South Lakes (Reston, Virginia)
-MSU official visit dates: Oct. 4 through Oct. 6
-Commitment date: Scott committed to Michigan State on Oct. 10, 2024
-Rating: Four-star
-Height: 6-foot-7
-Weight: 190 pounds
-Position rank: No. 17 shooting guard in 2024 class
-Overall rank: No. 58 prospect nationally
-Other notable offers: California, Florida State, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, Washington, Virginia Tech, Washington and others.
-Izzo on Scott: "Jordan comes from a great pedigree. Not only the school where Grant Hill came from, but also both of his parents, Christy, who played at Maryland, and Jerome, who played at Miami (Fla.). Jordan was the Player of the Year in the Virginia area. He's a 6-6, 6-7 shooting wingman with size and he shoots the ball very well. We are excited to have Jordan as part of our program and being a good student, a great kid, and a guy that wanted to be here. That was very important to us."
-Notes: Scott provides some versatility on the wing at the two position or three position. He has excellent height and length at 6-foot-7 that will bode well for him at the college level. Physically, Scott will likely need a year or more to develop before he is ready to play serious minutes, but he projects as a multi-year contributor for the Spartans in the future. Scott is already a solid shooter from 3-point range and should continue to develop from beyond the arc. He also is a strong rebounder and has all of the tools to be a good defender as well.
As Izzo mentioned, basketball talent runs in the Scott family. Jordan's father, Jerome Scott Sr., was a multi-year starter at Miami, while his mother, Christy Winters Scott, played for Maryland. Meanwhile, his sister, Brianna Scott, is currently playing for Georgetown, and his brother, Jerome Scott Jr., previously played for West Virginia Wesleyan. Christy also coached at Maryland and has worked as a NCAA basketball and WNBA broadcaster.
As a junior, Scott was named the 6A Virginia State Player of the Year. He averaged 18.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Scott has also played for the Virginia Elite 17U team
He choose MSU over fellow finalists Maryland and Virginia Tech. Scott may require some patience when it comes to development, but Michigan State is high on his potential, and he looks like he has a strong chance to be difference-maker for the Spartans in the future.
-Name: Cam Ward
-Status: Signed
-High School: Largo (Upper Marlboro, Maryland)
-MSU official visit dates: Oct. 4 through Oct. 6
-Commitment date: Ward committed Michigan State on Oct. 22, 2024
-Rating: Four-star
-Height: 6-foot-8
-Weight: 225 pounds
-Position rank: No. 28 small forward in 2024 class
-Overall rank: No. 99 prospect nationally
-Other notable offers: Arkansas, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State, Marquette, Maryland, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Providence, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and others.
-Izzo on Ward: "We are very excited about Cam. He's been a winner his whole life. He's won a state championship already, he's won games in AAU ball and big-time tournaments. He averaged 26 points per game last year. He's 6-8 with a 6-11 wingspan. And maybe what's more important than anything is he's tough and that is what really excited me when I first saw him. The second part of it is, he plays for his father, and his mother is the AD and head coach of the women's team at Largo. Basketball has been in his life since he was a little kid. Put that with the fact that he's a very good student, and I think he's gonna be an incredible representative here for Michigan State University."
-Notes: Ward chose Michigan State over finalists Kansas State, Maryland and Virginia, and had close to 30 scholarship offers in total to choose from. He took his official visit during the same weekend as Scott, Oct. 4 through Oct. 6, which was also when MSU hosted the the Izzone Campout and the Michigan State Madness events.
Like Scott, Ward provides some positional versatility, as he could play at the small forward or power forward spots, with a 6-foot-7 frame and a reported 6-foot-11 wingspan. As of now, Ward has more of an inside-out game. While his 3-point shot will need to develop, Ward is dangerous from the mid-range and near the basket. He is also a strong rebounder and a solid passer, and Ward could potentially earn playing time early in East Lansing.
Ward has had an extremely productive prep career. As a junior at Largo last year, he averaged 26 points, 11.5 rebounds, 2.7 steals, 2.4 assists and 2.1 blocks per game, which earned him Gatorade Player of the Year honors in Maryland. He also led the Lions to a Class 2A state title in Maryland during the 2023-2024 season. Ward's dad, Rodney, is his head coach at Largo, and his mother, Ayana Ball-Ward is the school's athletic director.
Additionally, Ward played for Team Durant on the Nike EYBL circuit, where he had a standout performance in the spring. He averaged 24.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, while shooting 62.7% from the field.
