Michigan State at Moneyball: Tuesday's Takeaways with Coen Carr and Jordan Scott
By Brandon Pricco
Tuesday night, with the regular season dwindling down for the 20th annual Moneyball Pro-Am, fans were met with a pair of 50-point performances by Jaxon Kohler and Trey Fort, more Coen Carr dunks, and Nick Sanders scorching the nets with 23 points and five threes. It was another eventful summer night, and here are three thoughts from the games, focusing on the Michigan State basketball players in action.
Coen Carr has ascended to superstar status
Many popular players have graced the green and white since the Moneyball Pro Am started 20 years ago. Superstars like Drew Neitzel, Draymond Green, Denzel Valentine, Miles Bridges, and Cassius Winston all played in the summer league.
I’ve been in attendance for all of those players playing in Moneyball, outside of Neitzel, including times with Green and Bridges returning while being active NBA players.
Yet I’ve never seen a single man demand and receive the fan attention that Coen Carr does.
Following Carr’s 40-point explosion on Tuesday night, including several eye-popping alley oops and a casual between-the-legs dunk, youthful MSU fans practically rushed down from the stands.
“If you have already gotten an autograph or photo with Coen Carr this summer, please do not get in line,” the Moneyball host called out over his microphone. Very quickly and in an organized fashion, Moneyball workers arranged for a line to begin. The line consisted of kids rocking Coen Carr jerseys, as well as older adult fans, all just wanting a photo with Carr or his autograph.
“Okay, he only has 45 minutes, and we are going to respect his time!” I heard a Moneyball worker say to the front of the line. When Carr was done changing and speaking with the media, he gave time to the fans, smiling and making sure to give each Spartan fan as much attention as he could.
The line stretched behind the basket, lasting far into the next game. Players being sought after for photographs and autographs isn’t new, it’s one of the coolest aspects of Moneyball Pro Am. However, I’ve never seen rules needing to be placed around access to one specific player.
Carr may have only averaged eight points per game last season, but his athleticism and style of play have launched him as a fan favorite, supplying young Spartan fans with basketball memories that they’ll likely cherish for many years.
Jordan Scott first look
Tuesday offered my first look at incoming freshman Jordan Scott, a former four-star recruit, and an intriguing prospect. He’s a six-foot-seven small forward who looks very comfortable on the wing, but his size offers more flexibility to work inside.
He made his Moneyball debut last Thursday, scoring 18 points. All six of his field goals on Thursday were three-pointers. However, I wasn’t able to make it to Holt High School on Thursday, so Tuesday was my first look at Scott.
While he had a quiet night, overall I was impressed with what I saw, and I believe he could be a valuable piece to this Michigan State team, even as a freshman.
He only scored six points, but he wasn’t aggressive offensively, taking a backseat to Spartan teammate Trey Fort, who scored 50. However, when he did look to score, he did so smoothly and effectively. His three field goals came from three different levels. His first was a pull-up jumper that was close to being a three-pointer, but his foot was on the line. Scott quickly followed that up with a driving layup where he easily blew by his defender and took it in for a layup.
His final field goal came in the second half and was a midrange fadeaway he swished after gathering an offensive rebound.
The most impressive aspect to me of Scott’s game was his ability to do the little things. Many freshmen struggle to adjust to college for multiple reasons, one being that they are used to being the guy. They’re used to leading their team in scoring and shot attempts; many need to learn how to play their role.
Scott seems like a player who will be adaptable and able to play whatever role is asked of him this winter. He looked strong defensively, poking away a ball from MSU teammate Jaxon Kohler, blocking shots, and overall just having solid instincts when it came to defense as well as rebounding.
His athleticism and build will certainly offer the potential to be versatile, and if he commits to filling in a need like defense or rebounding, it will be hard for Tom Izzo to keep him off the floor.
Moneyball standings and leaders update
This Thursday marks the last day of the Moneyball regular season, with playoffs to come next week. Here is a quick update on the standings and how Michigan State players are performing.
Michigan State players and their points per game average:
- Coen Carr – 40.0
- Trey Fort – 38.3
- Jaxon Kohler – 30.8
- Jeremy Fears Jr. – 27.6
- Cam Ward – 26.4
- Carson Cooper – 26.3
- Kur Teng – 25.1
- Divine Ugochukwu – 15.8
- Nick Sanders – 13.0
- Jordan Scott – 12.0
- Denham Wojcik – 7.2
Below are the Moneyball Pro Am standings after seven games played, entering the final night of the regular season.
The Moneyball Pro Am continues on Thursday, and its final week is next week with the championship game happening on Thursday, July 31, at Holt High School.