Moneyball Memo: Catching up with MSU's Carr, Kohler, Ward, and Ugochukwu
A classic staple of summer in mid-Michigan for the past 20 years, the Moneyball ProAm began once again on Tuesday night. Michigan State men’s basketball players were divvied up amongst the teams and faced off against each other in all three games.
Following their time on the court, a few of the players stuck around to watch their teammates and give a few comments to media in attendance.
Coen Carr competed with newcomer Cam Ward in the second matchup of the night. The two were seen laughing and dancing together before the start of their game, and, notably, Ward was seen taking direction from Carr throughout.
Afterwards, Carr shared that he feels the new additions to their team, Ward included, are all finding their spots on the team and have already been improving.
“All the guys are coming along great, I feel like we are building chemistry already,” shared Carr.
Carr said his goal for the summer is to show-off the outside shooting skills he has been working on.
“I know I can shoot, just gonna go out there and show it,” stated Carr. “I know I can handle the ball, make some plays for my teammates.”
Ward mentioned that this transition to college ball has been a big one for him. Something that has helped along the way has been his relationship with another new player to the roster, Jordan Scott. Scott was seen sitting on the bench for the first night of Moneyball with a lower leg sleeve on.
“I’ve known Jordan [Scott] since I was nine years old,” said Ward. “We’ve been playing together since we were nine. His mom and my mom are good friends now.”
“Its definitely been an adjustment,” reflected Ward. “Trying to learn the terminology, learn all the plays, all the directions, calls. My teammates make it really easy, talking to Jax [Kohler] talking to [Carson] Coop. More so the guys that play the four and the three, Coen [Carr], Trey [Fort]. Those guys have been helping me get accustomed to how Izzo wants this ship ran.”
In this offseason Ward said that he has been focusing on his body and has gained about five pounds. The coaching staff has been directing him in the weight room to get himself ready for the season.
Jaxon Kohler, a veteran of Moneyball, found himself on the opposite side of the court from Carr and Ward. Following his game, Kohler shared that his goals for Moneyball were simple.
“For right now, my biggest goal is conditioning,” said Kohler. “Making sure that I am in good shape to run up and down a whole game without getting tired, without getting subbed.”
Kohler is also looking ahead to improving his defensive skills. Based on his comments it seemed as though Kohler has already prioritized his goals for the season: starting with the basics, working on his defense, and then adding any new offensive skills he can.
Paired alongside Kohler was MSU transfer Divine Ugochukwu, who could be seen taking direction from Kohler throughout the game, something that would be expected from such a pairing.
“So this is my first time playing in Moneyball,” said Ugochukwu. “All the support from Michigan State fans, coming and playing against some of my teammates, and playing against other people from Michigan was a really cool, really fun experience.”
Similar to Ward, Ugochukwu shared that coming to Michigan State was a big culture change for him. Ugochukwu mentioned the family atmosphere that the team has fostered as a positive point during this transition.
Moneyball will be back in action on June 25th at Holt High School. Spartans Illustrated will have continued coverage of this ProAm event throughout the summer.
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