Three-Point Play: Emoni Bates and Michigan State
Michigan State, Tom Izzo and the Spartans fanbase received huge news on Monday when high school basketball's best player, rising junior Emoni Bates, committed.
After spending his first two years at Ypsilanti (Mich.) Lincoln, the 6-foot-8 Bates will now play for Ypsi Prep Academy, a new program/school being started by his father Elgin Bates.
Today in Three-Point Play, a look at the value of Bates' commitment, the odds he ever plays at Michigan State and what kind of impact he could have if he does end up playing college ball.
More: No. 1 Emoni Bates commits to Michigan State
2020 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Position
2022 Rankings: Top 75
THE VALUE OF BATES' COMMITMENT
It's not every day that you get a commitment from the best prospect in all of high school basketball. Most programs and coaches will never know the feeling. Given what Tom Izzo has built at Michigan State and the program's status as one of the best in college basketball, they were going to be in great position whether they landed Bates or not.
However, even if Bates never steps foot on campus, there is tremendous value in landing a verbal commitment from a player of his caliber.
We are talking about a kid who is considered to be perhaps the most talented high school prospect in nearly 20 years. Now each and every time his name is brought up, Michigan State will be brought up as well. There's a lot of power in that type of advertising for your program.
Izzo and the Spartans haven't exactly struggled in the recruiting department and they have been particularly strong in state. Holding a commitment from Bates doesn't do anything but help.
Bottom line, the Spartans didn't have to land Bates to build their brand or become a big name with recruits. They've already done that. But, having their name attached to a talent like Bates from here on out is only going to boost their status in the recruiting world. This is great marketing for everybody involved.
THE ODDS BATES EVER PLAYS AT MICHIGAN STATE
Now comes the tricky part. Will Bates ever play a game in a Spartans uniform and if he does, when will he do it?
One thing that is in Michigan State's favor is that the NBA doesn't appear to be in any hurry to eliminate the one-and-done rule. It is hoping that its G League pathway program will be a nice way to keep prospects who don't want to go to college from heading overseas while also making it so they still get that year after high school to scout players before drafting them.
Bates is so popular and well known that with Name, Image and Likeness becoming a thing in the near future that the G League and overseas may not be able to compete with the type of money he could get and brand-building he could do during a season at Michigan State.
Also considered to be on the table is accelerating his academic progress, graduating in 2021 and then doing a prep year in 2022 before entering the NBA Draft. However, Draft rules require a player to be a year removed from graduating and to at least turn 19 during the year he he wants to enter the Draft. Is there some type of workaround to this or has the rule been poorly explained?
I suspect most understand why Bates may never touch a college court and from what I can tell, most Spartans fans will be pleasantly surprised if they ever get to see Bates in the green and white. I think it's a bit of a longshot that he plays college basketball, but I don't think it's an impossibility. I'd bet there's at least a 25% chance that he plays college ball and I'd take that in a second if I was involved with the Spartans program.
THE IMPACT BATES COULD MAKE
I have written multiple times that Bates is the best prospect I have ever scouted through his first two years (I never saw LeBron James play in person during his high school years) of high school basketball. The way he shoots the ball, his fluidity as an athlete, his ball handling, his rebounding and his overall feel for the game at 6-foot-8 and just 16-years-old are astounding to me.
If you have read my work in the past, you also know that I tend to try not to place too lofty of expectations on college freshmen. However, when it comes to Bates, I'd be all in on naming him as a favorite for National Player of the Year, All-American and all of that. Michigan State is going to have good players in place, looks to be on their way to landing an excellent 2021 class and if Bates goes there, it's not out of the realm of possibility that the Spartans could be considered preseason Final Four favorites or the outright pick to win it all. He's that good.
The two best examples of one-and-done success from individual and team standpoints are Anthony Davis and Carmelo Anthony. Assuming Bates continues to develop at the rate that he already has, I don't see why he couldn't be the next version of one of those guys. The types of numbers that Kevin Durant, Michael Beasley or Ben Simmons put up during their lone seasons in college, those things are all very real possibilities if Bates ever sees a college floor.