Rocket Watts Commits to Michigan State

College Basketball

Rocket Watts Commits to Michigan State

Mark ‘Rocket’ Watts made an announcement that was music to the ears of Michigan State Spartan fans everywhere. One of the top combo guards in the nation, Rocket Watts chose to call East Lansing, Michigan his new collegiate home. Watts chose the Spartans over four other schools that included Oregon, Florida State, Louisville, and Michigan.

Rocket has already done more than enough to showcase his athletic talent. Watts saw himself on the USA Today’s All-Michigan second team for 2018 high school. Despite this, he has seen his name a total of three times on the All-State first team. Watts has yet to miss a high school game, playing in 69 over his three-year career.

The Stats Don’t Lie

As a freshman Watts was an immediate producer for Allen Academy, leading them to a 19-3 record. He started all 22 games while averaging 14.1 ppg., 3.2 rpg., 2.1 apg., and 2.3 spg. In his sophomore season at Allen Academy, Watts saw his numbers increase by averaging 25.6 ppg., 5.3 rpg., 6.2 apg., and 2.8 spg. At the end of his junior season with Old Redford, Watts’ numbers saw another slight increase when he was averaging 26.8 ppg., 5.6 rpg., 5.4 apg., and 3.1 spg.

Aside from his high school success, Watts has already seen international competition in his young career. Watts won a gold medal during the 2018 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) U18 Championship. In that tournament, Watts saw 6.8 ppg. to go along with 2.5 apg. during a 6-0 gold medal run.

The Michigan State commit shot 60% for 2-point shots over the course of six games, which included a 54.8% success rate from the overall field. Watts was impressive in the possession battle as well, recording over a 30 plus/minus rating in two of the six games. The only game in which Watts saw a minus rating was during their very first game against the Dominican Republic but countered that with two steals.

Spartans Frontcourt

The Michigan State frontcourt continues to impress with the verbal commitment of Watts, as the Spartans now seem set for their near future. Cassius Winston and Joshua Langford are already set to return this season, along with Matt McQuaid. The Spartans will also add top-100 prospect Foster Loyer this season.

With the departures of Winston, Langford, and McQuaid all a very high possibility following this season, the Spartans have one less position to worry about filling.

 

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Photo Credit: Rocket X Watts X jr via Twitter