SPORTS

No. 1 basketball recruit Josh Jackson picks Kansas over MSU, Arizona

Jackson is considered the No. 1 prospect for the 2017 NBA draft

Chris Solari
Lansing State Journal
Josh Jackson competes in the slam dunk contest during the McDonald's All-American Jam Fest on March 28, 2016, in Chicago.

Josh Jackson won’t be coming home.

The Detroit native — and one of the best high school seniors in the nation — announced Monday night via Twitter that he will continue his basketball career at Kansas, choosing the Jayhawks over Michigan State and Arizona.

“There’s always an element of surprise on this one when there’s been no leaks from Jackson’s family and inner circle,” said Eric Bossi, national basketball analyst for Rivals.com. “But I think there’s certainly been a growing sentiment for the last week or two weeks that Kansas was going to be the team to beat when it came down to decision day.”

Jackson, a 6-foot-7, 195-pound swingman and McDonald’s All-America, can sign his letter of intent this week. The late signing period begins Wednesday and runs through May 18.

A five-star recruit, Jackson is ranked the No.1 recruit in the 2016 class by Rivals.com, No.2 by Scout.com and No.3 by ESPN.com. The 19-year-old averaged averaged 26.9 points, 13.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game this winter for Prolific Prep in Napa, Calif. Jackson was co-MVP of the McDonald’s All-American Game last month in Chicago and played in the Nike Hoops Summit for Team USA on Saturday in Portland, Ore.

MSU’s 2016 class already has four signees, all of whom are ranked in ESPN’s top 40: swingman Miles Bridges (ranked No.6 overall), shooting guard Josh Langford (No.14) from Alabama, point guard Cassius Winston (No.30) and forward Nick Ward (No.39) from Ohio. Bridges and Langford were McDonald’s All-American with Jackson.

“Josh Jackson obviously is somebody that any school in the country wants and would never turn down,” Bossi said. “But the Michigan State class wasn’t dependent on Josh Jackson to be a success — it was already a resounding success.”

Couch: Minus Josh Jackson, MSU's recruiting class Tom Izzo's best

Flint native Bridges and Detroit native Winston are close friends of Jackson’s and attempted to get him to join them as Spartans during his official visit to Breslin Center on March 5 for MSU’s Senior Day game against Ohio State.

Jackson attended Detroit Consortium High for his first two high school seasons and led it to a Class C state title in 2014 before going the prep school route.

His mother, Apples Jones, told Rivals.com she felt Kansas “cared about him more as a person than as a basketball player.”

“For myself my goal was to find out which schools had his best interest and all I wanted to do was report back to Josh on what I found,” Jones said. “When I say best interest I’m talking for the long haul and as a person and not just a basketball player. He’s invested a lot in his future success and I've invested a lot in his future and we wanted him to go somewhere that he felt he could continue on that road.

“(Kansas) had the plan and roadmap and they laid it out for me. I could see the future they had planned for Josh from his freshman year to his senior year.”

McCabe: What if Josh Jackson had stayed in state?

For the Spartans, now the focus turns to forward Deyonta Davis, who is deciding whether to enter the NBA draft or return to MSU for his sophomore season. Some mock drafts put Davis as a potential lottery pick after he started 16 of 35 games this season and averaged 7.5 points and 5.5 rebounds as a freshman.

“Josh Jackson’s impact is huge,” Bossi said. “But one could argue maybe that the decision of Deyonta Davis could have more impact on Michigan State’s immediate future than Josh’s might have.”

The pending transfers of sophomores Javon Bess and Marvin Clark Jr. leave Izzo with one scholarship left (walk-on Kenny Goins likely will get the other). The Spartans could use it to go after an uncommitted high school player or turn toward a graduate transfer who’d be eligible immediately, as Izzo did when he landed Brandon Wood from Valparaiso before the 2011-12 season.

“A fifth-year transfer guy that fits for them would be a more likely route for them to go right now if they want to use that extra scholarship,” Bossi said. “It’s what everyone’s doing right now, and it’s a nice way to solve a scholarship problem for one year. The thing with trying to go and find a (high school) guy right now is, more than likely, anyone they grab at this point will be a borderline prospect.”

Here's a Free Press Q&A with Jackson from late March:

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