STARKVILLE — Starkville High School forward Gavin Ware finalized his destination of choice Wednesday when he signed a National Letter-of-Intent to play basketball for Mississippi State.
“It’s a big step forward that gets me closer to my future and where I want to be in life,” Ware said. “It’s close to home and gives me endless opportunities to be somebody.”
Ware, a four-star center prospect according to Internet recruiting services, signed his letter in front of a gathering at the Starkville High library.
“As far as decommiting I was never going to do that because I felt strongly about my decision,” Ware said.
The NCAA’s early signing period for every sport except football began Wednesday.
Ware averaged 19 points, 10.5 rebounds, and five blocked shots as a junior at Starkville, but his missed the Yellow Jackets’ run to the Class 6A state semifinals in Jackson after injuring his knee earlier in the playoffs. The 6-foot-8 front-court player has fully recovered from the injury, and averaged 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in victories against West Point and Meridian to open the 2011-12 season.
Starkville High coach Greg Carter played basketball at MSU from 1988-91 for coach Richard Williams.
“He’s been on the AAU circuit since about seventh grade, so I knew before I got him he would end up being a Division I prospect,” Carter said. “He just keeps getting better and better. I think he’ll improve this year before he heads to Mississippi State.”
Ware, who visited MSU a week before he gave a verbal commitment in late June, said he plans to major in criminology at the school.
“He’s got to learn the college game because it’s going to get a little more physical and going to be a little faster,” said Carter, who also was an assistant coach at MSU. “I don’t think he felt pressure to sign with them or will feel it playing for them. He’s just not that type of kid.”
Ware had scholarship offers from the University of Alabama, Georgetown and Missouri.
MSU men’s basketball coach Rick Stansbury was unable to comment Wednesday on the signing because he hadn’t received Ware’s paperwork and MSU’s compliance office hadn’t cleared Ware.
MSU has recruited Ware since eighth grade. He impressed coaches after his freshman year when he dropped 40 pounds to get down to 247 pounds. Former MSU assistant Robert Kirby was deeply involved in Ware’s early recruiting when he as an assistant at MSU, and he continued that relationship when he moved to John Thompson III’s staff at Georgetown.
Ware is rated as the 99th-best prospect in the country, according to Rivals.com. He reportedly joined three-star guard Fred Thomas, of Jim
Hill High School in Jackson, by signing to MSU’s 2012 recruiting class.
MSU also has verbal commitments from two other Class of 2012 prospects — four-star guard Josh Gray, of Houston, and two-star guard Craig Sword, of Montgomery, Ala.
“I have a big frame, and I can be the big guy and we could do some good things,” Ware said. “I want to give the team that big presence in the post and defend and rebound.”
Kemper County forward Devonta Pollard, the state’s best recruit and the No. 9 prospect in the country according to Rivals.com, will continue the recruiting process beyond the beginning of the early
signing period. He has narrowed his college choices to MSU, Kentucky, Duke, Alabama, Georgetown, and Ole Miss.
Ware, who is a close friend of Pollard (they also play on the same Amateur Athletic Union team) said Wednesday he will continue to recruit Pollard to join him in Starkville next fall.
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