STARKVILLE — For the better part of the past four years, five-star guard Malik Newman, the state of Mississippi’s highest-ranked basketball prospect in more than a decade, has heard recruiting pitches from countless major college basketball programs.
It took new Mississippi State men’s basketball coach Ben Howland less than a month to make him a Bulldog.
That became official Friday, when Newman gave a verbal commitment to Howland. Four hours later, the 6-foot-3, 175-pound guard from Jackson Callaway High School signed scholarship papers with MSU.
So how did Howland, who was hired March 23, seal the deal with Newman, a McDonald’s All-American who was pursued by national powers like Kentucky and Kansas? Newman bought into Howland’s plans for his future and for MSU.
“I’d say the hiring of coach Howland put Mississippi State over the top,” Newman said. “He has won everywhere he’s been and he’s had a lot of NBA players, and I think we are going to have a good team.”
Standing a few feet away from his son when he made the announcement, former MSU standout Horatio Webster watched Newman’s recruitment closer than anyone. He said he noticed a dramatic shift toward MSU when Howland came aboard.
“I think when coach Howland got the job, it all changed,” Webster said. “He made a strong push. He came in, laid out his plan, what he had in mind for Malik, and Malik bought it.”
Howland coached 18 future NBA players in 10 seasons at UCLA. He also led the Bruins to three-consecutive trips to the Final Four (2006-08), seven NCAA tournament appearances, and four Pacific-10 regular-season championships (2006, 07, 08, 13). To replicate that success in Starkville, where he assumes control of a team that won 37 games in three seasons under coach Rick Ray, Howland admitted during his introductory press conference that “the key is going out and recruiting the best players in this state, and in the South.”
That process started with Newman, a five-star prospect who is the nation’s No. 1-ranked shooting guard, according to all three major recruiting services
It also started with Howland’s plan for Newman, who played shooting guard in high school and averaged 29.7 points per game as a senior. At the next level, though, Howland sees Newman playing point guard.
“I think he has the tools to be a very good point guard in the NBA,” Howland said. “He’s a very good passer. He’s great in transition pushing the ball. Even in the McDonald’s (All-American) game, he didn’t shoot, but he had five assists. He plays well with other good players. He’s unselfish.”
Newman and Webster liked Howland’s vision of Newman becoming MSU’s next point guard.
“Coach said he’s going to put the ball in his hands, said he’s going to teach him how to play the game,” Webster said. “Malik knows he has a lot to learn. (Howland) has 18 pros that have been under his wing. What a blessing to have a coach of that caliber here in the state and to be able to keep a player like Malik here in the state.”
At UCLA, Howland produced multiple point guards who landed starting roles in the NBA. Russell Westbrook and Darren Collison blossomed under Howland, which wasn’t lost on Newman.
“He has done it before,” Newman said. “I think I can raise the level of everyone’s play like those guys have.”
Newman’s potential move to the point makes sense to others.
“I see him being very good at point guard,” said Jerry Meyer, national director of scouting for 247sports.com. “He did that primarily for USA Basketball and the junior team. He is such a great overall player. On top of his offense, he defends and rebounds and does everything.”
‘We have a good team’
Newman admitted it was hard to watch MSU go 13-19 (6-12 Southeastern Conference) this past season. He said he saw a team that was “missing one piece. I think I can go in there and really provide a spark, and I think we have a really good team.”
MSU averaged 61.8 ppg. as a team, which was 13th in the 14-team SEC. Four starters are expected to return for the 2015-16 season, including Craig Sword, the team’s leading scorer at 11.3 ppg. Sword averaged 14.4 ppg. in the SEC.
Later this year, MSU fans could see Sword at shooting guard and Newman at the point.
“I think it will be a headache game-planning for both of us, especially both of us at the same time,” Newman said of Sword. “He’s a great scorer. He likes to get to the rim, and toward the end of the year, his jump shot was looking better. I think if he can create space for me and I can create space for him, that will be a hard thing to stop.”
In addition to Sword, MSU is expected to return four players who averaged at least eight points per game. The Bulldogs also will add Quinndary Weatherspoon, a 6-4 guard from Velma Jackson High. Weatherspoon was the No. 2 prospect in the state.
“He’s going to be a great player,” Newman said. “I think we can go make a difference together.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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