Mississippi State men’s basketball is gearing up for its fourth season under head coach Chris Jans and has returned for the semester after summer workouts with a few player and staff updates.
A team spokesman confirmed to the Dispatch several staff changes as well as an eligibility update for transfer guard Sergej Macura.
Macura, 21, joined the Bulldogs this summer after playing three years in Europe and has been granted sophomore status with three years of eligibility remaining. The Slovenian national most recently played for KK Mega Bemax in Serbia and represented his country at FIBA international events. He notably averaged 12.6 points and seven assists at the FIBA U19 World Cup in 2023, scoring 19 points against the United States.
On the staff side, two of the biggest changes on staff are in-house moves, with Joe Rogers stepping into the Director of Recruiting role and Danny Manuel promoted to the Director of Men’s Basketball Operations. Rogers is entering his fourth year on Jans’ staff, first joining as the Coordinator of Operations in 2022. Manuel, in his third season on staff, had worked as a graduate assistant for two years before joining the staff full-time this summer.
The team also hired Bryce Gimmarro as an athletic trainer, arriving from St. Bonaventure to join MSU’s Sports Medicine staff. He earned a Doctor of Athletic Training Degree from Florida, where he worked with the tennis, golf and basketball programs.
Finally, the team added Logan Padgett, son of Scott Padgett, as a team fellow. He was previously a graduate manager at Louisville, working in video coordination, skill development and scouting under 2025 ACC Coach of the Year Pat Kelsey. Scott, an eight-year NBA veteran, has been an assistant on Jans’ staff since 2022.
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