As the off-season rolls along in the world of Michigan State Athletics (namely basketball, football, and ice hockey), here at TOC we will be kicking off a series individually previewing each of MSU Basketball’s incoming group of recruits. Head Coach Tom Izzo’s 32nd recruiting class of his Hall of Fame career will play no small role in determining the ceiling of the 2026-27 MSU basketball squad; a team is already facing unprecedented pressure to return to the mountaintop, and finally claim Izzo his elusive
second national championship.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, it’s worth remembering why expectations in East Lansing have reached a feverous level. Never mind that the Final Four will return to the state of Michigan in 2027, or that MSU’s rivals just claimed the 2026 national title. Disregard the fact that the Spartans will return an All-American caliber point guard in Jeremy Fears Jr. and a veteran backcourt. For many State fans, 2027 has long been circled as “the year,” not just for the pieces returning and hopes of claiming a ring in the Motor City, but because of four young men by the names of Jasiah Jervis, Ethan Taylor, Carlos Medlock, and Julius Avent.
This unit of incoming freshman at one time combined to command the number-one position in several college basketball recruiting rankings, and have remained a staple at the tip-top of nearly every site’s list of teams by incoming talent. As of April 22nd, 2026, Michigan State lays claim to the number 3 recruiting class in all of college hoops on 247Sports and ESPN, and the number 7 class according to Rivals (coincidentally, Rivals has just moved to my least favorite of recruiting ranking websites).
Regardless of nominal rankings, it is no secret that Tom Izzo will be bringing in one of the most strong group of recruits in recent memory. From the towering Ethan Taylor, to his teammate and McDonald’s All-American Jasiah Jervis, and fellow future Spartans in Medlock and Avent, the hope is that these big name freshman will be able to help the Spartans reload quickly in 2026-27. Between this group, and ideally some help by way of the transfer portal (check out Robbie’s portal wish list), there is real optimism that this next Spartan team could be the ones to elevate the program from a March Madness staple and second weekend contender to a serious force in the national championship conversation.
Now that the stage is set let’s dive into the first of these four soon-to-be Spartans. Without further adieu, I present to you, Carlos Medlock Jr.
Tale of the Tape
Carlos, or “C.J.” is a 5-foot-11, 165lb four star point guard from Wayne, Michigan. While undersized, Medlock has no shortage of athleticism and explosiveness- but more on that later. Tom Izzo and MSU won his commitment over in state rivals in michigan and Central Michigan; and additionally Iowa and Creighton who were, among others, in the mix for Medlock.
The son of standout Eastern Michigan Eagle from 2005-10, Carlos Medlock Sr., Carlos Jr. spent his first three years of high school ball playing for the Wayne Memorial High School Zebras, where in his junior season, Medlock led WMHS to a second-place finish in the MHSAA’s Division 1 Tournament. C.J. established himself as a high volume, score first PG in 2024-25, averaging an impressive 24.5 points per game in his junior campaign. Thanks to the Zebra’s run to the state title game, Medlock does have familiarity playing high-level hoops in the Breslin Center, as MSU has remained the traditional host for the boys basketball state finals in Michigan. CMJ put up a ridiculous stat-line of 29 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists in the state semifinal against Flint Carman-Ainsworth, along with a team-leading performance of 14 points against East Lansing in the low-scoring championship bout that would ultimately bring Medlock’s MHSAA career to an end.
Medlock’s Senior Season
Rather than seek revenge for the title game loss in his senior season, Medlock would leave the state of Michigan to play his final year of high school ball (2025-26) for nationally ranked Link Academy, located in Branson, Missouri. For some background on Link (where Medlock teamed up with fellow future Spartan, Ethan Taylor), the program is relatively young, bursting onto the prep basketball scene in 2021. Since then, the Link Lions have quickly become a factory for Division I talent, playing a grueling travel schedule, on par with prep schools like IMG and Montverde Academies.
By trading the familiar gyms of the Kensington Lakes Activities Association (Medlock’s conference at Wayne Memorial) for the cutthroat competition of the Nike EYBL Scholastic circuit that Link competes in, Medlock bet on himself to improve his recruiting profile at the national level against the country’s best. The transfer proved to be a great decision for the young point guard, as C.J. rose from a regional standout to a top-50 recruit in the nation in his time at Link Academy.
Over the course of his single season in Missouri, Medlock led his team of nearly all blue-chip talent in not only points per game at 16.9, but also in 3-point field goal percentage at 44%. His time at Link established C.J. as a player who didn’t just demand the ball and heavy usage to produce results, but maximized every possession, and proved his efficiency in a pro-style system, surrounded by high major teammates. For more on CMJ’s stats at Link- here is the Nike EYBL’s official compilation of team stats for the 2025-26 Lions.
Official Recruiting Profiles
What do the recruiting experts of the world have to say about our very own Carlos Medlock?
As far as rankings go, Carlos is a four-star prospect across the board, and most of the major sites are relatively in agreement with where he stacks up amongst his class. Rivals has our guy as the 52nd-best player in the nation, and ninth best point guard. 247 Sports sees Medlock as the 46th or 47th-best player nationally and fifth best point man, and ESPN similarly has CMJ at 47th overall, but as the 10th best PG.
Those are just numbers. 247’s director of scouting, Adam Finkelstein, has called Medlock extremely talented and creative with the ball, in a way that makes up for his lack of size at the PG spot. He continues- “He has total command of his handle, can play at full speed with complete control, and can breakdown defenders almost at will. He’s got an assortment of acrobatic lay-ups and clever tricks in the paint, but can also rise-up and dunk on unsuspecting defenders. When the game slows down, he’s still almost impossible to corral as he’ll split ball-screens and create space for tough pull-ups or step-backs off the dribble.”
The rest of evaluation sites agree- C.J. Medlock Jr. is an offensive-minded, scoring threat at the point guard spot. However, how does he fare on the other end of the floor? As we Spartan fans know, it is often the defense of young players that earnsthem a spot in Coach Izzo’s rotation.
“He’s got the speed and quickness to be a pest,” Finkelstein continues, “He can get underneath opposing ball-handlers and create a lot of pressure (1.9 steals), but his size will become more of a limitation as he moves up in level, both from the standpoint of being less switchable and less able to disrupt bigger guards once they’re able to get to their spots.”
Breaking Down the Highlight Reel
Now, to the moment you’ve all been waiting for, let’s review some of Medlock’s game tape. A big shout out to the MSU Hoops Youtube channel for cutting together some clips of Carlos during his AAU ball days prior to the 25-26 season.
Below is a series of Medlock driving and finishing in the paint, often amongst the trees. As size is one of the most mentioned concerns with CMJ, it is beyond reassuring to see that the fiery guard has a deep package of layups, floaters, and leaners that he can create space for and finish athletically.
Another thing to point out in these videos is C.J’s ability to handle the basketball, push the pace, and oftentimes split more than one defender. The shades of a crafty scorer definitely shine through.
Our next series of highlights showcases Medlock’s shooting ability from deep. As mentioned earlier, he knocked down nearly 45% of his long balls at Link Academy. However, as this next stretch of clips shows, they were likely not all because CMJ got easy, clean looks from three. He has a great ability to generate his own rhythm and drain often difficult off-the-dribble threes.
It has been a while since we have seen a sharpshooting point guard who not only can create his own shot, but looks to let it fly when he gets any amount of space. I’m sensing some shades of Tyson (sky)Walker in the young padawan, Medlock.
Now, for some video from Medlock’s most recent season at Link Academy. This next play showcases once again his ability to find a step in, off-the-dribble three, this time off of a high dribble hand-off or ballscreen from a big man. These late shotclock two man playcalls are a staple in MSU Basketball, and once again this style of nearly running into a pull-up three point jumper calls to mind former Spartan star, Tyson Walker.
Speaking of playing the two-man game, our next highlight shows Medlock Jr. turn down a ballscreen in favor of a sweet behind-the-back move, and finish high off the glass, through contact, over a higher defender. Playing in the Big Ten at 5’11, Carlos will certainly have to develop a quality floater game in order to get mid range shots off without being blocked by larger defenders switching on. This play flashes that ability, and shows Izzo and Co. that their newest PG is not someone who shies away from contact.
This next play might be my favorite of the bunch, as Medlock uses his speed to run the fast break, and since no one stops the ball, takes it coast to coast for the lay-in. If CMJ can play with this blazing speed, pushing the pace while remaining under control, he will fit right into the point guard role in Izzo’s system.
Takeaways & The Fit
My biggest takeaways from these Medlock highlights and watching quite a few Youtube re-runs of Link Academy games this season are similar to what a lot of the media around the point guard have had to say.
- C.J. excels as a slashing guard, especially when driving downhill with a full head of steam.
- He can seemingly always create his own shot, from step-back threes to midrange fadeaways, C.J. can change directions and get a shot off in a moment’s notice
- He has shown flashes of a very wide range of finishes around the rim, but his need for crafty, off-balance bank shots and floaters will only increase in the Big Ten
- Due to his habit of extremely hard downhill drives, he can have a tendency to be off balance when kicking out passes to outside shooters or feeding bigs; not always hitting his teammates in the chest. On an MSU team with proficient shooters like Kur Teng, Kaleb Glenn, Divine Ugochukwu, and fellow freshman Jasiah Jervis on the outside, Medlock will need to work on this aspect
- Defensively, C.J. is fearless, and loves to poke the ball out to attempt to create turnovers and fast breaks. However, he can sometimes get caught being too aggressive and called for fouls or burnt inside.
Now, how will Medlock fit into his new digs in East Lansing come this school year? As far as culture goes, C.J. jumps off the screen in every game I have seen him play as the heart and soul of his squad. He should have no issue fitting the bill as a Michigan State point guard: an emotional, competitive, and driven leader who wants to win more than anything. Additionally, whether due to his size or personality, CMJ is not afraid to play scrappy on both ends of the court, and has shown no hesitation to get dirty and rebound with opponents much larger than himself. Long story short, I can see why Izzo and staff considered him enough of an OKG (Our Kinda Guy) to extend the offer and fight for the commitment of this young ball-handler from Wayne.
It’s no secret that Medlock will be entering a point guard room where he will have to wait his turn. With the one and only Jeremy Fears Jr. likely to return from testing the NBA Draft waters (knocks on every piece of wood nearby) and headline the team, it will could very well be at least a season before CMJ is able to crack the starting lineup. However, with Wednesday’s announcement that sophomore PG/SG Divine Ugochukwu will be entering the transfer portal, the path has gotten a bit clearer for Medlock Jr.
With Divine no longer on the squad, Carlos will more than likely slide into a role as the team’s second primary ball-handler, giving Fears rest whenever needed, and offering high energy and offensive ability off the bench. The ability to adapt to the speed of the college game, and learn from none other than All-Big Ten First Team PG in Jeremy Fears will serve the young floor general well. From taking in everything from MSU Basketball’s culture and standards to developing a better passing game, 26-27 will give Medlock every opportunity he needs to build towards a successful career in the green and white.
The promise is there with C.J. Medlock, but it will be up to the staff and the young man himself to determine how high his ceiling might rise. In year one, expect Medlock to see a larger role than previously thought of before the Ugochukwu departure. He will provide not only time for Fears to catch his breath, but a unique skillset different than Jeremy’s, more centered around scoring first. Defensively, Medlock is the type of player I can certainly see getting the green light from Tom Izzo to pick up other team’s point guards from well beyond the midline, applying full court pressure when needed.
So Spartan fans of TOC Nation, how do you see Medlock fitting into the squad? Do you agree with my Tyson Walker player comparison, or do you see someone else in the young C.J.? What takeaways have you gathered from our featured highlights and your own research? Let myself and the rest of our staff know down in the comments below! Let’s hope Mr. Medlock is next up in the long and illustrious line of Michigan State point guards, and Go Green!
