Michigan State signee named one of 4 ‘notable’ players on Team USA’s U18 squad

A couple of Michigan State signees made headlines this week, surviving the final USA Men’s Basketball U18 cuts to make the official 12-man roster.

The news was refreshing given that some people had been down on one of the signees this offseason. Both of them made the roster and now make up one-sixth of the team so there’s a god chance that most lineups will feature at least one Spartan, maybe both.

Jasiah Jervis was who everyone expected to make the team but Ethan Taylor showed a ton of growth and he put on a show during tryouts. Both of them will attempt to defend Team USA’s gold medal streak at the FIBA AmeriCup next week. The streak currently sits at seven in a row and two Spartans will now be responsible for making sure that improves to eight straight.

The team is obviously loaded with talent (the staff had to trim 32 down to 19 and then down to 12) and these guys are the best of the best.

Yet one Spartan signee is standing out on the roster as one of the “notable players” on Team USA.

That signee is Jervis.

The five-star incoming freshman was toured as New York’s Gatorade Player of the Year but he had so many impressive accolades that McDonald’s All-American didn’t fit in his description. He’ll be one of the team’s go-to scorers down in Mexico as USA chases another gold.

Jervis is going to be one of the stars of the team and I have a feeling that we’ll see Taylor break out a little bit at the FIBA event. All eyes will be Team USA next week.

Michigan State’s incoming freshman class is scary

On paper, the 2026 class is just one five-star and three four-stars and compared to a program like Duke, that may be just a normal group, but these four players are going to exceed expectations.

For starters, you have Jervis and Taylor who will be representing Team USA and will be showcasing their talents on a world stage next week. They beat out dozens of other top prospects to represent the United States in this event, chasing an eighth straight gold medal. Both of these guys are going to be really good and it appears that Taylor isn’t “a work in progress” as originally depicted.

Carlos Medlock Jr. is the point guard of the future and having him learn for a year as Jeremy Fears’ backup is going to be so beneficial for his growth. He’s already a really impressive top-50 prospect, but having Fears take him under his wing will be the best thing for his career.

Lastly, there’s Julius Avent who’s kind of flying under the radar as a top-80 prospect. He’s a four-star power forward who seems to be the forgotten signee of the class but he has inside-out potential. He’s can space the floor, hit the occasional three from the power forward spot, and he’s skilled on the interior as well. All Tom Izzo is going to ask is that he put on a little muscle. The Saddi Washington school for Spartan bigs will mold him into a really good player.

The 2026 class may just be that missing piece for national title No. 2.

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