2025 small forward Cameren Paul breaks down Mississippi State decision

Since the middle of his junior season, 2025 small forward and On3 three-star prospect Cameren Paul has been a top priority for Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans and his staff. With each passing month in the spring and summer, the South Grand Prairie (Texas) High School standout became more and more intrigued about the Bulldogs’ program.

So on Wednesday afternoon, the 6-foot-6 and 180-pound Paul followed his feeling about State’s program and committed to the Bulldogs. Paul also holds offers from Oklahoma, LSU, Ole Miss, Washington, Wake Forest, SMU and California among several others. He is rated as the nation’s No. 28 small forward and the state’s No. 11 prospect by On3 rankings.

With Paul’s decision, he becomes State’s second commitment in the Class of 2025, joining On3 three-star center Chol Machot of Florida Southwestern College. Last month the Bulldogs also added their first 2026 commitment in On3 composite four-star power forward Ladarius Givan.

“I like their whole program,” Paul remarked. “I like their brotherhood. Coach Jans and Coach (Dave) Anwar have been recruiting me for awhile. So I felt like it was the right decision for me.”

Paul got his first in-person look at Mississippi State’s program during the spring period with an unofficial visit. That visit remained on his mind and eventually led to Wednesday’s decision.

“When I unofficially visited Mississippi State in the spring, I had a good feeling then,” added Paul. “On that visit I felt like I was already at home. I also like the football team there. I like the crowd and the fans, and I just like their athletic teams, in general.”

Another factor driving Paul’s decision was Jans’ coaching style and resume. He’s noticed how Jans gets the most out of his players through his coaching methods and Paul wanted to join that type of program.

“What I really like about Coach Jans is that he’s always going to push his players,” Paul explained. “He wants to push everyone to the point to where they are great. He knows everyone has talent but he’s going to push you to where you’re uncomfortable and to the point you can reach the next level. They like my ability to score the ball, too. They also like how I’m always in attack mode.”

And adding to State’s offensive firepower is something Paul expects to elevate the program even more under Jans. The past two seasons, Jans and the Bulldogs have been defensive-led on the court. But entering this season and in the future, the Bulldogs are also adding needed offensive pieces to encounter more success.

“I think they did pretty well last year under Coach Jans and it’s just getting better,” noted Paul. “The thing they struggled with last year was on the offensive end. They had a good defense and they were big and strong. But when they get more offensive talent, they’re going to be way better than they were last year.”

Overall, Paul had several Power 5 opportunities on the table. But at the end of the day, it came down to how consistent Jans and Anwar were with his recruiting process. During his time on the summer circuit, Paul always saw those familiar faces on the sidelines watching his games. And that attention from Mississippi State hit home with Paul.

“It came down to Mississippi State, Washington, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt and SMU,” mentioned Paul. “But with Mississippi State, the biggest thing was being with coaches that actually cared for me and wanted me the most. When I had my tournaments, Coach Jans was at all of my games and Coach Anwar was there. They were always looking for certain players and Coach Jans and Coach Anwar were always there at my games. So that stuck with me.”