MSU's Coen Carr Named to Prestigious National Watch List

The high-flying Carr is being looked at as one of the best small forwards in America.

Michigan State's Coen Carr, left, moves the ball as Purdue's Braden Smith closes in during the first half on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Michigan State's Coen Carr is getting some national attention. On Wednesday, Carr was one of 20 players in the country who were named to the Julius Erving Award Preseason Watch List.

The award goes to the nation's best small forward and is run by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Erving averaged 26.3 points and 20.2 rebounds per game over two seasons at UMass before having a Hall of Fame career in the ABA and NBA, becoming an All-Star in all 16 seasons he played and winning four MVPs.

Carr is one of seven players from the Big Ten who were on the initial list. Last year, the award went to Cooper Flagg of Duke, who went first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft to the Dallas Mavericks.

MSU's and Carr's first official game of the year is on Monday, Nov. 3, against Colgate. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. ET and will be on B1G+.

Why Carr Made the List

Michigan State's Coen Carr (left) listens to instructions from head coach Tom Izzo (right) during an exhibition game against Bowling Green on Oct. 23, 2025. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

During the Spartans' two exhibition games, Carr scored 17 points and blocked five shots against Bowling Green last Thursday and had 11 points at Connecticut on Tuesday. Last year, he averaged 8.1 points and 3.6 rebounds, but is expected to see an uptick in minutes and a larger role in the team's offense this year.

It's becoming clearer that Carr is getting closer to reaching his full potential. He came to Michigan State with plenty of hype because of his insane athleticism, and is really still enjoying some of that hype today.

But Carr is building off the hype and is showing growth. He's not just a one-trick pony that needs a fastbreak, an alley-oop, and a dunk to score points now. Carr absolutely still does that a lot, but he has gotten better in other areas.

One big thing that he has been working on is his three-point shot. It's probably only going to be taken once or twice a game, but Carr becoming a threat on the perimeter could open up so many opportunities. Maybe a defender has to step up, rather than sag off, and that could be enough to allow Carr to go around him and get a shot at the rim.

Michigan State's Coen Carr shoots against Bowling Green during the first half on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

From his freshman year to his sophomore year, Carr's offensive box plus/minus skyrocketed from 0.6 to 4.6. Zero is considered average for BPM.

In layman's terms, that basically means he contributed four more points on offense per 100 possessions as a sophomore than he did as a freshman.

Mar 28, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; Michigan State Spartans forward Coen Carr (55) dunks against Mississippi Rebels forward Malik Dia (0) in the second half of a South Regional semifinal of the 2025 NCAA tournament at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Keep up with all our content when you follow the official Spartan Nation page on Facebook, Spartan Nation, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be sure to share your thoughts on Coen Carr making the Julius Erving Award Watch List when you join our community group, Go Green Go White, WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE. Don't forget to give us a follow on X @MSUSpartansOnSI as well.