Former Cal State Bakersfield and Oxford native Jarkel Joiner to join Ole Miss basketball program

Former Oxford Charger and one of the nation’s leading scorers in the 2017 class has left the Cal State Bakersfield basketball program and will return home to play for your Ole Miss Rebels in 2019-2020.

The Oxford, Miss. native announced his intentions to join Kermit Davis’ program on Twitter.com but as of now it is unclear in what capacity he will be joining the team in since they have one scholarship remaining for the 2019 class and the general consensus is that is being reserved for four-star power forward Khadim Sy.

Nevertheless, this is a huge get for Davis and his staff, securing a “commitment” from a point guard who has Division 1 experience and a legitimate scorer. The 6’1, 170-pounder scored 15.6 points per game last season for the Roadrunners, shooting 45% from the field and 37% from three-point range. And not only can he fill it up, but he is capable of providing a ton of minutes, playing 32.2 per game last year for former Ole Miss coach, Rod Barnes.

Hopping in the Red Cup Delorean, we remember when Joiner was a national phenomenon as a senior at Oxford. Before signing with CSB, he was fourth in the nation in scoring, averaging 36.5(!) points per game for the Chargers. He was undoubtedly a key cog in them making a run to the state semifinals, en route to being named the 2017 Mississippi Boy’s Basketball Player of the Year by The Daily Journal. After his senior season concluded, he played for Team Penny and now Memphis head coach Penny Hardaway.

He was very lightly-recruited coming out of Oxford as a zero-star recruit and despite interest from Florida, Georgetown, Iowa State, and Ole Miss, he only had scholarship offers from the Roadrunners and UTEP.

The WAC first-team selection is an explosive athlete with elite bunnies and a quick trigger jump shot that will be a nice change of pace off the bench in the Kermit Davis offense. He will remind Ole Miss fans a bit of former Rebel Stefan Moody with his pure shot, first step off the dribble, vertical leap, and volume-scoring mentality.

Per Nathanael Gabler of the Oxford Eagle, the newest Rebel won’t be eligible immediately.

The sophomore will have to sit out a year due to transfer requirements, but will be in line to play in 2020 as a redshirt junior. The timing lines up well with when current Ole Miss guard Breein Tyree will likely be graduating.

He will be a tremendous piece off the bench now and can be asked to provide in a number of ways when the team is not shooting it well or needs to get out in transition and get a bucket. All in all, it will be great to bring back one of the best Mississippi players in high school basketball history back to Oxford for two years of eligibility.