Recruiting roundup: Saginaw Heritage 2019 Moira Joiner picks MSU
If there’s ever a player who fits under the category of “way better than her stats would indicate,” it’s Saginaw Heritage’s Moira Joiner.
A star (or at least a star in the making) since she joined the varsity as a freshman, it’s not like Joiner, who averaged 16 points, eight rebounds, six assists and four steals as a junior in the 2017-18 season, has poor stats, but they hardly tell the full story of her impact.
Not only does she make every teammate on the floor better, but she’s a very good defender who routinely draws the task of guarding the opposition’s best player.
Joiner was a large part of the reason Heritage outscored its opponents by an average of nearly 30 points per game in the postseason, en route to the Class A title.
“She’s never going to have the mind-boggling stats other players have because we have too many good players that share the ball,” Heritage coach Vonnie DeLong told MLive. “But she is a great defensive player and extremely versatile.
“I can put her inside. She can run the point. She can play the post. She can defend any position on the court. At 5-foot-9, what she gives us is invaluable.”
That value earned her Class A Player of the Year honors from The Associated Press this past season, but her play on the floor for years has long had the attention of coaches and recruiters.
Among the many scholarship offers, she’s now picked one, committing to Michigan State University over the weekend.
“Truly blessed to announce my commitment to Michigan State!! Thank you to everyone that has helped me make my dream a reality, especially all who have coached me along the way,” Joiner tweeted out Saturday evening. “I’m extremely excited and happy to be joining MSU women’s basketball.”
Joiner, who plays for the Michigan Storm Elite in the AAU season, is probably best described as a point guard, but she can also play shooting guard or forward. Her versatility is one of her trademark qualities.
“She’s definitely a talented floor leader, and she’s so versatile (offensively),” DeLong, the AP Class A Coach of the Year, was quoted in the all-state story. “That’s probably her strongest asset — she can play any position on the floor and has.
“And defensively, she always draws the other team’s best player and manages to do an excellent job. … She gets beat up a lot. People get pretty physical with her. But she’s in excellent physical condition, which helps her game greatly.”