Jimmy Bell, Jr. Commits to Play for the Mountaineers

Morgantown, West Virginia – As reported earlier by The Voice of Morgantown, Jimmy Bell, Jr., a 6’10 280 pound forward/center out of Saginaw, Michigan, was on campus at West Virginia University over the weekend, taking in the facilities, meeting with players and coaches and learning more about the basketball program.

Bell, who averaged 9.3 points and 9.1 rebounds per game for junior college Moberly last season, impressed Bob Huggins and his coaching staff enough that they recently offered a scholarship to play for West Virginia.

Today, on the anniversary of the death of his father, Jimmy Bell, Sr., he committed to play for the Mountaineers.

Before playing at Moberly, Bell played at Saint Louis as a freshman and sophomore, where he averaged 3.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Although his numbers are less than spectacular, Huggins believes Bell is a player that he can mold into a powerful Big 12 interior player.

Bell also held offers from East Tennessee State, Oakland and Sam Houston State.

While it’s important for Huggins to add size to his roster, Bell is a curious addition to the team. West Virginia needs a player who can step in and contribute offensively tomorrow, not a project.

Remember, Huggins whiffed on the two interior projects he signed last season, Pauly Paulicap and Dimon Carrigan, who added very little to the team offensively. With only James Okonkwo returning and junior college forward Mohamed Wague joining the team, Bell will likely be forced to play an important role for the Mountaineers next season.

Bell has two full years of eligibility remaining and he will be expected to either start or provide depth at the center position for the Mountaineers next season.

West Virginia’s 2022-2023 roster now looks like this with one open scholarship remaining:

Kedrian Johnson, guard

Kobe Johnson, guard

Jamel King, forward

James Okonkwo, forward

Seth Wilson, guard

Josiah Harris, forward

Josiah Davis, guard

Pat Suemnick, forward

Mohamed Wague, forward/center

Joe Toussaint, guard

Erik Stevenson, guard

Jimmy Ball, Jr., center