Just In: The Pirates Add a Class of 2024 Big To The Commitment List For The Coming Season.

ECU adds forward Reid Cason to incoming recruiting class

East Carolina has secured another commitment for the upcoming season, adding 6-foot-10, 215-pound forward Reid Cason from Kingston High School in Oklahoma to its recruiting class.

Cason recently made an official visit to East Carolina and chose to join the Pirates over offers from Portland, Penn, Air Force, and Army. He visited each of these schools before ultimately committing to head coach Michael Schwartz and his staff.

Originally a 2024 recruit, the Oklahoma native reclassified to 2025 upon enrolling at PHH Prep in Phoenix, Arizona. However, with the opportunity presented by East Carolina, Cason decided to enroll for the coming season. He is expected to be the 13th and final scholarship player for the Pirates ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

“The biggest factors in my decision to come to school here were the staff and the community,” Cason said. “When I went on my visit, the moment we drove into Greenville, I could immediately feel that the city cared about and loved ECU. The random conversations I had with strangers, whether at a gas station or the airport, all talked about how great it was here and how much they liked ECU. ECU basketball also has, hands down, the most dedicated coaching staff I have ever had the chance to talk to. Coach Schwartz was super involved in my recruitment, which hadn’t been the case with any of the other schools I had talked to previously. The players were also very welcoming and really made me feel like ECU was home.”

Cason was a highly productive player as a senior for Kingston, averaging a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds per game. Most of his high school highlights show him dominating in the paint against smaller competition, scoring at will near the rim. He also shows the ability to step up and hit the occasional three-point shot.

Cason is the third prep player of the 2024 class to commit to East Carolina, joining combo guard Ladontae Felton and three-star guard Tyler Bailey. Both Felton and Bailey are already enrolled and practicing with the team, and Cason is expected to join soon.

Overall, Cason is the ninth incoming player for this coming season. The Pirates have also added six transfers, including four Division I prospects (Jordan Riley from Temple, CJ Walker from UCF, Yann Farell from St. Bonaventure, and Julien Soumaoro from Gardner-Webb), as well as two junior college players (Jayshayne Woodard from Indian River State College and Trevion LeBeaux from Indian Hills Community College).

The Pirates have been holding summer workouts for a few weeks now under head coach Michael Schwartz, who is entering his third season with the program. In his first two years on the job, he has guided the Pirates to records of 16-17 and 15-18.

ECU is set to return two forwards with similar height and style to Cason: sophomores Cyr Malonga and Callum Richard, though both played sparingly last year. Malonga is considered more defensively oriented with greater athletic upside, while Richard is more of a back-to-the-basket type player.

In addition to those two, the Pirates also return their leading scorer, RJ Felton, who averaged over 17 points per game last season, and former NC State and LSU guard Cam Hayes.