SAN ANTONIO – The University of Incarnate Word on Tuesday announced a 9-man class set to join the men’s basketball team this upcoming season, and it includes the son of a former San Antonio Spurs player and Texas basketball legend.
T.J. Ford Jr., the son of Texas basketball great T.J. Ford, is a 5-foot, 10-inch point guard out of Ridge Point High School in Missouri City, Texas located near Houston. He will be joining the Cardinals for the 2023-2024 season after averaging 12.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists his senior year.
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The younger Ford is one of two high school graduates who will join The University of the Incarnate Word basketball team, according to the press release.
Josh Akpovwa, a 6-foot, 8-inch post player from Seven Lakes High School, is the other high school player in the class. He averaged 16 points, nine rebounds and four blocks per game, helping him earn District Defensive Player of the Year honors in Katy, Texas. Breno Silva, a forward from the NBA Latin America Academy, will also join the team from Joinville, Brazil.
The class includes six transfers from different universities, including one locally from UTSA. Lamin Sabally, a 6-foot, 7-inch forward, will travel across town to join the Cardinals. The three-star recruit is the brother of WNBA stars Satou and Nyara Sabally.
Alex Anderson from Alabama State, Amani Drummond from Central Michigan, Josiah Hammons from Truman Community College, Shon Robinson from Austin Peay and Sky Wicks from the State College of Florida all will join the team as well.
Ford’s father, T.J. Sr., is a former Texas high school basketball great, who led Willowridge High School to a 75–1 win–loss record (including a 62-game winning streak) in his final two high school seasons, earning a pair of Texas Class 5A state titles.
He went on to play for the University of Texas, where in 2003 he was third in the nation in assists while leading the team in scoring, assists and steals, and taking the Longhorns to its first Final Four since 1947. He would be named Naismith College Player of the Year and selected eighth in the NBA Draft. He would play eight NBA seasons, averaging 11.2 points and 5.8 assists during an injury-shorted career.