It's not everyday that college basketball players get to play for a former NBA player. But that was the situation Romelle Mansel found himself in when he transferred to HBCU Jackson State last season. Mo Williams had just accepted the head coaching job for the Tigers at the beginning of the 2022-23 season, Mansel's first in Jackson. He already had familiarity with Williams when he was an assistant coach at Cal State Northridge and recruited him in high school at St. Bernard's in the Los Angeles area. It was that familiarity that made it easier for him to transfer to Jackson State.

“A big reason was it it's an HBCU, that's first and foremost. The HBCU culture is definitely one that I'm glad I got to experience and get to experience for another year,” Mansel told ClutchPoints. “Also, Coach Mo Williams, we had an outstanding relationship from when he recruited me coming out of high school. So the transition has made everything so much easier, being able to know him and then being able to incorporate me into the program.”

Romelle Mansel arrived at Jackson State after spending the first three years of his college basketball career at Long Beach State. He was featured in the rotation as a freshman during the 2019-2020 season that was ultimately cut short due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. He suited up in 32 games that year including 23 starts and averaged 4.3 points per game on 43.7 percent shooting from the field.

Playing time came sparingly though the next two seasons as he dealt with an injury in his second year that would sideline him for a couple of months. He played in 44 games between 2020-2022 and he found himself in the transfer portal in the 2022 offseason. The transfer portal has changed college basketball forever and it was something that Mansel enjoyed experiencing with the wide range of schools that came calling compared to his high school recruiting.

“To be honest it was different from the first time. The first time there were a lot of higher Division schools, a lot of Division 1s and a lot of Division 2s,” Mansel said. “This time around it was a couple Division 1s, a few D2s, a lot of D3s, NAIAs, so this time was a little bit different for me. But I still enjoyed the process because the process was really helpful.”

When Romelle Mansel first got to HBCU Jackson State, he was able to make an immediate impact. He played in 33 games including 28 starts and averaged a career-high 8.9 points per game, 5.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 55.2 percent from the field. His shooting efficiency was also a career-best.

Mansel scored in double-figures in ten of Jackson State's last 12 games of the season including a season-high 24 on 10-14 shooting against Florida A&M. A few games later in a win against Texas Southern, he had the game winning dunk to go along with 13 points. He was a big part of a Jackson State team that ended up finishing 12-6 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play and made it to the semifinals of the conference tournament. This past season was his best season yet in the NCAA and he attributed it to the type of system that Mo Williams runs.

“He makes things very, very easy for his players, he allows you to to go ahead and take whatever shots, make a play, he's allowing of that. He's not restricting us to play just a position,” Mansel said. “Just allowing us to do that within the offense. It makes everything run smooth. Nobody feels like they're not getting shots, nobody feels like they're not getting the ball or anything like that. So it just makes everything feel great.”

One of the biggest differences in Mansel's game from his time at Long Beach State is he's been able to have the ball in his hands more often. Mo Williams has trusted him to handle the ball and to make plays. He's a big forward who can maybe play a little center in some small ball lineups so his ability to handle the ball gives him a major advantage against other bigs.

Throughout his first three seasons of college basketball, Mansel averaged 0.8 assists per game. In his first season at Jackson State, he averaged a career-high 2.0 assists. His playmaking is something his worked on specifically and it's something he wants to continue to work on alongside becoming more of an outside threat. He averages only 0.3 attempts from three-point range with an average 27 percent shooting. If he does so, he can become even more of an offensive threat in the frontcourt in spacing the floor.

“I will definitely say my playmaking ability has definitely improved,” Mansel said. “I'm definitely going to work on getting my outside game strong and solid and just being confident within myself because I know I can do it. So I'm just ready to come out this year and just dominate everyone on the court.”

Romelle Mansel still has one more year of college eligibility at HBCU Jackson State. The team is hoping to build upon this past season and make a strong showing in the SWAC Tournament. For Mansel, who won a ring at Long Beach State when the team ended up Big West regular season champions in 2022, his goals for the upcoming season a quite simple.

“This upcoming season, I want another ring. We were so close last year,” Mansel said. “So I really want to get back there and get a ring. Come out of there and leave my mark on Jackson State for sure.”