Coppin State men’s basketball junior Cam Sparrow recently chatted with PressBox about his favorite high school memories, why he chose to stay close to home at Coppin and more. The 6-foot-4, 185-pound guard averaged 4.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game for the Eagles in 2024-25. Sparrow is a native of Baltimore and graduate of New Town High School.
PressBox: How did you first become interested in basketball?
Cam Sparrow: I was downstairs at my grandmother’s house watching the dunk contest when Blake Griffin jumped over the car. It gave me a type of joy, but it was something I figured I’d want to do — something that was challenging but it was always fun to me. The game of basketball has always been fun. Watching him do that, that really boosted my interest in basketball because I felt like that’d be something cool to do. I stuck with it, so it got me to Coppin now.
PB: Who was the biggest influence on your game growing up?
CS: The biggest influence on my game would be Kevin Durant. He’s been my favorite player since I was a kid, wore No. 35 when I was a kid, try to copy some of his moves and put them into my own game. That would be the biggest influence on my game growing up as a kid.
PB: What are your favorite memories from New Town High School?
CS: I have a lot. My freshman year, we played Milford Mill [in a playoff game]. It was packed out. I think it was standing-room only. It was one of my best games I had my freshman year, had a couple big shots. The atmosphere was like no other. I tell everybody, New Town has a great atmosphere when it comes to basketball. Another one of my favorite memories was my senior year when we won the [Class 2A] state championship. That was probably the best feeling because it was something I wanted to accomplish for a long time, since my freshman year. To be able to do it brings me so much joy because I worked so hard. That was my favorite memory from New Town.
PB: What did it mean to get over the hump as a senior?
CS: Just the work we put in during the summer going into my senior year. We came up short my 11th grade year, so we wanted to push. We dug deep and we felt like we could do it. It was a team effort. We came and got it done. We all trusted each other like no other, so we came out there and got the wins and had belief in one another.
PB: Why did you choose to go to Coppin?
CS: I feel like [head coach Larry Stewart] was one of the only people willing to give me a chance at the Division I level. I took that to heart. Coach Stew is a great person. He’s always truthful. He never keeps it short. He always tells it how he sees it, tells it how it needs to be said. I just love being home and having my family come to games, loving their support. [Stewart] has so much knowledge that he pours into his players. I love what he’s been doing for me.
PB: What’s your favorite thing about Coppin?
CS: I’d say just the campus, really. It’s not a big campus, but everyone’s friendly. Everybody knows everybody. It’s a surreal feeling, I’d say, for myself. It’s never too big, but I love the atmosphere it brings.
PB: It was a tough season in 2024-25, but Coppin won two of its final four regular-season games. How did your team improve throughout the season?
CS: Just building more chemistry and more confidence with one another. We kind of started late, but just being together and figuring things out, watching more film together, being in the gym more together, things like that really helped us build that chemistry toward the end and we were able to put together some more wins.
PB: Who’s your best friend on the team and what’s a story that underscores your friendship?
CS: I’d say Khali Horton. He came in as a freshman like me, [meaning] we’ve been through two years together. That’s my roommate last year, so that’s my dawg. I call him all the time, talk to him all the time. We see the same things. We just love to put in work.
PB: Who did you look up to early in your college career?
CS: There were a couple on my team. Isaiah Gross was my roommate my freshman year. He kind of helped me get into college, get adjusted as far as waking up early for lifting, how to really adjust to being a college athlete when it comes to schoolwork and being a basketball player. Zahree Harrison helped me be confident with my game my freshman year. He was always helping me stay in the gym, giving me pointers here and there of what to see from a defense. When I got hurt, he was one of the first people to make sure I was good, make sure I was OK. He just helped me a lot.
PB: What was the injury?
CS: It was our last regular-season game my freshman year. I was running, then I stopped [when the whistle blew]. I slipped, fell real awkwardly and then my [left] knee didn’t feel right. … I tore my PCL, sprained my MCL and ACL. Rehab was really like a year, but I was able to get back to playing basketball by September [2024]. No surgery, just a whole bunch of rehab. The challenges are really just feeling comfortable with my knee again, trusting my body again.
PB: What advice would you give to younger players looking to play in college?
CS: Study film, stay in the gym and always be confident in your game. Don’t let anybody tell you that you’re not good enough. That would be my advice to younger players.
PB: What are your goals for after basketball, whenever it ends?
CS: I’d say I want to be an entrepreneur at my own business. I have a couple friends that have their own businesses. And then also just learning the business side of sports — I have a strong interest in that as far as contracts and things like that.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Coppin State Athletics