Road to the Allstars: Meet Top 25 Ranked Meridian High School Power Forward Joe Horne

Here's a side of high school basketball star Joe Horne like you never seen before. Meet 18 year Joe Horne, who is ranked in the Top 25 Best Basketball Players in Mississippi from Meridian High School who has everyone holding their breath every time he steps on the court. We sat down yesterday for an exclusive interview with the high school star who simply goes by "Joe."

Yes, this junior could easily be voted in by fans to be a Mississippi Basketball All-Star on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. To vote, simply go to www.PlayersMS.com. Here is his story.

"Single!" - Joe Horne

Joe describes himself as a chill young man. He's also a family man. To Joe, family means everything. He's big on loyalty and love. "Who makes me who I am is my family," Joe said, "especially my daughter!"

To Joe, his daughter is his everything, his world, he motivation, the sole reason for being on earth. Joe's beautiful little princess name is Ja'Zaiyah.

His favorite social media app is Instagram. His favorite song is "Life Support by NBA Youngboy" His favorite music artist? Of course it's the boot superstar rapper, "NBA Youngboy because he makes deep related music."

But when it comes to getting locked in his zone, he put "Tunnel Vision by Ykstexxy" on repeat & goes beast mode. Anyone near a rim is automatically a victim especially if Joe's already flying in the air like an eagle.

Joe's celebrity crush is Music Superstar Big Latto. Just watching her "Sunday Service," the music video not an actual Sunday service at your local church, you can clearly see why he has a crush on her. My Lord. Who wouldn't?

His favorite color is black and white. Yes, he has two. Joe says his favorite food is "steak, rice, chicken, and salad." Yes, he has 4. I guess the good part about being chill is having multiple of everything. With all that being said, he's favorite restaurant is Steak n Shake.

Before we get more into this interview, let's do a quick drip check. We asked Joe to step onto the red carpet with his favorite fit and rate it 1-10. Joe didn't rate this picture but here it is:

What do you rate this fit 1-10?

• Write an answer

The Road to the All-Stars Series highlight players across the state leading up to the All-Stars. The Mississippi All-Stars is the only all-star game sanctioned by the NCAA. Any 9-12th grade student athlete that goes to any public or private school in Mississippi can be a state all-star.

All-Stars are selected by the fans. The all-star vote is Tuesday, March 11, 2025. The Top 200 athletes with the most votes will be recommended to the Mississippi Association of Players also known as MAP. MAP will review the recommendation from the fans and invite the Top 200 Best Basketball Athletes in Mississippi to the Mississippi Basketball All-Stars Draft.

At the draft, the 2025 Mississippi Basketball All-Stars will be selected live. The All-Star Draft is Saturday, March 29, 2025 in Downtown Hattiesburg beginning at 7pm. Tickets are $75. Seating is limited. Tickets will be available once the All-Star Draft List is released. Tickets are expected to be sold out quickly.

Now, let's hop back into our exclusive interview with Joe Horne. Road to the All-Stars highlight 2 profiles for each player that we think are very important. We highlight their social media profile and we highlight their player profile. Let's start with Joe's social media profile. Don't forget to follow his social and check out his content. Let's Go!

Social Media	@	Followers
Instagram	Dsfjoe2x	4.9k
TikTok	dsfjoe2x	1.1k
X (Twitter)	n/a	n/a
Snapchat	dsfjoe2x	n/a
Facebook	Jozyreun Horne	400

When it comes to love, you will actually be surprised. When asked if he was tender or single, he replied, "SINGLE!" For the record, he's the first person in this series to say he's single and ready to mingle! If he got married tomorrow, he says his wife would be, "the person that loves me for me!" like the Beyonce song "Flaws and All!" Yes, his DM's are open!

Unlike marriage, Joe does has some dreams when it comes to how he slides from city to city or on any street basically. His dream car is a Mercedes Benz AMG. Any AMG is nasty. Right now, all his motion is in his Toyota Camry. Yes, he has wheels.

We asked Joe how would he rank himself in the top 100 players in the state? He think he's at least in the top 80. Actually, he's currently ranked at #24 so technically, that answer is incorrect! So, let's look at his player's profile.

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Players Profile

Position: Power Forward/ Center

Stats: n/a

School: Meridian High School

Classification: Junior

Height: 6'5

Weight: 175lbs

Rankings: 24 Source: MS Hoops

Awards & Honors: n/a

Greatest Talent/Advantage: Being Able to Play Basketball

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Reflecting on this year's season, Joe said his best game this season was against Brandon for Senior Night. "It was my best game because of my teammates and coaches for keeping my head up," Joe said. Flip that to his worst moment this season, he will never forget being at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. "It was my worst because it was the second round of the playoffs," he said still heartbroken by the defeat.

Nevertheless, Joe says his shooting is almost trash as in garbage can garbage bag trash. He ranks his shooting a 5 out of 10. Not bad. He's basically average. But when it comes to dunking, he gives it a 10 out of 10. He should be a spokesman for a glass company the way he almost shatter backboards when he dunks. He makes the nearest defender an automatic guaranteed poster. He thinks his greatest competition this year was Braylon Barnes.

Reflecting on him as an athlete, if he could improve on anything, it would be every aspect of his game because he thinks it's "always room for improvement!" He does admit his greatest weakness is one nobody can blame him for. Joe said his, "Greatness weakness is having a daughter not able to tell her no!" Sounds about right for most dads!

Finally, let's wrap this interview up with a few serious questions about Joe's future. Here's some questions and answers that we think you'll find very interesting. If you think you know Joe, you really don't have a clue until you read the last part of our interview below. Let's go!

How important is it to you to sign a NIL Deal & why? 

10 because it can help take care of my family & daughter for a better decision.

If you could tell anything to a college coach or recruiter what would it be? 

I'm coachable, a great teammate, and a visual learner.

List the colleges you ever visited or been to in your life? What is your #1 dream school? 

Mississippi State & Duke

List your top 10 schools you would like to play at? 

Alabama, Texas, Mississippi State, Clemson, UCF, TCU, Southern Miss, Colorado, Richmond, & Duke.

Where do you see yourself next year? 

Graduating, getting a scholarship to go to college, & making a way for my daughter and I.

Who or what motivates or inspires you to play the game? 

Me, my parents, & coaches and teammates.

What do you wish to achieve by playing this sport? 

Getting a scholarship Maintain my GPA. Getting recognized.

Being a Mississippi All-Star is the highest honor and award you can receive as a student athlete. Why do you deserve to be a state All-Star?

Because I was dedicated and work hard to be where I'm at. I never gave up. I kept pushing.

That's a wrap. Hope you enjoyed our Road to the All-Stars with Joe Horne from Meridian High School. Overall, Joe is an awesome young man that puts his best efforts forward, loves basketball, very entertaining, very hard working and a very humble athlete.

If you would like to support Joe or any other basketball players in Mississippi, vote for your favorite players to be a Mississippi All-Star on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 by going to www.playersms.com.