A year ago, Jaylen Brown of Wheeler was Georgia’s No. 1 senior basketball recruit. He would lead the Wildcats to the Class AAAAAA championship and sign with Cal-Berkeley. He’s been all that he was expected to be at Cal, ranking second on the team in scoring and rebounding.
Here’s a look at the top 10 Georgia recruits from last season and how they’ve fared as freshmen. Four are starters – two because they were just that good (No. 1 Brown and No. 2 Malik Beasley) and two others perhaps because they chose mid-majors where playing time might come quicker (Tookie Brown and Reggie Reid).
This list does not include some former Georgia players who played their senior seasons out of state, such as Daniel Giddens (Ohio State), Noah Dickerson (Washington) and Doral Moore (Wake Forest). Those three are making contributions off the bench. Dickerson, formerly of North Atlanta High, gets about 18 minutes a game, the other two less than 10.
- Jaylen Brown, Cal (Wheeler) – Brown, a 6-foot-7 forward, was the consensus No. 4 recruit in the country and a McDonald's All-American. For the Golden Bears, Brown is averaging 15.0 points and 5.7 rebounds. Cal is 14-6 overall, 4-3 in the Pac 12.
- Malik Beasley, Florida State (St. Francis) – Beasley, a 6-5 shooting guard, was the No. 38 prospect nationally when he led St. Francis to its second straight Class A private-school title. He averages 17.3 points and 5.8 rebounds for the Seminoles. He's made 31 3-pointers, hitting 41.3 percent behind the arc. He's makes 82.9 percent of his free throws. Note that Beasley's former St. Francis teammate, senior Kobi Simmons, is this year's No. 1 Georgia prospect. FSU is 12-7 overall, 2-5 in the ACC.
- Marcus Sheffield, Stanford (Chattahoochee) – Sheffield, a 6-5 guard, averages 16.2 minutes for the Cardinal. He's essentially become Stanford's sixth man, and his playing team is steadily rising. He's scoring 6.4 points and getting 2.5 rebounds. He scored 17 against then-No. 21 Utah on Jan. 1. Stanford is 11-7 overall, 4-3 in the Pac 12.
- Ty Hudson, Clemson (Pebblebrook) – Hudson is getting about 10 minutes per game for the Tigers. He's averaging 2.6 points. He had an 11-point game in early December, but he's rarely seen the court since the ACC schedule kicked in. Clemson is 12-7 overall, 5-2 in the SEC.
- William "Turtle" Jackson, Georgia (Athens Christian) – Playing in his hometown, Jackson is getting about 9 minutes per game for Georgia, which is deep in the backcourt. He's averaging 0.8 points. Georgia is 11-6 overall, 4-3 in the SEC.
- Kaiser Gates, Xavier (St. Francis) – Gates, a 6-8 forward, plays 10 minutes per game for seventh-ranked Xavier and is productive – averaging 3.1 points and 2.7 rebounds. Those minutes appear to be rising as he's logged at least 12 minutes in six of the past seen games. Xavier is 17-2 overall, 5-2 in the Big East.
- Derek Ogbeide, Georgia (Pebblebrook) – Ogbeide, a 6-8 forward, missed early games to injury but is now a key figure at Georgia, though averaging only 12 minutes to date. He's averaging 4.6 rebounds and 3.8 points. He had a 10-rebound game against Ole Miss. Georgia is 11-6 overall, 4-3 in the SEC.
- Tookie Brown, Georgia Southern (Morgan County) – Brown, a point guard who led Morgan County to a state title as a junior, starts for the Eagles and averages 17.6 points, 3.4 assists and 2.1 steals. Georgia Southern is 7-11 overall, 3-5 in the Sun Belt.
- Tre Scott, Cincinnati (McIntosh County Academy) – Scott has not played and appears headed toward a red-shirt season. Cincinnati is 15-6 overall, 5-3 in the American.
- Reggie Reid, Florida Gulf Coast (Harlem) – Reid averages 4.3 points and 3.6 assists. He's started the past 12 games. FGC is 14-8 overall, 4-1 in the Atlantic Sun.
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