Georgia Tech received an official visit from French guard Joel Ayayi this past weekend, according to a person familiar with the situation. Ayayi has also taken an official visit to Gonzaga and is expected to make a decision on his college choice soon, possibly this week.
Ayayi, 6-foot-4, trains with the French sports institute (INSEP) and played for France in the FIBA under-16 European championships last year. In seven games there, he averaged 11.3 points. 6.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists as France finished sixth in the 16-team tournament.
The recruitment of Ayayi is part of coach Josh Pastner's last-minute dash to finish up the 2017 class, which to this point has three members, guards Jose Alvarado (New York) and Curtis Haywood (Yukon, Okla.) and forward Moses Wright (Raleigh, N.C.). Pastner has four remaining scholarships that he can give out. Beyond high-school prospects, including South Forsyth High forward Evan Cole and guard Amauri Hardy (Farmington Hills, Mich.), Tech is also recruiting transfers and grad transfers.
Ayayi is described variously as a point guard and a combo guard. Pastner has said that great point guard play is imperative to win, and that one point guard is not enough .
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