Georgia Tech Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview: Forwards

Baye Ndongo leads a talented and strong position group for Georgia Tech

Photo By: Courtney Metzger; Via Georgia Tech Athletics

The frontcourt is another strong position group for Georgia Tech. They have an infusion of youth at the position and also great experience to provide depth and continuity. One of the best players on the team plays in the front court and has already made national headlines and top 100 lists. Two transfers that play at a high level on both ends and two freshmen that can score and be impact players on defense. Here are the forwards this season for Georgia Tech.

Forwards 

Baye Ndongo-  Ndongo will be a player to watch this season for the Yellow Jackets and is already generating a lot of buzz entering the season. He was named a top 100 player by ESPN and he also was a preseason ALL-ACC second-team selection heading into this season. He averaged 12.4 points (second on the team) and led the team with 8.2 rebounds. Ndongo started to come on last season and matched his season-high in points (22) in an ACC tournament loss to Notre Dame. He was also one of two freshmen to average 12.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks while hitting 55% from the floor. A thing to note for Ndongo is he has added weight to his frame, 25 pounds to be exact since his freshman season. When you watch the tape he is a versatile big man that can stretch the floor. He is elite at protecting the rim and blocking shots. He has several chase-down blocks from last season. In the paint, he is tough to contain and is good at rolling off the pick and roll and finishing lobs with ease. He is also an underrated ball handler as a big man and is considered one of the better players in the ACC. 

Luke O’Brien- The Colorado transfer is another marksman for the Yellow Jackets coming into the season. He can space the floor and while his numbers aren’t gaudy, he hits 44% of his shots from the field and 35% from deep. He crossed the double-figure mark 10 times last season and hit his season-high against Utah Tech with 18 points in 2023. He also went a perfect 5-5 in an NCAA tournament win over Florida last season. Over his career, he has averaged 4.8 points and 3.7 rebounds and has continued to see an uptick in playing time especially last year seeing 19 of his 29 career starts. He set career-highs in points per game, field goal percentage, and assists. 

Darrion Sutton- The true freshman comes from right down the street where he played at Overtime Elite, one of the best high school leagues in the country filled with immense talent and high end recruits. In OTE, he averaged 10.6 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists. Sutton offers the Yellow Jackets a great two-way player. He is a multi-defender who can guard the perimeter and the paint. He moves his feet well and makes his presence felt on that end. Offensively he is good at keeping possession alive and making a living on the glass. You usually have to bring multiple defenders at him when he gets into the paint or he will finish it with ease. Sutton is a great slasher and is someone who can provide great athleticism off the bench going into the season. 

Ibrahim Souare- He is coming off a redshirt freshman season for Georgia Tech and didn’t see the court. Souare is another two-way big man for the Yellow Jackets who is great at rebounding the basketball and protecting the rim. Offensively, he is a rim-runner who slashes to the paint and finishes with dunks, lobs, or layups. Earlier in his career when he played for Guinea in the 2022 U18 team, he showed his ability to also knock down shots from deep. Going into 2024, Souare is a developmental piece that has upside. He is 6’9 and 225 pounds with a 7’2 wingspan. After sitting out a year, 2024 will be a good determinant to see how much his game has grown. 

Duncan Powell- Powell is a transfer from Sacramento State. During his sophomore season, he was the leading scorer averaging 12.1 PPG and 7.0 RPG. His rebounds rank sixth in the Big Sky Conference. Of the 29 games he appeared in, Powell scored double figures in 21 games. He also had five double-doubles last season. He also recorded just the second triple-double in Sacramento State DI history posting 13 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists vs Bethesda. Powell showed great improvement last year, and that he can be a contributor to any college team. Frontcourt is another loaded position for Georgia Tech, so Powell may start the season in a reserve role and be a key depth piece for the Yellow Jackets. It will depend on whether they run big lineups or small ball lineups during the season and what the variation is especially late in games. Powell could see the floor more if Georgia Tech goes with the latter. 

Dyllan Thomspon- The son of legendary WNBA Lisa Thompson. Thompson is another true freshman for the Yellow Jackets. He was the leading scorer last season in high school at Second Baptist School in Houston. He averaged 18 points per game and averaged 7.3 rebounds per game, making the all-tournament team. He made second-team all-state and first-team all-district as a junior. Here is an in-depth breakdown via our own Arvon Bacon: 

Player Breakdown

Thompson's height is the first impressionable thing about the senior recruit; however, a nontangible attribute that Tech fans should love is his history playing on John Lucas's Nike EYBL team, JL3. The EYBL circuit has long been the pinnacle of AAU ball. Playing in this league is the closest thing you'll get to playing college ball.

Analyzing the Houston natives film, Dyllan loves to play the game with great energy on both sides of the ball, but what stood out to me was his willingness to crash the glass. They say offense scores points, defense wins games, and rebounding wins championships, and as a freshman, those are the two traits that will transfer sooner than later during his early college tenure. His offensive prowess is also nothing to disregard. Thompson's offensive bag has been upsized. Being a wiry wing with a nice frame to grow into, betting that his ball-handling will continue to improve, he'll have the raw ability to get to any spot he chooses with his length and size. His jumper seems to be in sync and smooth. In his senior season he shot 35 percent from a range of 175 3PT attempts.

It will probably be tough to know the role he will play as a freshman and it seems like he would project better as a forward but he could be a player that surprises and carves out a big role similar to Nait George and Baye Ndongo last year. 

Emmer Nichols- Nichols is coming off a broken leg he suffered on January 19th, and missed the remainder of the season. A tough situation for the redshirt sophomore after he sat out his entire freshman season and had to use a redshirt. Coming into college, he played at Sacred Heart Preparatory in California. He was a team captain for two years and won two league championships. His senior year he was named second-team Central Coast Section, MVP, and defensive player of the year in 2022. It’s a redemption story for Nichols who looks to make an impact this year for the Yellow Jackets. He hasn’t seen the floor a lot in college so you know he is itching to get on the floor and show what he is made of.

Additional Links:

Georgia Tech Football: Zeek Biggers Earns Invite To 2025 Shrine Bowl

Bleav Georgia Tech: Previewing Georgia Tech's 2024-2025 Men's Basketball Season

ACC Football: Predictions For Every Week Ten Game