NBA Draft

A Scout's Take: In-Person Perspective on GG Jackson's Two Games in DMV

Highly touted GG Jackson II's two game trip to the DMV offered insight into his tools, game and intangibles. How did he perform and what are some of the key takeaways?

Jam Hines

A Scout's Take: In-Person Perspective on GG Jackson's Two Games in DMV
A Scout's Take: In-Person Perspective on GG Jackson's Two Games in DMV /
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When constructing my scouting schedule, GG Jackson’s two game trip to the DMV area to play George Washington and Georgetown was a must and an early Christmas gift to myself.

Jackson, a 17-year-old freshman and former number one overall prospect in the 2023 high school class before reclassifying to 2022 to stay home to play for South Carolina, is a projected lottery pick and a no-doubt first round talent. And when that level of talent comes to your area, you need to be in attendance.

Let’s dive into my in-person experience and takeaways from Jackon’s two games:

GW Stat Line: 11 points (4-of-17) (1-of-5 from three), 6 rebounds, 1 assist (0 turnovers) and 3 blocks in 26 minutes

Georgetown Stat Line: 22 points (9-of-19) (2-of-5 from three), 8 rebounds, 2 assists (3 turnovers) and 1 steal in 39 minutes

A Quick Peek at Intangibles

A major benefit of scouting games in-person is observing how a prospect interacts with their teammates, coaches, opponents, environment, etc., before and throughout the game. Just as important is how teammates and coaches react. In GG’s case, it was nothing but positive vibes.

During pre-game stretching and warmups. Jackson was one of the leaders shouting out instructions and guiding the team. He routinely had other teammates laughing and flashed an infectious smile throughout. When South Carolina was greeted with boos from the GW fans during official warm-ups. Jackson had that smile painted across his face and motioned for the crowd to get louder. I love that stuff.

After shooting 1-of-8 from the field including 0-of-2 from deep in the first half against GW, Jackson was out a few minutes ahead of the team to put up extra shots.

Shot Creation and Shot-Making vs. Shot Selection

Although Jackson was jumper dependent with some questionable, but passable, shot selection, I walked away encouraged by his mix size, handle, space creation and shot-making.

For context, my rationale for some of his shot selection being passable and being encouraged by his shot creation and making mix lies in what I believe his optimal NBA role is and current state of this South Carolina team.

He’s in a primary handler and creator role for South Carolina, which likely isn't how he will be optimized initially at the NBA level. I see him more as a play-finisher and energetic big wing with ball skills and secondary creation and handling upside. I’m not ruling out a primary role eventually, but it should be built up as Jackson continues to learn how to create one-on-one advantages, something South Carolina is allowing him to with some lumps as it’s a work in progress on both sides.

South Carolina struggles to consistently get him the ball in advantageous spots and make the game easier for him, which results in some questionable shots as he both settles and has the freedom to experiment in this role.

Let’s jump into some of those attempts. On a couple of closeouts, he decides to shoot the jumper instead of getting downhill and attacking where he can capitalize on his size and fluidity. Jackson has a significant height advantage, allowing him to easily shoot over so it’s not a terrible shot, but it’s about staying aggressive and getting to your spot, especially if your jumper isn't falling.

Here, it’s a different story. Attacking the closeout, getting downhill and to your spot, for a quality look make-able pull-ups. These are good shots that you will live with. 

Jackson is shooting 37% from beyond the arc on 4.4 attempts per game with deep range. He's a confident and projectable shooting threat, fueling his opportunities to attack closeouts. 

Activity and Motor Plays

As South Carolina figures out how to best utilize Jackson, activity and motor plays such as off rebounds, cuts and floor runs are all key to getting him going and creating easier scoring opportunities. It’s those types of plays that Jackson excels at and will be relied upon to do at the next level.

Across the two games, Jackson pulled down six offensive rebounds, three in both games. His stellar second half performance (including overtime) against Georgetown, exploding for all of his 22 points (including overtime), began with this offensive rebound into a smooth euro finish.

With his timing, size and athleticism, Jackson can be an impactful cutter for himself and others. Here, he doesn't get the pass on the cut, but it opens up a missed corner three that would still lead to South Carolina points on offensive rebound finish.

Here, he cuts then stays available for the dump off finish.

Floor and rim runs are another avenue to both fit his ideal role and makes the game easier for him. South Carolina did not attempt to push the ball and get out in transition much at all. He can wreak havoc in the open floor as a play finisher, which should be a staple of his NBA production.

NBA Body and Vertical Pop

Listed at 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds, Jackson possesses a long and wiry big wing frame in what can be considered an ideal basketball body. Combined with broad shoulders and noticeable development of muscle and definition to his upper and arms, I wouldn’t worry about Jackson being unable to add the requisite amount of strength and keeping his athleticism.

Jackson is a bit of an upright runner and can appear stiff at times. It might be nothing at all considering how functional his athleticism and vertical pop is, but it stood out both on film and in person and is worth noting. His chase down and weak side help blocks illustrates a bit of that. 

Conclusion

The two game in person scout has not significantly altered my evaluation of him thus far in the early part of the season. I still have Jackson with a lottery grade. I think it’s important to keep in mind the context of his role at South Carolina and the personnel there. Something that should be respectively applied to all prospects.

Jackson’s next game is on Saturday, December 11th against Presbyterian with major non- conference matchups against UAB (12/14) and Eastern Michigan (12/30) on the horizon. 

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Jam Hines
JAM HINES

Jam is a scout with nearly a decade of evaluation experience through his time with former NBA scouting and consulting services, EV Hoops and BPA Hoops. From the high school to NBA level, he brings a wealth of knowledge on prospects.

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