GG Jackson visit today

[Gamecockben1979]

We need the CLA rocking.

Serious question though. If we sign the #1 recruit in the country in our own back yard, don’t you have to stay the course with the current regime.

Or are some of you so burnt out you would let the #1 recruit in the country walk?

Puts the fan base at an interesting crossroads.

 

[ForeUSC]

Good question. I’d say we have to stay with Frank……Unless Jackson has been promised something else.

 

[roosterbell]

Recruiting has been the biggest problem all along for Coach Martin. We went to a final 4 and haven't landed a single top rated recruit since then. This game is all about recruiting. If you don't have them, you have almost zero chance of being a top program.

If he lands Jackson, it would have to give a little pause about firing him especially if we could finish the season strong.

 

[Cock-a-Doo]

Land him and I’m in for another year, sure

 

[Neanderthal]

Jackson can’t play next year. He is a high school junior - if I’m thinking about the right guy. The player at Ridge View, right?

 

[cockymark]

Who has seen him play? is he everything advertised?

 

[bigplay86]

Who has seen him play? is he everything advertised?

He's already visited Duke and

Who has seen him play? is he everything advertised?

He's visited Duke, UNC and Georgetown and is the #1 rated recruit in the class of 2023 so, I'm guessing he can play!

 

[Neanderthal]

His coach is leaving RV to coach at Oak Hill. So, I suppose the player will go with the coach. That may hurt the Gamecocks not having him right outside the back door. Either way, I believe with his ranking he will be a OAD. Not a program savior.

 

[adcoop]

We need the CLA rocking.

Serious question though. If we sign the #1 recruit in the country in our own back yard, don’t you have to stay the course with the current regime.

Or are some of you so burnt out you would let the #1 recruit in the country walk?

Puts the fan base at an interesting crossroads.

I think the decision will be made on this in the next month. If we get in the tournament, Martin stays and we have a shot at Jackson. If we don’t get in the tournament, Jackson probably is not coming (I am hearing UNC anyway), and what is the point of keeping Martin around.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

I think the decision will be made on this in the next month. If we get in the tournament, Martin stays and we have a shot at Jackson. If we don’t get in the tournament, Jackson probably is not coming (I am hearing UNC anyway), and what is the point of keeping Martin around.

I don’t pretend to have any inside knowledge on the kid. If we dance, we certainly can’t make a regime change whether we land GG or not Just doesn’t happen enough in our history to force someone out in a tourney year.

I just think it’s an interesting dynamic if we have a #1 recruit coming on board if the fan base would be tolerant of one more year of the same regime when by all other metrics it appears they would not be.

 

[adcoop]

His coach is leaving RV to coach at Oak Hill. So, I suppose the player will go with the coach. That may hurt the Gamecocks not having him right outside the back door. Either way, I believe with his ranking he will be a OAD. Not a program savior.

Maybe he is not a program savior, but our program could definitely use the publicity of a high level local kid finally choosing us. There were two high level kids in the ‘22 class. One has signed with LSU. The other decided to go pro with Overtime Elite and bypass college altogether. Dorman has another guy in the Top 60 range in the 22 class. He is going to Alabama. How do we expect to get good players abroad when local kids don’t seem to be bought in to your program?

 

[adcoop]

I don’t pretend to have any inside knowledge on the kid. If we dance, we certainly can’t make a regime change whether we land GG or not Just doesn’t happen enough in our history to force someone out in a tourney year.

I just think it’s an interesting dynamic if we have a #1 recruit coming on board if the fan base would be tolerant of one more year of the same regime when by all other metrics it appears they would not be.

My son played against him a couple weeks ago. That’s where I got the UNC talk from. However, I was aware that he was visiting today and had been telling some of my friends about him. The kid shoots it better than anyone we have at 6-8”. Can easily swing between the 3 and 4 on the collegiate or professional level. However, he is still in the 11th grade. He could grow another inch or two.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

My son played against him a couple weeks ago. That’s where I got the UNC talk from. However, I was aware that he was visiting today and had been telling some of my friends about him. The kid shoots it better than anyone we have at 6-8”. Can easily swing between the 3 and 4 on the collegiate or professional level. However, he is still in the 11th grade. He could grow another inch or two.

Just curious who you would compare his game to. I know you’re knowledgeable about basketball. Someone we would be familiar with at the college or pro level.

I need to watch Ridge View play and check this kid out. I used to coach but no longer do and I’ve preferred to just watch from home. Think if I go into the gym too much I might get back into it.

 

[adcoop]

Just curious who you would compare his game to. I know you’re knowledgeable about basketball. Someone we would be familiar with at the college or pro level.

I need to watch Ridge View play and check this kid out. I used to coach but no longer do and I’ve preferred to just watch from home. Think if I go into the gym too much I might get back into it.

He plays similar to Tobias Harris to me, but I think he is a better athlete and has higher ceiling than that. Ridge View plays him at the top of their half court trap and he can be very disruptive on defense. Ridge View is still beatable in spite of that. Northwestern (Rock Hill) got them once this year.

 

[Neanderthal]

I used to coach but no longer do and I’ve preferred to just watch from home. Think if I go into the gym too much I might get back into it.

If you go to the high school gym you will be disappointed. I’ve attended many games this year at different classifications (haven’t watched a 2A game). There is a lot of ragged ball being played and the behavior of many teams is poor. You might want to get back on the floor and bring some good fundamental, skillful ball and good behavior/sportsmanship to at least one team.

I was looking at the scores of the playoffs. Half of the scores in girls games were 30-40-50 point differences. In the boys game, you go from games in the 70s to some in the 30s, points wise. Kids today, in general, cannot score. Every time I think I might want yo go back to the gym and coach, I watch a game and don’t know if I could stomach it. And that’s not even including the officiating.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

If you go to the high school gym you will be disappointed. I’ve attended many games this year at different classifications (haven’t watched a 2A game). There is a lot of ragged ball being played and the behavior of many teams is poor. You might want to get back on the floor and bring some good fundamental, skillful ball and good behavior/sportsmanship to at least one team.

I was looking at the scores of the playoffs. Half of the scores in girls games were 30-40-50 point differences. In the boys game, you go from games in the 70s to some in the 30s, points wise. Kids today, in general, cannot score. Every time I think I might want yo go back to the gym and coach, I watch a game and don’t know if I could stomach it. And that’s not even including the officiating.

After a year out, I don’t think I miss it. I miss coaching and competing, but there are a laundry list of things I don’t miss.

Looking at the brackets about the only place where you can honestly take a true public school and have a legitimate chance to win a title would be A & AAAA. Too much cheating in AAAAA at the top. And the “Prep Schools” have a lock down on AA/AAA.

A lot of what I don’t miss you have alluded to. The poor attitudes start at home, but that’s a losing battle today. My hat is off to those that are trying to fight it.

A lot of the bad basketball can be attributed to school administrations making hiring decisions about basketball with little to no knowledge about the game. There are some poor coaches allowed to recycle through head coaching jobs because they are well connected. There are some good ones working hard as assistants but will never get a shot or second chance but are very deserving. This is true of all professions though and certainly not limited to basketball.

Too much transferring and recruiting at the high school level for my liking. That isn’t changing. I’ll never say never but I will say highly unlikely I’ll ever go back. I have more time to spend with my kids, travel and enjoy the hobbies I like.

Basketball has become year round at the high school level. Too much BS from parents and kids. Lack of administrative support that will cave like a cheap tent at the first sign of adversity. I could go on and on….best to let others fight those battles. It’s been a good run.

 

[uscedge21]

We can't let Martin go if it means losing out on the top recruit in the nation. His mother apparently likes Frank a lot. Recruiting may pick up a bit if this guy commits and it was stated earlier that recruiting is Coach Martin's biggest problem. The answer to the op's question should be a no brainer....

 

[Sending an SOS]

We can't let Martin go if it means losing out on the top recruit in the nation. His mother apparently likes Frank a lot. Recruiting may pick up a bit if this guy commits and it was stated earlier that recruiting is Coach Martin's biggest problem. The answer to the op's question should be a no brainer....

It depends on which recruiting rankings you look at. I see him as the #8 recruit - still great considering our top ranked recruit since rankings have been generated was PJ Dozier at #25.

Lots of things change with these recruits, and I don’t know if you keep a coach around because of one. CFM is a little different only because he still has us hovering towards bubble status in most years. That’s not good enough, but maybe it is in order to see this out. Who knows?

 

[adcoop]

After a year out, I don’t think I miss it. I miss coaching and competing, but there are a laundry list of things I don’t miss.

Looking at the brackets about the only place where you can honestly take a true public school and have a legitimate chance to win a title would be A & AAAA. Too much cheating in AAAAA at the top. And the “Prep Schools” have a lock down on AA/AAA.

A lot of what I don’t miss you have alluded to. The poor attitudes start at home, but that’s a losing battle today. My hat is off to those that are trying to fight it.

A lot of the bad basketball can be attributed to school administrations making hiring decisions about basketball with little to no knowledge about the game. There are some poor coaches allowed to recycle through head coaching jobs because they are well connected. There are some good ones working hard as assistants but will never get a shot or second chance but are very deserving. This is true of all professions though and certainly not limited to basketball.

Too much transferring and recruiting at the high school level for my liking. That isn’t changing. I’ll never say never but I will say highly unlikely I’ll ever go back. I have more time to spend with my kids, travel and enjoy the hobbies I like.

Basketball has become year round at the high school level. Too much BS from parents and kids. Lack of administrative support that will cave like a cheap tent at the first sign of adversity. I could go on and on….best to let others fight those battles. It’s been a good run.

You hit the nail on the head about the transferring and I think that is what hurts the quality of basketball. I actually think there are more talented players than usual in South Carolina. However, it’s hard to build a team because even the 12th guy on the bench thinks he has a chance at a college scholarship and will transfer on you if his parents don’t feel he is getting the playing time he deserves. On top of that, the prep schools and Collegiate Academies start sniffing around as soon as a player has 2-3 good games. So, the talent is diluted at the top and the bottom. You might have 3-4 kids on a roster that would in past years not make a varsity roster, but you need the bodies. You have guys starting that would normally be good guys in your rotation and that is going to affect the quality of play.

 

[DeeDave]

After a year out, I don’t think I miss it. I miss coaching and competing, but there are a laundry list of things I don’t miss.

Looking at the brackets about the only place where you can honestly take a true public school and have a legitimate chance to win a title would be A & AAAA. Too much cheating in AAAAA at the top. And the “Prep Schools” have a lock down on AA/AAA.

A lot of what I don’t miss you have alluded to. The poor attitudes start at home, but that’s a losing battle today. My hat is off to those that are trying to fight it.

A lot of the bad basketball can be attributed to school administrations making hiring decisions about basketball with little to no knowledge about the game. There are some poor coaches allowed to recycle through head coaching jobs because they are well connected. There are some good ones working hard as assistants but will never get a shot or second chance but are very deserving. This is true of all professions though and certainly not limited to basketball.

Too much transferring and recruiting at the high school level for my liking. That isn’t changing. I’ll never say never but I will say highly unlikely I’ll ever go back. I have more time to spend with my kids, travel and enjoy the hobbies I like.

Basketball has become year round at the high school level. Too much BS from parents and kids. Lack of administrative support that will cave like a cheap tent at the first sign of adversity. I could go on and on….best to let others fight those battles. It’s been a good run.

I don't know anything about this but it appears to me some schools have coaches that really know basketball - and some just have someone that is willing to coach basketball.

 

[kidrobinski]

I see the reference to this kid wanting to go to North Carolina; that is something we are, will, and always have faced, and if Dean Smith himself was still alive we could have brought him down here and it would have made no difference. There are teams like NC that are simply sexy to these kids and their friends (see Seventh Woods) that they won’t risk regret at not going, and others schools that simply use tactics that we do not. For those reasons I always get frustrated when I see fans thinking everything is simply a matter of “recruiting” and this and that is “not acceptable.”

Truthfully if Martin would just quit with the drama on the sidelines I’d have zero problem with him.

 

[Neanderthal]

After a year out, I don’t think I miss it. I miss coaching and competing, but there are a laundry list of things I don’t miss.

Looking at the brackets about the only place where you can honestly take a true public school and have a legitimate chance to win a title would be A & AAAA. Too much cheating in AAAAA at the top. And the “Prep Schools” have a lock down on AA/AAA.

A lot of what I don’t miss you have alluded to. The poor attitudes start at home, but that’s a losing battle today. My hat is off to those that are trying to fight it.

A lot of the bad basketball can be attributed to school administrations making hiring decisions about basketball with little to no knowledge about the game. There are some poor coaches allowed to recycle through head coaching jobs because they are well connected. There are some good ones working hard as assistants but will never get a shot or second chance but are very deserving. This is true of all professions though and certainly not limited to basketball.

Too much transferring and recruiting at the high school level for my liking. That isn’t changing. I’ll never say never but I will say highly unlikely I’ll ever go back. I have more time to spend with my kids, travel and enjoy the hobbies I like.

Basketball has become year round at the high school level. Too much BS from parents and kids. Lack of administrative support that will cave like a cheap tent at the first sign of adversity. I could go on and on….best to let others fight those battles. It’s been a good run.

I won’t get back into it, either. Retired a few years ago after 40 years of it. The local coach says “help me with some off-season drills to improve skills” and then the clincher for staying home “but be ready to show up on the floor for work and a lot of them won’t show up.” It’s sad when you have to spend time keeping others from taking players that you have developed since 6th grade and now when you want to see the fruition of their work with you on your court seeing they are now somewhat “ready,” some sneak who can’t coach sells them a pipe dream and steals them away.

 

[Freddie.B.Cocky]

I have no inside information but from what I've read, I think it's UNC all the way. Unless, we come up with a inordinate amount of NIL money.

 

[vidaliagamecock]

I've seen this movie before. We never had a real shot at Zion because the money came through at Duke. Any thoughts we have a shot ant GG are just fantasy.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

I have no inside information but from what I've read, I think it's UNC all the way. Unless, we come up with a inordinate amount of NIL money.

Time to break out the suitcase

 

[kidrobinski]

Unfortunately I believe that to be true; become pretty obvious mof over the recent years. Is it worth it to the university alone; doubt it, and we don’t have the plethora of deep pocket donors that other schools enjoy alas.

 

[Conway Gamecock]

My best vision for this scenario is, Jackson continues to show interest in the Frank Martin program > Frank Martin earns an extension to his contract due to this > Jackson then chooses to go elsewhere - most likely to UNC - saying he only showed USC interest due to them being a hometown program > USC goes .500 for the next 3 seasons under Martin > UNC boosters work to come up with the next scenario to keep their advantage over USC......

 

[andersoncountycock]

He won't be signing with Carolina. North Carolina yes

 

[Conway Gamecock]

My best vision for this scenario is, Jackson continues to show interest in the Frank Martin program > Frank Martin earns an extension to his contract due to this > Jackson then chooses to go elsewhere - most likely to UNC - saying he only showed USC interest due to them being a hometown program > USC goes .500 for the next 3 seasons under Martin > UNC boosters work to come up with the next scenario to keep their advantage over USC......

I mis-worded this: it's not so much my "best" vision, but it is what I most expect to have happen. My most preferred expectation would be a scenario that's entirely different from this, but.......

 

[DeeDave]

Everything that I have no read about this seems to indicate we've done everything we can possibly do. I can't think of anyone else from a pure recruiting perspective that we could do.

The young man has been to Frank's house to eat dinner with the staff and their wives and a few players. He's hung out with our players and said they made him feel like a member of the team. His dad was very impressed with how they were treated and showed the love of the staff and team and how they want him. The fans at the game were chanting they wanted him.

At least 2 former players have been to his high school games to watch him and encourage him.

Of course we all understand it's up to him to decide. He has the talent to be make a big impact anywhere. I would hope he'd choose do that at home where he is so badly wanted and needed by a staff that obviously has done everything they can to secure his talent.


As the father of a current college junior at USC, I am very happy that I can simply drive down to campus and take mine out to lunch anytime I want - as I did today.

He will flourish anywhere. Here he will be showcased. It's up to him.

 

[TAV31]

We should throw the bank at this guy. I've never seen a highlight. If a top 10 guy wants to possibly come here, we need to do everything possible to get him. It only takes one special player to make a bball team special. We have a good group now. If you add a superstar to that group, we could excel.

 

[kidrobinski]

We should throw the bank at this guy. I've never seen a highlight. If a top 10 guy wants to possibly come here, we need to do everything possible to get him. It only takes one special player to make a bball team special. We have a good group now. If you add a superstar to that group, we could excel.

You grew up lusting after Elizabeth Hurley. Elizabeth Hurley has now shown lust for you. Your parents offer you big time money and the chance to be a neighborhood hero to go for the less attractive neighbor girl across the street instead, who wants you desperately. You know you're a one and done and the big time money is going to come to you anyway. What you gonna do?

 

[Gamecockben1979]

We should throw the bank at this guy. I've never seen a highlight. If a top 10 guy wants to possibly come here, we need to do everything possible to get him. It only takes one special player to make a bball team special. We have a good group now. If you add a superstar to that group, we could excel.

In the words of Will Wade, it’s time to make a “strong a$$ offer”

 

[Gamecockben1979]

You grew up lusting after Elizabeth Hurley. Elizabeth Hurley has now shown lust for you. Your parents offer you big time money and the chance to be a neighborhood hero to go for the less attractive neighbor girl across the street instead, who wants you desperately. You know you're a one and done and the big time money is going to come to you anyway. What you gonna do?

This story hits home hard.

 

[ansoncock]

Everything that I have no read about this seems to indicate we've done everything we can possibly do. I can't think of anyone else from a pure recruiting perspective that we could do.

The young man has been to Frank's house to eat dinner with the staff and their wives and a few players. He's hung out with our players and said they made him feel like a member of the team. His dad was very impressed with how they were treated and showed the love of the staff and team and how they want him. The fans at the game were chanting they wanted him.

At least 2 former players have been to his high school games to watch him and encourage him.

Of course we all understand it's up to him to decide. He has the talent to be make a big impact anywhere. I would hope he'd choose do that at home where he is so badly wanted and needed by a staff that obviously has done everything they can to secure his talent.


As the father of a current college junior at USC, I am very happy that I can simply drive down to campus and take mine out to lunch anytime I want - as I did today.

He will flourish anywhere. Here he will be showcased. It's up to him.

GG can be a hero in is home state; or he can be just another really good UNC player. 😉

Either way, he will make it.

 

[GCDC1959]

Will Wade stared down the NCAA, but would you want him to marry your daughter?

 

[TAV31]

If I was Frank I would have someone I know offer the kid a million dollars to basically sign. It's a financial decision if nothing else for Frank.

 

[DeeDave]

This young man is not coming to South Carolina folks. I think we all know that.

I know, I know. But he's not. We've been down this road a lot of times.

 

[adcoop]

He may not go to any college. I see that he has G-League ignite in his Top 6 along with us, Duke, UNC, and Auburn.

 

[Gamecockben1979]

He may not go to any college. I see that he has G-League ignite in his Top 6 along with us, Duke, UNC, and Auburn.

I hope not. If he goes to the G league that could start a trend where the best players don’t even play college basketball anymore. I’ll admit the reasons are selfish but I’m 100 times more likely to watch a college game than a G league game.