COLUMBIA, S.C. — With his one season of college in the rear view mirror, South Carolina Gamecocks men’s basketball player GG Jackson is officially turning pro.
Jackson announced on social media that he is declaring for the 2023 NBA Draft.
The 6-9 forward came to South Carolina after an intense recruiting battle which was originally won by North Carolina. Jackson committed to the Tar Heels in April, but during the summer Jackson decided to reclassify for the Class of 2022. He had been rated as the top prospect nationally for the Class of 2023 but by sliding back into the Class of 2022, Jackson was still a top 10 prospect based on the recruiting rankings.
In his one season at South Carolina, Jackson averaged 15.4 points on 38.4 percent shooting and 5.9 rebounds. His highest scoring output came against Auburn on Jan. 21 as he scored 30 points. Jackson landed on the SEC All-Freshman Team which was impressive for the former 5-star prospect who was still 17 years of age for the first month of the college basketball season.
Jackson’s decision to reclassify for 2022 allowed him to get a jump start on his college career which would in turn accelerate his NBA arrival and that is now officially on the horizon.
The 6-9 Jackson spent a lot of time on the perimeter for the Gamecocks and worked to develop his outside shot. He finished 55-of 170 on 3-pointers for a .324 shooting percentage from beyond the arc. Jackson is projected by several mock drafts to be a mid-first round pick in NBA Draft which is set for Thursday night, June 22 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.