The 8 Things You’ll Either Love Or Hate On A GG Jackson NBA Draft Prospect Scouting Report
GG Jackson II was born on December 17, 2004. At the youthful age of just 18 Jackson possesses the type of potential that jumps off of a scouting report. Now whether you salivate or cringe at what jumps off the page is another story.
In this article I’ll discuss the 8 things that you’ll either love or hate on a GG Jackson NBA Draft prospect scouting report. But first let’s find out the answer to who is Gregory Jackson II?
Who is “GG Jackson”?
Gregory G.G Jackson II is a 2023 NBA Draft prospect from Columbia, South Carolina. On his journey to the NBA Jackson worked his way up the high school ranks to now starring at the collegiate level.
As a 5 star recruit out of Ridge View high school Jackson was one of the top players in the country. After reclassifying from the 2023 to 2022 class the final GG Jackson On3 ranking listed him as the 10th best player in his class.
Jackson was heavily recruited and received offers from several schools. Out of all the GG Jackson offers he ultimately narrowed his choices down to Georgetown, UNC, Duke, Auburn, South Carolina and the NBA G League.
While Jackson considered his options the 247 GG Jackson crystal ball projected UNC and South Carolina as the two schools with the best chance of landing him.
Jackson initially committed to UNC on April 27th, 2022. Then later decommitted on July 14th via twitter.
But why did GG Jackson decommit? In a nutshell Jackson’s decommitment tweet explains his desire to “explore other options” that would aide in his growth and put him in the best position to achieve his goal of making it to the NBA.
Decommitting from UNC opened the door for Jackson to become a Gamecock. On July 23rd Jackson announced his commitment to the South Carolina mens basketball program on Twitter. Then officially signed a national letter of intent to attend the University on July 25th, 2022.
I will like to announce that I will be reclassifying to the class of 2022, committing to the University of South Carolina to further my career and education. NOW LETS HAVE FUN FAMS!🤙🏾🐔 #HometownHero
— Gregory “GG” Jackson (@_ggjackson) July 23, 2022
GG Jackson is also a Gold Medal winner. He was a member of Team USA in the 2022 FIBA U18 Americas Championship. By participating in FIBA U18 Americas Championship Jackson joined the ranks of several competitors that eventually became NBA All Stars.
Some of the best u americas championship players that competed before Jackson include Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Deron Williams, Andre Iguodala, Kemba Walker, Kyrie Irving, Julius Randle, Andrew Wiggins, Jaylen Brown, Trae Young, and Jarret Allen.
Now that we know a little bit about the GG Jackson basketball journey and who he is let’s take a look at the 8 things you’ll either love or hate on a Gregory Jackson II NBA Draft scouting report.
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Love or Hate This GG Jackson Basketball Scouting Report
1. Jackson has the potential to fill two roles in the NBA
GG is a versatile prospect. One that has the potential to become a legit two way forward at either slot. The team that drafts him will have options for his development. Jackson can be developed into a combination of a 3&D small forward and a stretch four.
Listed at 6’ 9” 215 lbs Jackson has a solid basketball build. He’s lean, athletic, and a wiry type of strong. That’s good enough for a size advantage as an NBA three and average height at the four.
The 3 & D
As mentioned at 6’ 9” Jackson will have the height advantage at the small forward position on most nights at the next level. His defensive potential is evident. Plus he’s capable of knocking down a jump shot.
But if he’s ever going to be impactful in a 3&D role in the NBA he’ll first need to improve as a shooter while adjusting to the further distance of the NBA’s three point line. And if he wants to eventually evolve into an elite NBA three he’ll need to improve his handle.
The stretch 4
Jackson won’t have any glaring advantages at the NBA power forward slot. From a height standpoint he falls within the norm for the position at his size. But from a weight standpoint Jackson is at a disadvantage.
His quickness on the blocks are plus. But real value to the role can be found in how well he fulfills his potential to knock down shots and stretch the defense. Consistent reps will be the key to his success.
2. Potential to develop into a legitimate NBA scorer
Jackson’s offensive game is a work in progress. But the scoring potential is there. He’s a forward that’s offensively creativity with his spin moves, head fakes and step throughs.
Jackson is capable of creating his shot, finishing plays around the rim, knocking down jump shots, taking advantage of smaller post defenders, and cleaning the glass for 2nd chance points. Plus he’s not afraid to shoot.
Finishing plays at the basket and around the rim
Jackson can finish at the basket off the dribble. He’s also a solid target to finish guard penetration feeds and in transition.
Head fakes combined with nifty footwork such as drop steps, step throughs, jump stops, spin moves and changing direction off the pivot are some of the offensively creative ways that Jackson sets up his field goal attempts.
Jackson can finish with strong athletic dunks, floaters or layups with either hand. He has also shown the ability to finish through contact and fouls.
The post
Jackson takes advantage of smaller defenders in the post. He does a solid job of sealing shorter players to his outside hip. In the process he effectively creates over the top passing lanes to the basket. Jackson also comes equipped with pretty fade aways and decent jump hooks from the blocks.
Shooting
Whether creating off the dribble or catching & shooting Jackson is capable of knocking down a jumper. Plus his hand occasionally gets hot due to the streaky nature of his shot.
Jackson attacks with or without screens. He’s capable of creating separation with hesitations and crossovers. And when facing up Jackson can create his shot with a jab step and one dribble pull up.
There’s not much lift on his jumper. So it’s surprising to see fluid fadeaways and deep range shots from Jackson.
The range on his shot extends out to NBA territory. But you have to question Jackson’s ability to hit from NBA distance on a consistent basis. It’s yet to be seen.
3. The glass cleaner: A Knack for offensive rebounding
Jackson does the clean up work on the offensive glass for his self and teammates. He actively pursues rebounds as they comes off the rim.
The way he aggressively attacks the glass, his timing, awareness and ability to project how the ball will come of the rim is impressive. He’s quick off the ground for 2nd chance opportunities and clean up buckets.
4. Oozing Defensive potential
On the defensive end Jackson is alert, engaged and locked in on and off the ball. His athleticism and defensive efforts are undeniable. Defense will be his calling card in the NBA.
Jackson’s closeouts are under control. His hands are quick to recover loose balls. And he provides adequate help defense.
Jackson’s lateral movement is solid. He’s mobile and agile for a big. He slides his feet, bodies up all the way to basket when necessary.
Quick off his feet so he’s able to effectively contest, disrupt and block shots along the perimeter or at the basket. Jackson actively seeks to rebound the miss after contesting.
The type of defender that doesn’t give up on plays. He quickly gets back on defense after mistakes and missed shots. A defender that chases his man on curls and through staggered screens. When slowed you can expect Jackson fight through and still find a way to contest shots with effort.
One of the most impressive low key aspects of Jackson’s defense is his IQ. Or maybe it’s just his instincts. Either way his play to play adjustments are advanced for his age. When teams run the same play two possessions in a row don’t expect him to get taken advantage of twice.
Jackson shows potential and the desire needed to become a solid defender at the next level.
5. Offensively inefficient
Jackson has the potential to score efficiently. But there are several areas of his offensive game that must skill up to improve in this area. By turning these weaknesses into strengths he’ll be equipped to make a positive offensive impact at the next level.
Jackson can do wonders for his offensive efficiency if he corrects three things. First become a better shooter. Second stop settling for questionable shots. Third sharpen his handle. In turn Jackson will see an uptick in his shooting percentages.
Become a better shooter
Jackson can get better. It’s just going to take additional workouts and shooting reps from long distance. On game nights the rim will appear bigger to him after he consistently puts in the extra work.
Tighten up the handle
Compared to today’s NBA players Jackson’s ability to create clean scoring opportunities off the dribble on a consistent basis is below average to average at best. His handle as it stands is just not crisp enough to easily create for himself at the NBA level. If compared to small forwards his handle is far from the level of elite NBA threes.
Even though his handle is not where it needs to be it’s nothing to be alarmed about. At such a young age he has time to transform his handle from choppy to fluid. Plus it’s functional at his current skill level.
Jackson can put the ball the on the floor. He’s decent with one or two dribbles straight line attacks. And even good and quick enough to beat closeout defenders after lifting them off their feet with head fakes.
Plus his handle does go beyond the basics. Jackson is able to change direction and pace with crossovers, behind the back dribbles, hesitations and spin moves. Once he skills up he’ll less likely settle for questionable shots.
Stop settling for questionable shots
Because of Jackson’s limited handle he often resorts to back down dribbles and settles for closely guarded forced or tough shots.
Once in backdown mode he often relies on fadeaways. But those fadeaways are questionable at times. Especially when he settles from 15 feet and out against much smaller defenders.
6. Turnover prone
Jackson is currently averaging 2.6 turnovers per game. Those turnovers stem from forcing action, not being adept at creating off the dribble to problematic deflected or stolen errant passes. Needless to say there’s much room for Jackson to improve his decision making when handling the ball.
Jackson has potential as a passer. He’ll will surprise you occasionally with his vision and nice bounce pass assists. But for a non primary ball handler Jackson is weak overall with ball.
His turnovers are often demoralizing. The type of errors that lead to easy transition baskets for the opposition.
7. Free throw shooting can improve
Free throw percentages speak for themselves. His are not horrible. But there’s much room for Jackson to improve from the foul line.
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8. NCAA Season Stats
| GAMES PLAYED | 10 |
| MINUTES PER GAME | 34 |
| POINTS PER GAME | 17.4 |
| USAGE RATE | 29.4 |
| FIELD GOALS/ATTEMPTS | 6.6-15.2 |
| FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE | 43.4 |
| THREE POINTERS/ATTEMPTS | 1.8-4.9 |
| THREE POINT PERCENTAGE | 36.7 |
| FREE THROWS | 2.4-3.6 |
| FREE THROW PERCENTAGE | 66.7 |
| REBOUNDS PER GAME | 6.8 |
| ASSIST PER GAME | 0.7 |
| TURNOVERS PER GAME | 2.6 |
| STEALS PER GAME | 0.8 |
| BLOCKS PER GAME | 0 |
| PERSONAL FOULS | 1.7 |
Hate it or love it
Love or hate, salivate or cringe over Jackson’s potential. The final version of the GG Jackson South Carolina journey is yet to be written. The player you see today won’t be the same player in March.
So if you’re currently on the hate side of the coin here’s a G.G. Jackson prediction for you. Expect continued growth and your opinion will flip by the end of the season.
