4-star big man Jayden Hastings updates recruitment

Jayden Hastings, a 6-foot-9 power forward out of Orlando Chrisitan Prep holds a handful of offers, but expect his list to grow as we enter the summer live periods. The big man has been offered by USF, St. Johns, USC, Penn State, Dayton, Florida, Georgia Tech, and Virginia Tech. He’s also started to gain interest from UCF, Stanford, and Iona.

So far, Hastings has only taken one unofficial visit to Georgia Tech.

“It was good,” Hastings said. “It was my first time looking at a school other than UCF, which is right down the street. It was a good experience. Their coaches talked to me a lot and showed me different things, and how I could fit at the school so it was a good first experience and I’m looking forward to the rest of them.”

Official visits

Hastings hasn’t scheduled any official visits just yet, but he does have an idea of which schools he’d like to see.

“USC, Florida, and Virginia Tech,” he said. The Orlando native also says he’s open to any other schools that enter the mix.

He broke down what he likes about each school.

USC: “USC has a lot of NBA guys that came from there. Education wise too, it’s a very prominent school. It would be a great school for me to go to and get better, but it’s really far though. So I’ll need to make a visit there to see if it’s somewhere where I want to go.”

Florida: “I watched the Gators growing up too, and their national championship runs. That’s a school that once I got an offer from, it was really surprising. They have good education as well.”

Virginia Tech: “I haven’t communicated with their coaches a lot, but their head coach gave me an offer before the start of the high school season. That’s somewhere I would like to visit, and just keep them on my radar. I know by the time the summer starts, the communication will come back, like once their season ends. It’s a school I’m looking forward to having more contact with and learning more about.”

Hastings’ wish list

Although they haven’t offered, Hastings has taken a liking to three different programs – Florida State, Texas, and Texas Tech.

“Those are three schools I could really see myself at,” Hastings said.

He discussed what he likes about each school.

Florida State: “My mom went there, and I’ve been up there a couple of times. That would be a dream school for me. Even some of the players that came from there, like Jonathan Isaac, I really admire his game and what he did at Florida State.”

Texas: “Jarrett Allen, Kai Jones, Mo Bamba, those guys really showed their athleticism. They don’t do really do a bunch of dribbling or on-the-ball things but they can catch-and-shoot, and do a little bit of everything, but mostly play a lot of defense. So that’s where I can see myself do great, playing strong defense, for any college.”

Texas Tech: “I was just looking at colleges and I think Texas Tech’s defense is really good. So that’s somewhere I could see myself playing. As of recently, I was just watching some videos and some film on colleges and they play their butts off.”

Education will play a major role

“Education is important,” Hastings says. “Schools like Georgia Tech, Florida, USC, schools like that. Education will definitely play a big part because of life after basketball. Just a school where I can play the four, but not always play with my back to the basket. Wherever I can develop myself, beyond just on the floor.”

What does Hastings bring to his future college?

“Rebounding, second-chance points, blocking shots, playing good defense. I can do a bit of playmaking with my back to the basket, knock in a jump hook. I do a lot of the little things.”

2023 Jayden Hastings @JaydenCHasting1 of @ocphoops + @TeamBreakdown continued to impress in a high level matchup v Oak Ridge

6’9 big is elite rim protector, outstanding vertical lob threat with impressive vision as a passer

One of the most undervalued sophomores in the country pic.twitter.com/piHc0hCen6

— Endless Motor Sports (@endless_motor) January 29, 2021

The On3 Consensus – a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies – ranks Hastings as the 44th-best prospect in the country.

On3’s evaluators are even higher on him, ranking him the No. 35 overall player, and No. 3 power forward in the 2023 On3 Top 50.