GG Jackson, 2023's No. 1 prospect, nearing a college decision

The No. 1 ranked prospect in the 2023 class, GG Jackson, is very close to making a college decision. He told On3 an announcement could be coming within the next “three or four days, maybe a week.”

In early March, the five-star forward announced his six finalists – Auburn, Duke, Georgetown, North Carolina, South Carolina, and the G-League.

There were also rumors that Jackson could be reclassifying to 2022, but it looks like now he will remain in 2023.

South Carolina still in it?

A month ago, the general consensus and belief in recruiting circles was that Jackson would likely stay home and attend South Carolina. Even GG confesses he was very close to picking the Gamecocks.

“Pretty, freakin’ close, I’m not even going to lie,” Jackson said of how close he was to committing. “On my official visit, I had a lot of fun…I was pretty close.”

As you can imagine, there was a dramatic shift after South Carolina parted ways with head coach Frank Martin. The two have a very close relationship, one that dates back years. Martin recently accepted the head coaching gig at UMass and extended a scholarship offer to GG.

“(Frank) has been my guy for a lot of years. When he got let go at South Carolina, he offered me at UMass. That just showed our relationship because it shows he still wants me,” Jackson said.

Most South Carolina fans know it’s going to be an uphill battle in order to still land Jackson. However, a step was made in the right direction when the Gamecock’s new head coach, Lamont Paris, met with Jackson at his school earlier this week.

“I was waiting on him to come, I was really excited to meet him,” Jackson said of Paris. “He was a pretty cool, chill guy. He gave me his pitch and let me know that South Carolina still wants me.”

Despite the coaching change, Jackson still speaks highly of the hometown school.

“It’s home. It’s right in my backyard. It’s a place where I feel like I could build a legacy.”

Does Duke or UNC now stand the best chance?

After the head coaching change at South Carolina, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that Duke or North Carolina now makes the most sense for GG.

In a recent interview with On3’s Jamie Shaw, Jackson broke down his two official visits to the rival programs.

Duke: “It stood out how they prioritized me as their number one prospect in 2023. I liked how they broke down how I would fit, how I would play. Then they broke down how all the other prospects and players they were going after would fit in and play together. The atmosphere was great. The Crazies went crazy for me; that was cool. Overall the atmosphere there was just fun. I liked Durham, I mainly stayed around the campus, and I liked it.”

Duke commits, Sean Stewart and Jared McCain made it known at the USA Junior Minicamp in New Orleans this week that they want Jackson in Durham.

“Definitely, Sean (Stewart) and Jared (McCain),” Jackson said as to which players recruit him the hardest. “Everything I do, they gotta say ‘that’s that brotherhood!’, so they’re trying to get me to go with them.”

North Carolina: “It was a dream come true going there. What stuck out to me was everyone knew my name up there. Coach Hubert (Davis) stressed to everyone how much they needed me, and he showed me how much they needed me. He also showed me how they would use me, with in-game situations and how they were going to develop me.”

Side note: GG’s father is a die-hard UNC fan.

Auburn, Georgetown, and the G-League round out Jackson’s finalists but the three don’t add up.

Yes, Bruce Pearl visited GG Jackson a couple of weeks ago, but GG hasn’t visited the Tigers and it’s hard to commit to a school when you haven’t seen their campus. Jackson said he honestly “doesn’t know” whether or not he will visit Auburn, but I sure wouldn’t bet on it.

Georgetown hasn’t ever really been seen as much too much of a threat in this recruitment. Not to mention, the Hoyas finished 0-19 in the Big East conference this past season.

As I’ve mentioned in the past, the G-League tends to hang around in the shadows, but the current belief is that Jackson will attend college.