RJ Sunahara, Division II Player of the Year, commits to Georgia
Georgia Basketball appears to have rounded out its roster for 2023-24 again. Tuesday’s commitment of Noah Thomasson was followed by a Wednesday transfer portal entry by Jusaun Holt, thus opening up a scholarship spot. Well, on Thursday, Division II star RJ Sunahara announced his decision to transfer to Georgia, filling that final spot a second time.
A 6-foot-8, 210-pound forward out of Nova Southeastern University in the Fort Lauderdale area, Sunahara helped lead the Sharks to an undefeated season and a NCAA Division II national championship this past season. Sunahara averaged 18.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game on his way winning Player of the Year for the Division II ranks from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Scoring 28 points with grabbing nine rebounds, Sunahara was named NCAA Division II Final Four co-Most Outstanding Player. He also earned a spot as a First-Team All-American and the Bevo Francis Award for the top player in all divisions below Division I.
Sunahara visited Georgia last weekend. He also took a trip to Notre Dame and had one planned to West Virginia where his father Reed is the head volleyball coach. Sunahara has one year of eligibility remaining.
Sunahara spent four years at Nova Southeastern after initially being recruited Fairmont State University where he redshirted under head coach Joe Mazzulla. After Mazzulla moved on to the NBA – now head coach of the Boston Celtics – Sunahara landed at Nova Southeastern. He earned Sunshine State Conference Freshman of the Year in 2019-20 starting all 28 games in which he appeared. Then, after the 2020-21 season was cancelled due to COVID-19, Sunahara became an even bigger part of the Sharks’ success.
Over the course of two years, Nova Southeastern went 67-1. Sunahara averaged 19.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game in 2021-22 as his team carried an undefeated record and No. 1 ranking into the NCAA Division II Tournament where they were upset in the Elite Eight. He started and scored in double figures in all 30 games that season including 14 performances with 20+ points. Then, in 2022-23, Sunahara topped his previous career-high of 30 points three times with 32 versus Florida Southern, 36 against Eckerd and a career-high 41 in December versus Bluefield State. Sunahara made 18 of his 24 field goal attempts that night, both career highs as well. Maybe more impressively, he did not make a 3-pointer and only took one in the outing.
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Sunahara joins a Georgia team that has turned over quite a bit this offseason. The Bulldogs have four players set to return from last year’s squad that went 16-16: Jabri Abdur-Rahim, Frank Anselem-Ibe, Justin Hill and Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe. Since season’s end though, seven players have departed the program (Terry Roberts – professional, Kario Oquendo – transfer/Oregon, Jaxon Etter – eligibility, Mardrez McBride – eligibility, Jailyn Ingram – eligibility, Braelen Bridges – eligibility, Jusaun Holt – transfer/TBD). To replace them, Mike White and company have already landed eight newcomers, four from the high school ranks and four more from the transfer portal.
Silas Demary Jr. and Blue Cain, both top-100 players according to the On3 Industry Ranking, joined Georgia’s Class of 2023 – now ranked No. 18 in the country – after signing elsewhere in November. Demary (USC) and Cain (Georgia Tech) got out of their respective National Letters of Intent and committed to come to Georgia.
Georgia signed a pair of players in November too. Dylan James, a top-100 player in his own right, and Mari Jordan were in the Bulldogs’ Class of 2023 before the season ended.
Then, in the transfer portal, additions have included: RJ Melendez (Illinois), Jalen DeLoach (VCU), Russel Tchewa (South Florida) and Noah Thomasson (Niagara). Georgia’s transfer class prior to the commitment of Sunahara ranked No. 17 in the country.
