Ashton Hagans’ de-commitment a blow to Georgia’s recruiting
It hasn’t been often that Georgia has landed a 5-star recruit for its basketball program, so when it has one, it’s a big deal.
When that player de-commits, that’s also a big deal, and that’s exactly what happened Monday night. Amid the uncertainty with coach Mark Fox and his future, 5-star point guard Ashton Hagans withdrew his commitment to the Bulldogs’ 2019 class.
Chris Williams, Hagans’ AAU coach, told DawgNation’s Seth Emerson, that the de-commitment is a reaction to the uncertainty over whether Fox will be at Georgia beyond this season.
“That’s it, yes. Fox and [assistant coach Jonas] Hayes did a great job recruiting Ashton. Nothing more, nothing less,” Williams said. “Not ruling UGA out, just decided to open the recruitment back up at this time.”
It’s not clear what will happen next with Hagans or Fox, but Hagans is certainly a key to Georgia’s recruiting. The Bulldogs have one other player in their 2019 class so far in Shiloh’s Elias King.
If Hagans does indeed sign with Georgia, he will be the first 5-star signee for the program since Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in 2011 and only the second since 2003, according to 247Sports. The other was Lou Williams, who signed with Georgia but instead headed to the NBA straight out of high school in 2005.
Since 2003, the Bulldogs haven’t had much luck with their 4-star signees. Corey Gibbs was listed as a 4-star recruit in 2003 but lasted only 2 seasons with the program.
In 2004, Sundiata Gaines signed with the Bulldogs and became a terrific player for the program, while Channing Toney lasted 2 seasons before transferring to UAB.
In 2005, Williams was joined by Mike Mercer and Rashaad Singleton. Mercer played 2 seasons for Georgia before transferring to South Florida, while Singleton played 3 seasons with Georgia before playing his final season at Florida Southern.
There were no 4-star signees in 2006, and the lone 4-star signee in 2007 was Jeremy Price, who became a solid player for the Bulldogs.
The next year brought 4-stars signees in Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie, and both became stars for the Bulldogs before leaving for the NBA after their junior seasons.
There were no 4-star signees in the 2009, 2010 or 2011 classes, and Houston Kessler joined the program in 2012 and was a rotational player for the program. The 2013, 2014 and 2015 classes didn’t have a 4-star signee, but 2016 brought Tyree Crump, and 2017 brought Rayshaun Hammonds.
Hammonds is averaging 6.7 points per game this season, while Crump is averaging 6.0 points.
