Georgia basketball program tracker: Player movement, staff changes and other news

Georgia men's basketball has a new coach in Mike White who moved within the SEC after seven seasons at Florida.

Check here for updates on roster additions and subtractions, staff hires and other Bulldog basketball news.

June 10: Georgia offered 2024 top 40 prospect Asa Newell the week after Mike White was hired as head coach.

Now his brother is coming to Georgia this season as a walk-on.

Jaden Newell committed to the Bulldogs as a walk-on, according to Darryl Hardin, co-founder of 1Family Basketball a program where Newell played. The 6-foot-8, 220-pound Newell drew some Division I interest out of Choctawhatchee High School in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

Asa also played for Choctawhatchee but is transferring to national power Montverde Academy. He is the nation's No. 37 overall prospect and the No. 5 ranked power forward by the 247Sports Composite.

Georgia's current roster before the addition of Jaden Newell has 12 players. That includes Jaxon Etter, a walk-on who withdrew his name from the transfer portal. White has two scholarships remaining.

May 11: Jaxon Etter, who walked on to Georgia and became a major contributor, has decided to stay with the Bulldogs after putting his name in the transfer portal.

The 6-foot-4 Etter, from Etowah, announced his decision on Wednesday evening via Twitter.

He thanked coach Mike White and staff "for allowing me the opportunity to stay at the University of Georgia," Etter said. "I'd sincerely like to thank the fans that have been there through thick and thin."

Etter went in the transfer portal on April 7. He started 22 games last year as a junior, averaging 5.1 points and 2.9 rebounds per game and on the defensive end often drew charges from opposing players.

Etter is the fifth player from last year's team expected to play next season for the Bulldog. He joins Kario Oquendo, Braelen Bridges, Jabri Abdur-Rahim and Jailyn Ingram.

May 11: Georgia is expected to bring aboard a new head strength and conditioning coach.

Collin Crane, who held the same role at Mississippi State, is headed to Georgia, the Jackson Clarion-Ledger reported citing new coach Chris Jans. That was confirmed this week by the Athens Banner-Herald although Georgia has made no announcement.

UPDATE: Georgia announced the hire on May 12. His official title is director of athletic performance for men’s basketball.

“I would like to thank the University of Georgia administration and Coach White for the opportunity to join the men’s basketball program,” Crane said in a statement. “I think Coach White is one of the best leaders in all of college basketball. He has a great vision for the future, and I look forward to helping build the program up to its full potential. I will work relentlessly to develop our student-athletes both mentally and physically as we prepare to compete at the highest level.”

Sean Hayes, who oversaw the Bulldogs' strength and conditioning program since 2010 under Mark Fox and Tom Crean, is staying at Georgia. He will work with the volleyball program and another UGA program to be determined.

Crane spent five seasons heading up strength and conditioning under Ben Howland in Starkville and served in the same role at Chattanooga from 2015-17. The Carson-Newman graduate also worked with the strength programs at Missouri State and at Florida under Billy Donovan as an assistant.

"Crane was one of the first strength coaches to partner with Mississippi State’s Athlete Engineering Program," according to his Mississippi State bio. "The multidisciplinary research collaboration between the university’s academic and athletic departments explores human performance, processes and analysis."

April 30: Quite the busy day for Georgia to add to its basketball roster.

North Texas transfer Mardrez McBride announced his commitment to Georgia on Twitter.

The 6-foot-2, 180-pound guard from Augusta's Butler High School averaged 11.3 points, third on the team last season. He started every game when he led the team with 79 3-pointers and Conference USA in 3-point shooting at 44.0 percent. He also averaged 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.

He played previously at USC Salkehatchie and McCook College. McBride was a senior last season but is taking advantage of the extra COVID year offered by the NCAA after two seasons at North Texas.

April 30: Mike White has a commitment from his first high school player.

It's KyeRon Lindsay, who was released from his letter of intent with UNLV.

Lindsay, a 6-foot-8, 205-pound forward from Denton, Texas, signed with UNLV in November. The four-star recruit is ranked the nation's No. 87 overall prospect by the 247Sports Composite.

"He is extremely talented, versatile and skilled at his size, which gives him the ability to play and guard multiple positions on the court," UNLV coach Lon Kruger said in a statement then.

Lindsay averaged 19 points and 11 rebounds a game as a junior at Guyer High School.

April 30: Georgia has added a fifth transfer for Mike White's first Bulldogs team.

Syracuse's Frank Anselem, a 6-foot-10, 215-pound center from Nigeria, announced his commitment on Twitter Saturday afternoon.

Anselem played at Westlake High and Lincoln Academy in Georgia and Prolif Prep in Napa Valley, Calif. He also visited Georgetown.

As a sophomore last season, Anselem averaged 2.6 points and 3.8 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per game. He shot 62.5 percent from the field, was second on the team with 17 blocks. He started six games for the Orange--all near the end of the season--and had 15 rebounds and 9 points in an ACC tournament game against Florida State.

April 25: Georgia has picked up a commitment from Oklahoma State transfer Matthew- Alexander Moncrieffe, according to a post on his Instagram page.

The 6-foot-7, 215-pound Toronto native averaged 4.2 points and 3.9 rebounds in 14.8 minutes per game last season as a sophomore. He started 7 of 30 games in which he played and shot 51.0 percent from the floor.

Moncrieffe was third on the team last season with 13 dunks and grabbed 10 rebounds against Wichita State and scored 11 points against Cleveland State.

Moncrieffe averaged 9.0 points and 5.3 rebounds as a freshman when current Bulldogs assistant Erik Pastrana was on staff. Moncrieffe was a four-star recruit out of Orangeville Prep.

He's the fourth transfer to commit to Mike White and the Bulldogs.

April 21: Mike White and staff have picked up their third transfer commitment for Georgia.

This one comes within the conference from Alabama.

Jusaun Holt, a 6-foot-6 wing who played at St. Francis Day in Roswell, announced on Twitter he's committed to the Bulldogs.

The former four-star prospect whose hometown is listed as Tacoma, Wash. played in 22 games as a reserve last season for the Crimson Tide as a true freshman. He averaged 0.7 points and 1.6 rebounds a game in 6.9 minutes per game and was 5 of 25 from the field.

Holt was the No. 6 rated player in Georgia in the class of 2021 by the 247Sports Composite.

April 18: Georgia basketball picked up its second transfer commitment of the offseason when guard Terry Roberts announced on a Monday afternoon Instagram post he's joining the Bulldogs.

Roberts led Bradley in scoring at 14.5 points per game and averaged a conference-leading 4.1 assists to go along with 4.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game. The 6-foot-3 Roberts had transferred from Florida Southwestern State where Kario Oquendo also played.

Roberts, a North Amityville, N.Y., native was the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Year last season as a junior.  He made 40 of 117 3-pointers and had 128 total assists with 95 turnovers.

Mike White also landed a commitment from Longwood guard Justin Hill.

April 13: Kario Oquendo is back in the fold at Georgia. The Bulldogs' leading scorer from last season put his name in the transfer portal last week, but decided to return to the team, giving a big boost to Mike White's first UGA squad.

April 12: Mike White has filled his final assistant coach position by hiring Antonio Reynolds Dean off Clemson's staff after five seasons. Reynolds Dean will have the title associate head coach.

He gives Georgia's coaching staff an Atlanta connection as a former standout post player at Douglass High who went on to play and coach at Rhode Island.

"I'm thrilled to welcome Antonio home to Georgia," White said in a statement. "There is a common thread throughout every step of Antonio's basketball career – winning. As a player, he and his teams excelled at the high school, collegiate and professional levels. He was a two-time all-state player at Douglass High, one of the Georgia's traditional powerhouse programs, and a hall-of-famer at Rhode Island, where he led URI to three NCAA Tournaments including an Elite Eight."

He continued: "His reputation as a winner has been further solidified during his coaching career as he consistently helped produce teams that play into the postseason. Equally important, Antonio is universally regarded as an excellent recruiter who develops his players. Everywhere he's coached, he's signed major contributors and developed all-conference post players."

Reynolds Dean, 45, worked with the post players at Clemson including Aamir Sims who led Clemson in points rebounds and assists for two straight seasons including 13.4 points and 6.4 rebounds in 2020-2021.

"I'm extremely excited," Reynolds Dean said. "I've coach all around the country for various years, and there is nothing that would excite me more than coaching in my home state at the University of Georgia. I am overcome with joy because I'm a competitor and I can't wait to join with Coach White and his staff in the mission to restore the tradition of Georgia Basketball. I am grateful that Coach White has given me this opportunity and can't wait to get started. Go Dawgs!"

Reynolds Dean also coached at Northeastern for five seasons and the College of Charleston for one.

April 11: And make it 10 Georgia players to enter the transfer portal.

Noah Baumann, who spent one season with the Bulldogs, has entered the portal, he confirmed to the Athens Banner-Herald . Baumann started 20 games last season after transferring from Southern Cal.

He led the Bulldogs with 49 3-pointers, shooting .407 percent on 3s, averaging 8.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-6 Baumann played out of position at the power forward spot after Jailyn Ingram was lost for a knee injury.

Baumann said in a message he wished Georgia and White well.

"Really enjoyed my time and ultimately the decision to play and coach basketball is still a dream," Baumann said. "Whatever my best possibility is to play for a team that needs and wants me is important."

The Phoenix native already transferred after spending his first three seasons at San Jose State. He will be a graduate transfer this time.

Baumann's move leaves just three scholarship players currently still on the roster from last year's team: Jabri Abdur-Rahim, Braelen Bridges and Jailyn Ingram (coming off an ACL tear).

April 8: Mike White is bringing back former Georgia basketball guard Charles Mann to his support staff.

Mann confirmed he will become director of player development (NOTE: Georgia announced the title as director of recruiting on April 19). Mann spent the last season as an assistant coach at Army and spent the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant at VCU where he earned a master's degree.

"My heart is in Athens, home grown from the state of Georgia," Mann, a 2016 UGA grad, said in a message to the Athens Banner-Herald. "Always had my eyes on a possible reunion here. Seeing coach Mike White get the job, and I know it was a no brainer that this is where I wanted to come and be apart of. I can learn so much from him and his staff. Have great respect for Coach white and I wanna be apart of his era. Good things are coming to Athens!"

Mann, who played in high school at Milton and Union Grove, ranks sixth in program history in assists (400) and 13th in scoring (1,411 points). He played for Mark Fox from 2012-16.

April 8: A couple of things to pass along today.

Jonathan Ned, who didn't play a game this past season and took part in the Senior Day ceremony, has put his name in the transfer portal, per Verbalcommits.com, becoming the ninth player from last season's team to do so.

Ned had an ankle injury in December and didn't dress out at all during SEC play. Tom Crean said at the end of the regular season Ned "hasn't been available to us. This should turn into a redshirt year for him, when it's all said and done, because I don't envision him not being able to play."

The 6-foot-9 Eastern Florida State transfer played in 14 games in 2020-2021, averaging 1.6 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.

Georgia also announced Julie Danielson as video coordinator, a position she had the last last season under White at Florida. She was a scouting assistant for two seasons with the Gators before than and spent six seasons on staff at Wisconsin as student manager and graduate manager.

April 7: Mike White has hired another staffer that was with him at Florida.

Bryce Douglas will hold the title special assistant to the head coach and director of scouting. He was with White for five seasons with the Gators.

The Tacoma, Wash., native also spent two seasons as a scout with the Phoenix Suns and was on the support staff at Duke in 2014-15 during a national championship season.

"Bryce has a huge work capacity and a passion for analytics," White said. "He's become very integral relative to our scouting efforts and more. His roles are diverse and numbered."

April 7: Walk-on Jaxon Etter is now also in the transfer portal, he confirmed to the Banner-Herald. That brings the total from last season's team in the portal to eight. Etter declined to comment on the move.

"I'm going to hold off on making a statement as of right now," he said in a message.

Etter was a major contributor last season, starting 22 games. He averaged 5.1 points and 2.9 rebounds per game and had a penchant for drawing charges on the defensive end. He shot .432 percent from the field.

The junior was made available after White's introductory press conference March 15 and said: "You can feel the energy and the excitement around the guys, the managers, the GAs. Everyone's excited for a fresh start."

Now, he's joined seven teammates in the transfer portal.

April 7: Junior center Ty McMillan becomes the seventh Georgia player to enter the transfer portal. Verbalcommits.com was the first to report the move.

The 6-foot-9, 220-pound McMillan averaged 7.7 minutes per game this past season in 21 games, averaging 1.7 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. He played in just one of the final eight regular season games.

"I know his mindset was getting to know Mike White," Brian Hoberecht, who coached McMillan for two seasons at Kilgore College in Texas told the Banner-Herald on Thursday morning. "Last time I talked to him, he and coach White were going to take some time to get to know each other."

If you missed it, here's our story today looking at the number of players and reasons they are exiting the program after the coaching change.

Four scholarship players currently still on the roster from last year's team: Jabri Abdur-Rahim, Braelen Bridges, Noah Baumann and Jailyn Ingram (coming off an ACL tear).

April 6: Make it six players now in the transfer portal with sophomore guard Kario Oquendo--the top scorer last season--and reserve forward Josh Taylor--the latest to put their names in the portal. Here's the details on that and the four others from this past year's team.

April 5: Georgia's entire freshman class from this past season has entered the transfer portal today with word that guard Christian Wright has entered the portal. That's according to Matt Zenitz of On3.com.

Wright started 11 games this season, averaging 5.3 points and 2.2 rebounds per game and finishing second on the team with 63 total assists. He shot 34.8 percent on the season.

The 6-foot-3, 185-pounder from Alpharetta played at The Skill Factory.

April 5: Make it a second Georgia basketball player in the transfer portal today.

Forward Tyrone Baker joined Cam McDowell in the portal, according to multiple reports, the first by Verbalcommits.com.

Baker and McDowell were two of three high school players to sign in the 2021 recruiting class.

The 6-11, 210-pound Baker is from Fort Myers, Fla,, but played as a senior at Hightower (Texas) High. He played in only three games last season, scoring 2 points with 2 rebounds in 10 total minutes. He did not see action in SEC play with a hand injury a factor.

April 5: Georgia reserve Cam McDowell has entered the transfer portal after his freshman season.

The 6-foot-5 guard played in only seven games last season. He averaged 1.0 and 0.4 rebounds with 7 total assists. His season high in minutes was 11 against Ole Miss.

Mike Thompson, who coached McDowell at McEachern High School, told the Athens Banner-Herald that McDowell told him he was looking for more opportunity to play. The news of McDowell entering the transfer portal was reported by On3Sports.com.

"The one thing I don't know is how much he's talked to the new coach," Thompson said. "What he's heard from him, I don't know. I just know he may just be looking to get a chance to play. "

McDowell was suspended a game in late February this season after his arrest for criminal trespass.

McDowell is the second Georgia player to enter the transfer portal since the season ended, joining forward Dalen Ridg

April 5: Georgia has hired a new director of basketball operations.

Ben Gonzalez comes from Florida Atlantic where he held the same title the past four seasons under coach Dusty May. Before that he was a student manager and graduate assistant at Florida on Mike White's staff.

White still has one full-time assistant coach position to fill and others on the support staff.

“The days are pretty damn full,” he said Monday in an interview with SiriusXM Radio.

April 2: Georgia's only recruit in its 2022 class announced he's planning to go elsewhere.

JT Elder, from PHH Prep in Tucson, Ariz., posted on his Instagram account, that he's reopening his recruitment, after Tom Crean was fired. Elder signed with Georgia in the early period and would get a release from the school before landing with another program..

"I want to thank Coach Crean and the rest of the staff for giving me the opportunity to play for them at the University of Georgia," his post said. "Due to recent changes within the program I have decided to reopen my recruitment."

The 6-foot-7 Elder is not rated on 247Sports and is a 2-star at verbalcommitts.com. He played this past season on the school's postgrad team.

April 1: Georgia has added the first player under White in Longwood transfer Justin Hill.

The 6-foot guard from Houston led Longwood in scoring at 14.2 points per game as a sophomore, was third in the Big South Conference in assists at 4.2 per game and free throw percentage at .797 and fifth in steals at 1.5 per game. He was second on Longwood at 4.2 rebounds per game.

As a freshman in 2020-2021, he averaged 11.0 points and 4.2 assists per game.

Hill finished third in Big South player of the year voting this past season. Hill led Longwood with 13 points in an 88-56 NCAA tournament first-round loss to Tennessee.

This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Georgia basketball 2022 tracker: Updates on players, coaches and staff