GG Jackson leaves behind complicated legacy at South Carolina as he heads to NBA

The circle grew tighter around GG Jackson with every ticking second — with every pick in the 2023 NBA Draft that wasn’t him. As midnight approached Thursday, Jackson sat hunched at his table in a club space at Williams-Brice Stadium, feverishly scrolling through his phone.

A crowd of roughly 100 family members and friends, many wearing suits and formal dresses, divided their time staring at the TV screens in the Cockaboose Club and looking at Jackson’s table. Every time a phone would ring — and Jackson’s manager Donnell Bruce went to answer it — a flash of anxious energy surged through the room. Phone cameras went up in the air, people inched closer and closer to Jackson’s seat.

With every empty pick, the groans grew louder, the crowd’s patience wore thinner, until finally — at pick 45 in the second round — Bruce received a call from the Memphis Grizzlies. The room erupted. Jackson’s father pulled a tissue from his suit jacket pocket and handed it to his son to wipe his tears, then Jackson stood up and screamed back to the crowd.

The scene encapsulated the GG Jackson Experience at South Carolina: a swirl of emotion, star power, frustration and, at the end, a lingering sense of what could’ve been.

A year ago around this time, the vision was much rosier. NBA draftniks viewed Jackson as a first-rounder and potential NBA lottery pick, and the Columbia native and Ridge View High star at one point ranked as the No. 1 recruit in the 2023-24 class. When Jackson reclassified to 2022-23 and signed with his hometown Gamecocks, it was seen as a massive recruiting coup for first-year head coach Lamont Paris and a boost to the program.

But Jackson never quite lived up to those sky-high expectations. Now bound for the NBA, he leaves behind a complicated legacy at South Carolina.

Behind the cathartic midnight cheers at Thursday’s draft party was a bittersweet feeling. The pangs of hindsight. Did Jackson make a mistake by enrolling in college early as a 17-year-old? Would his NBA stock have been higher had he stuck with his initial commitment and gone to North Carolina this season?

And, on the other side: Was the Jackson experiment worth it for the Gamecocks? USC went 11-21 in Paris’ first season, and though Jackson led the team in scoring with 15.4 points per game, he also drew headlines (and a brief benching) for his poor body language and a postgame social media rant. Do those headaches outweigh the attention he brought to the USC program?

Most of the questions Jackson and his coaches fielded during the NBA Draft process were about his character, off-the-court habits and maturity. Jackson said some evaluators told him he was a top-five talent but pointed to his rawness and need for development.

Despite a few moments of turbulence with Jackson during the season, Paris has always been quick to defend and highlight who Jackson is as a person, emphasizing his youth and the constant social media microscope he’s under.

“When (NBA teams) asked me, I talked about who he is as a person,” Paris said. “And he’s a superstar as a person, to be honest. I always tell them, if you draft him, and the basketball works out the way I think it’ll work out, you’ll have a superstar on your hands.

“He’s a great guy. His teammates like him. He’s super talented as a person. He plays drums. He sings.”

For all of the critiques of Jackson’s maturity, it’s easy to forget he’s only 18 years old, the youngest player in the draft class. He won’t be 19 until late December. His youth was apparent in how he handled moments of adversity at USC last year, pouting on the bench during his late-season struggles. But he also has a self-awareness that isn’t always present among players of his age and stature.

As soon as he stepped in front of TV cameras Thursday night, he made it a point to apologize for his immature moments with the Gamecocks last season.

“I want to apologize for how I acted at times towards my teammates and coaches,” Jackson said. “I want people to know that wasn’t me. That’s big-headed GG. I’m little-headed GG now.”

The son of a pastor, Jackson has a pureness to his bravado. He’s talented, and he knows it, but he comes across more as a kid excited by the moment than a conceited celebrity.

Jackson dressed the part of a star Thursday night, walking into the stadium club wearing sunglasses, a silver chain, powder blue suit and Gucci shoes. He had a list of names of past in-state basketball greats — Jermaine O’Neal, Alex English, Ja Morant and others — embroidered on both sides of his suit jacket. His own name was listed at the very top.

But the suit couldn’t hide his emotions, the teenage nerves bubbling in his eyes as the clock struck midnight, the way he’d shake his head or guffaw at certain picks by teams. Getting drafted midway through the second round wasn’t the initial vision. It wasn’t the plan when Jackson enrolled at USC a year ago.

“I’m boiling inside right now — definitely,” Jackson said of his long wait Thursday night. “But at the end of the day, still a huge blessing. And you know, I started from the bottom and became the No. 1 recruit in high school.

“I feel like I’m just starting from the bottom again. I’ve got to work my way back to the top.”

Ultimately, Jackson’s legacy at South Carolina will be determined by what happens next.

From USC’s perspective, the obvious hope is that the hype around Jackson will help springboard the program in Year 2 and beyond. Landing a talent like Jackson — the top-ranked recruit in program history — gave Paris an instant boost of credibility and helped keep fans engaged throughout an otherwise arduous season. But the honeymoon phases don’t last long for Gamecocks coaches. Winning will have to follow suit.

For Jackson, his slip in the draft doesn’t have to be a death knell. He’s still only 18. Jackson’s talent has never been in question. He still has time to polish the rough edges of his game and grow as a person.

He still has time to live up to the “GG Jackson” embroidered at the top of his suit jacket.