Previously: Cameron Forte
Previously: Kenny Paul Geno
Previously: Houston Kessler
Previously: Dusan Langura
Previously: Brandon Young
J.J. Frazier
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| Photo Credit: AJC |
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 150
Position: PG
Year: Sophomore
Role: Spark Plug
Overview: J.J. Frazier's offseason didn't get off to a great start. However, in light of recent events, we'll take an arrest for minor traffic charges any day of the week.
His freshman season, on the other hand, went quite well. Frazier, despite being considered by some the best point guard in the state of Georgia, was fairly lightly recruited out of Faith Baptist Christian. His size (likely exaggerated in the official listing) is probably the primary reason. There is no way around it: he's really small.
Despite that, Frazier was a pleasant surprise by the end of last season. Early in the year, Taylor Echols was often first off the bench (or in the starting lineup) in relief of Charles Mann, but J.J.'s ability to run the offense steadily improved, and by the end of the year, he had almost entirely supplanted Echols in the rotation. He also showed, in late games against Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Louisiana Tech, an ability to score in bunches. His final 3-point % of 32.4 includes a 4/23 start to the season, so hopefully that number is a tad misleading.
Any commentary on Frazier's game seems to start with his height, but it's not something that concerns me. If you've made it to the level he has, you've learned to play with the body God gave you. Does it limit some of what he can do? Sure, especially defensively. But I'll take talent and tenacity over size in a backup point guard any day.
Expectations: Here are J.J.'s minutes played numbers for the last 10 games of the season: 18, 9, 8, 18, 9, 21, 21, 16, 17, and 17. He clearly earned Mark Fox's trust, and he'll definitely be first off the bench when Charles Mann heads for the pine. That could be fairly often, too, considering Mann's aggressiveness and propensity for charging fouls (not necessarily a bad thing, mind you).
The release of Morris may even see Frazier playing some shooting guard if Georgia is forced to go smaller. In that case, I'm anxious to see what he can do as more of a spot-up shooter. If the offense can get him looks, he will likely knock them down.
In the end, I suspect J.J. Frazier will be in the running for "most improved" Georgia Bulldog. If there is even a slight uptick from what he gave Georgia in those last 10 games, that's great news for the Dawgs.
Areas for Improvement: First, if the assists edged up ever so slightly and the turnovers remained steady, that would be wonderful.
Second,the more J.J. can get in the gym this summer and shoot, shoot, shoot, the better. If you haven't figured this out about me by now, I'm a big believer in the college 3-point shooter. It's not my favorite feature of the game, but it's a necessity. Georgia has struggled to score under Mark Fox, and the more shooters there are knocking down outside shots, the easier it will be to turn that corner. Hitting threes creates space all over the court.
Thing I Learned About J.J. From GeorgiaDogs.com: He plays the piano. Kenny Gaines also plays the piano. Thus, until I see a video of he and Kenny playing the Chopsticks duet together, my life will not be complete. Huge bonus points if it is on a piano mat. Let's make this happen.
2014-15 Stats I Could Get Excited About: 6.5/1.1/2.3 points/rebounds/assists per game.
Let's go J.J., and let's go Dawgs!
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