With the 2019-20 men’s basketball season just a few weeks away, head coach Rob Lanier is continuing to adjust to the talent on this team, both returning and newcomers. Among the newcomers are freshmen Kalik Brooks, Joe Jones lll and Jalen Thomas.
Coach Lanier and his assistants recruited and signed all three players to the team in the summer of 2019.
“Each of them fulfill a need that we have, whether it was size and the ability to play around the rim or in terms of guard play,” Lanier said.
Kalik Brooks, who will wear number 21 this season, is a combo guard from Alpharetta. He attended Alpharetta High School, where he earned Second Team All-Region honors as a senior and honorable mention recognition as a junior. In his senior season, Brooks averaged 13.5 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 1.5 blocks per game.
Joe Jones lll, who will wear the number 23 shirt, is a center from Buffalo, New York and the younger brother of former No. 1 overall pick Greg Oden. He attended The Park School for all four years of his high school career and led them to a 17-6 record in his senior season.
In Jones’s senior year, he averaged 15 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.6 blocks per game, once grabbing 20 rebounds in a single contest. He was given a 3-star ranking by 247Sports, ranked as the No. 5 prospect in New York state and ranked in the top 400 players in the country.
Jalen Thomas, who will be seen wearing the number 25, is a forward from Detroit, Michigan. He attended the University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy, where he was a four-year letter winner and a two-year starter. In his four years, he led the school to a 95-10 record, including a 25-3 record in his senior season.
Thomas led his team to four Catholic High School League Central Division titles, four CHSL Tournament championships, four Michigan High School Athletic Association District titles and four MHSAA Regional titles.
Thomas led them on two trips to the MHSAA Final Four in 2016 and 2019. They won the state championship in 2016 and finished as a runner-up in 2019. Thomas averaged 13.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocks, while leading his team in shooting, with 63% from the field and 81% from the free-throw line during his senior year.
It is currently unknown if any of these three will be starting, but Coach Lanier looks forward to the contributions that these three freshmen will make this season.
“We expect all of our student-athletes to give their best and we will have high expectations for our program,” Lanier said. “With that said, right now we are just focusing on improving every day and getting ready for the first game of the season.”
