Jayden Epps arrives on campus with the hopes of leading Ed Cooley’s fresh backcourt through what will be an interesting year for the Hoyas. Hailing from Norfolk, Virginia, Epps made a name for himself coming out of King’s Fork High School, where he showcased his scoring prowess and court vision. But now, the former top-50 recruit enters his sophomore season coming off what was an interesting start to his career at Illinois.
His impressive performances earned him a four-star rating in the 2023 recruiting class. Despite coming off the bench to start the season, Epps burst out during his freshman campaign at Illinois, moving into a bigger role as the season progressed and averaging close to 30 minutes a game during conference play. He quickly became a key piece of the Illini squad after scoring a career high 21 points against Monmouth in November. This success would continue as he won Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors at the beginning of February, coming off strong performances against Nebraska and Iowa.
Entering this season, Epps’ stock couldn’t be higher. After posting solid numbers his freshman year, more recently, he broke out for a 46-point performance in the Hoyas’ secret scrimmage against Wake Forest and scored 20 points in the Blue vs. Gray scrimmage on Friday. Even though that sample size is small, it has become clear that Epps will be this team’s number one option — the ball will be put in his hands when they need a basket.
One thing to note, however, is Epps will be making a transition to playing point guard after starting his collegiate career as a combo/shooting guard. Up to this point, he has mostly been a score-first guard, known for his ability to slash to the hoop and finish through contact, and while he will still have that shoot-first mentality, keep an eye out for Epps to look to distribute as well.
Additionally, Epps should look to develop some kind of consistency on the defensive side of the ball. At Illinois, while his defense was not necessarily bad, there were times where he showed his lack of experience, sometimes taking plays off. However, as he moves into a larger leadership role at Georgetown, I wouldn’t expect these things to play major factors as Jayden Epps will look to solidify his position as the cornerstone of the Hoyas’ rebuild.
Ultimately, while this might not be a perfect comparison, Epps should be Ed Cooley’s Primo Spears — the team’s go-to guy and floor general. We obviously shouldn’t expect him to score 46 every night, but his solid court vision and ability to score from all three levels will make it fascinating to see how Ed Cooley utilizes him in this new system.
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