Indiana Basketball Returner Focus: Redshirt Freshman Guard Jakai Newton

The Indiana basketball program is going to look a whole lot different with many new faces coming in this season however, they will bring back a very strong returning core from a season ago.

While there are many new faces to the program, the Hoosiers will return six players with the experience to help lead the new group.

While we will be looking at every player for the upcoming 2024-25 Indiana basketball season, we are going to kick things off with our Indiana basketball Returner Focus series looking at all the returning stars for the Hoosiers.

For today, we take a look at redshirt freshman guard Jakai Newton and look back at last year plus his role for the 2024-2025 Indiana basketball season.

Other Players in the Series: Trey Galloway, Anthony Leal, Malik Reneau, Mackenzie Mgabko, Gabe Cupps

Watch: Talkin’ Bout the Hoosiers: 2023-24 Indiana basketball Player Recaps – Mackenzie Mgbako, Gabe Cupps & Jakai Newton

Last Season Reflection

When it comes to looking at last season for Newton, there is not a whole to talk about for obvious reasons. After having surgery around this time last year on his knee, the 6-foot-3 guard out of Georgia missed his entire freshman season.

Throughout last season, there was always question marks surrounding the health of Newton and if Hoosier Nation would be able to see him on the floor his first year in Bloomington and although there were positive signs as the season progressed, Newton remained sidelined.

“Unfortunately he’s not going to probably play this season because of the knee injury,” Indiana basketball coach Mike Woodson said during his radio show this past season. “We’ve just got to get him ready this summer and get him ready for next season. I haven’t made that decision for sure yet, but it looks like it’s heading in that direction.”

Newton had been fighting knee injury since before his senior season in high school. After eventually making it on the floor the later part of his senior season at Newton High School (GA), he was just not fully recovered to be able to compete last year for Indiana basketball. The last time he played a complete basketball season, he averaged 14.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game as a junior at Newton (Ga.) High School.

During his time playing at the high school level, Newton was a highly sought after recruit with offers coming from Indiana, Auburn, Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Xavier, and many others. Newton was a four-star prospect in the 2023 class and finished his high school career ranked No. 117 in the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

Role for 2024-25 Season

Syndication: The Herald-Times

There is no question about it, Jakai Newton is the wildcard for this Indiana basketball team this upcoming 2024-25 season. After not playing full basketball for over nearly two years, most of everybody that follows the Hoosiers really do not know what to expect.

When it comes to the positional group that Newton falls into, without having seen Newton on the basketball court for a long time, it is hard to see where he exactly falls into the rotation next season. He will be competing for minutes with expected players such as Trey Galloway, Myles Rice, Kanaan Carlyle, Gabe Cupps, Anthony Leal, and even five-star freshman Bryson Tucker.

When it comes to Newton as a player, first things first, he is an absolute freak of an athlete. With natural strength and athleticism, Newton has a chance to be one of the most athletically gifted players that Indiana basketball has seen in quite a long time in the program.

Related: Watch Indiana basketball freshman guard Jakai Newton workout highlights

Newton is about as true of a two-way player as you can get at this level being a combo guard that has elite athletic ability, defends, and is always locked in on both ends of the floor. With Newton’s size and athleticism, he is a player that can play many different spots and often plays a lot bigger than what he is at times. For a guard, he is also a very strong rebounder on both ends.

Before his energy, he started showing improvements as an outside shooter at the high school level, but there is no question that Newton is at his best at attacking the basket where he can use his speed, size, and athleticism to score in the lane. On the defensive end, there is a lot of pride and toughness that Newton brings being able to guard spots 1-3 consistently. As his Indiana basketball career progresses, do not be shocked to see Newton guarding the opposing team’s best player more often than not.

If Newton is healthy enough and has his basketball legs back, his role is very likely to be off the bench playing as a two-guard/wing when on the floor. He is a player that you can play alongside nearly any guard on the roster for Indiana basketball. He is expected to be a high energy guy that is going to be a guy brings it on the floor every minute he gets.

When Newton can carve out a larger role is to be a willing defender. As we have seen in the past few seasons under Mike Woodson, defense always comes first for Indiana basketball’s guards. If Newton shows that he understands the defensive scheme and is showing intensity on that end, he should see the floor often.

We likely won’t know what Newton’s main role this season until we first see him on the floor for Indiana basketball. One thing is for sure, Newton may have the most upside out of any player on this Indiana basketball roster.

He may be one of the players that Hoosier Nation is most excited to see on the floor this upcoming year.

Notable Quotes

“He’s a tough competitor, a little bulldog. He just plays hard. He loves to compete,” Mike Woodson said. “He can play the one and the two. That’s what he played in high school. That’s what attracted us to him in terms of him being able to play both ways and score and initiate the offense. But, defensively is where I think he’s going to really excel because he’s just tough.”

“Jakai is an outstanding two-way player who takes pride in his ability to be a lockdown defender,” said Mike Woodson. “He has tremendous athleticism and is aggressive at getting to the rim. He is well-coached and comes from a very well thought of high school program. He continues to improve and better himself with an outstanding work ethic. He has quick feet, a 6-10 wingspan, and a tremendous ability to elevate which will help him on both ends of the floor. He is a skilled player with a great build that should translate well to the Big Ten.”

SEE ALSO: One question facing all 12 Indiana basketball players entering the summer

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