With much of this summer’s focus aimed at high school football in Georgia, it’s easy to overlook the basketball talent set to take the court in winter. The class of 2024 in this state features several dominant prospects, including the second-ranked player in the nation overall. Here’s a look at the top 2024 Georgia high school basketball recruits.
1. Airious Bailey (McEachern)
The Indians have a history of producing star talent, and “Ace” Bailey is no different. With a near-perfect 247Sports composite rating of 0.9996, Bailey is by far the best player in the state, and he’s the highest-rated small forward nationally.
Despite receiving offers from schools such as Texas, Kentucky, and Kansas, Bailey turned heads by committing to Rutgers in January. He is the only five-star recruit in recorded history for the Scarlet Knights. His physicality and mid-range skills will make him nearly unstoppable as a senior this season for McEachern.
2. Derrion Reid (Grovetown)
The second-best player among the top 2024 Georgia high school basketball recruits is also the second-best forward. Reid, with a frame similar to Bailey’s, averaged around 20 points per game for the Warriors last season as he starred alongside senior guard VaShon Ferguson.
Reid’s play was critical in salvaging Grovetown’s 2023 season: the Warriors began 4-8 but won 16 straight games before falling to Lanier in the quarterfinals. He has yet to commit and is being heavily pursued by the in-state Georgia Bulldogs.
3. Somto Cyril (Overtime Elite)
Cyril, who hails from Chattanooga, TN, towers at 6 feet, 10 inches and weighs 240 pounds. Not surprisingly, he excels at rebounding and thrives in the paint offensively. The Kentucky commit is on scholarship at Overtime Elite after spending his first two years at Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Tennessee. Cyril has never averaged more than 10 points per contest, but he’s played alongside several talented big men, including current Ohio State center Felix Okpara. That trend has certainly continued at Overtime Elite.
4. Jahki Howard (Overtime Elite)
Another Overtime Elite standout, Howard began his high school career at Norcross. He spent only one season with the Blue Devils, and that year resulted in a second-round playoff loss. Had Howard remained for one more season, he would have earned a state championship ring, as Norcross clinched the title in 2022 over Berkmar.
Howard’s athleticism and defensive prowess have earned him offers from more than 20 schools, but he has yet to make his decision. The defending NCAA champion, Connecticut, appears to be the front-runner, but many other programs are heavily pursuing Howard.
5. Peyton Marshall (Kell)
Marshall is one of a kind among the top 2024 Georgia high school basketball recruits. He is, by a wide margin, the largest ranked high school center in the nation at a whopping 310 pounds. Just as immense is his impact on the court. Kell ranked as one of the best teams in the nation last season, easily winning the 6A state championship with just two losses all season. Much of that success was due to Marshall’s sheer dominance in the paint, earning him comparisons to NBA great Shaquille O’Neal.
