BIRMINGHAM – It was like old times for Noah Thomasson and Justin Hill, Georgia’s player representatives Wednesday at SEC Media Days.
Considering the two grew up playing ball in Houston before Thomasson transferred to Georgia from Niagara, their reunion in Athens has been a blessing for both.
“I’ve known Justin since I was 7 or 8 years old and we played together in the seventh grade,” Thomasson said. “If you had told me 10 years ago that we’d be here at SEC Media Days, I’d say you were lying to me.”
Hill could not agree more.
“It’s been very good,” Hill said. “We come from the same place, hopping on the bus, hopping on the jet … we came a long way.”
Thomasson hopes it’s just the beginning.
When Mike White went looking for a scorer to bring to Athens after offseason attrition, Thomasson-who averaged 19.5 points last year at Niagara-was one of the first players targeted.
Thomasson said he’s glad the Bulldogs did.
"With my choices, every school was a good school. Not disrespecting any program, but the way Georgia recruited me being a guy from Texas and giving me a chance to be back closer to family,” Thomasson said. “My dad lives in Atlanta, so I can see him as much as possible. And then you're talking about a coaching staff of really good people. You could tell the first time I met them that it was really genuine.
It felt like home right away. When I got to Athens I was like, 'I can see myself here.' You know, I wanted to go somewhere where they haven't had success in recent years, so the chance to bring Georgia basketball back is a blessing. The football team is doing its thing, it's time for the basketball team to do it too."
Hill said the Bulldogs are getting more than just a consistent scoring threat.
“He doesn’t get fazed if things go wrong,” Hill said of Thomasson.
Thomasson added the Bulldogs were one of the first teams to reach out to him once we placed his name in the portal.
“Georgia was on it. They were one of the first team to reach out to me and I could tell they were really interested,” Thomasson said. “When I realized they were interested, I called (Hill) quickly and said hey man, what’s it like down there, how is it and what are the goals for next season? When I get on my visit, I want you to host me.”
The opportunity to play in the SEC made it icing on the cake.
“The SEC is one of the best conferences in the country,” Thomasson said. “But the main thing is just to bring my winning plays that I did in Niagara, the leadership, play the right way and see what happens.”
One of five transfers brought in by White and his staff, Thomasson said he expects that experience will enable the Bulldogs to have a successful campaign.
Three of the current team have been to the NCAA Tournament with their former schools, a fact he believes will help every day the Bulldogs take the court.
“It’s big. Winning trickles down. Justin, he’s been to the tournament, RJ Melendez has been to the tournament, Jalen DeLoach has been to the tournament, Sunny Sunahara has been to the D-II tournament,” Thomasson said. “Even our freshmen, they’ve won a lot in high school, and when you’ve done that your winning traits and winning ways trickle down in practice.”
So far, Thomasson likes what he’s seen.
“The biggest word we use is sacrifice. We’ve all come from different backgrounds, and whether we scored a lot of points or played on winning teams,” he said. “We’re just trying to blend it all together.”
