RJ Godfrey has yet to play an official minute for Georgia’s basketball team but already the Clemson transfer is looking ready to play a very important role.

“I just want to be a leader, to help the team out, to make the dirty plays and really set up my teammates for big-time success, especially the guards,” Godfrey said. “We're doing a lot of screen-and-roll actions, trying to win every single possession, defense, and offense, just doing my job and winning my matchup.”

Energy? Godfrey plans on bringing that, too.

Last year at Clemson, the Tigers fed off Godfrey’s infectious energy all the way to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament.

“I come in every day with high energy and try to come in every day and just be a soldier,” Godfrey said. “That's kind of what Coach (Mike) White was saying to me the other day. He's like, ‘Man, every day you're the same, man.’ I'm like, ‘Yeah, I didn't really realize that until this year until you pointed it out.’”

Godfrey's approach to the game was one of the reasons the Bulldogs wasted little time approaching the former North Gwinnett star when he placed his name into the NCAA transfer portal during the spring.

“RJ was a heck of a player on a really good team there for a couple of years, playing alongside a couple of other really, really good frontcourt players. He's been terrific. His consistency, his motor, his toughness,” White said. “We know exactly what we're getting out of RJ every day.”

Godfrey certainly has the size to play the part.

At 6-foot-8 and 230 pounds, the son of former Georgia linebacker Randall Godfrey looks like he could be playing outside linebacker for Kirby Smart’s football team.

"He's a great dude too. I think a lot of the team is just great dudes this year,” sophomore guard Blue Cain said. “Obviously, he knows what it takes to win. I know he played a big part on the team last year, so just whatever he has to say we usually listen to it."

Godfrey’s added muscle should come in handy for the Bulldogs.

One of Georgia’s biggest issues last season was the fact the Bulldogs always seemed to struggle on the offensive and defensive boards.

The team also blocked very few shots.

But thanks to the addition of what appears to be a huge frontline upgrade with players like Godfrey, Somto Cyril, Asa Newell, Justin Abson and Dylan James, Georgia has significantly more length than it did a season ago.

Along with an experienced backcourt led by Silas Demary Jr. and Tyrin Lawrence, those are just two of the reasons many feel the Bulldogs can be one of the surprise teams in the SEC and potentially earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

“It was definitely an amazing experience and something I want to feel again. We definitely are driven, motivated every day by that, but we want to just come in, win the day, win every single game,” Godfrey said. “You can't make it to the tournament if you don't attack every game with the right mentality because you might slip up and lose to a Quad 4. That can be terrible on your resume, but just attacking the day, attacking every practice. Just making the right decisions on and off the court is probably our biggest thing.”

White has seen the effect Godfrey has already had.

“Exactly that. It's rubbed off a little bit. We talk about culture, and he leads by example in a big way,” White said. “If you're not playing as hard as him and you're competing against him, you're going to feel it.”