Player Preview: Jabril Trawick

This is the sixth preview of the members of the 2011-12 Georgetown Hoyas. You also can read about Greg Whittington, Mikael Hopkins, Tyler Adams, Moses Ayegba, and John Caprio.

Freshman guard Jabril Trawick‘s ascent has been downright meteoric, from lightly regarded prospect toiling on the AAU circuit to the seeming face of a new era at Georgetown in little more than a year. His on-court rise is similarly drawmatic. You may ask yourself well, how did he get here?

Trawick, as any follower of his extremely active Twitter account could tell you, is a product of Philadelphia, where he starred at Abington Friends.  Though he averaged a healthy 16.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game his junior year, Trawick didn’t draw much high-major attention til the summer of 2010, when he erupted on the AAU circuit, largely thanks to his tireless drive on the court. On offense, Trawick uses his 6’5″, 200+ lb. frame to body and slash his way into the lane, while posing a formidable and pesky roadblock on defense. And, let’s not forget his hops: Trawick can throw it down with the best of them.

Georgetown caught Trawick on his way up, offering him after other mid- and high-majors had but before he attracted truly elite attention. Trawick reciprocated the interest, visiting the Hilltop, committing in September 2010, then signing in the early, November signing period. He soon continued his ascent, averaging more than 20 points per game for much of his senior season, all the while recruiting with Georgetown’s other soon-to-be-freshmen.

In Kenner League this summer, Trawick rewarded the rising fan interest in him, playing with uncommon intensity for summer league play. Playing for the all-freshman Tombs team, Trawick started at point guard (perhaps  JTIII’s preference), and was able to get to the hoop frequently while drawing a number of fouls. His jumper is still a work in progress, but his toughness and energy may be even more valuable to a young, unproven team. In a particularly memorable quarterfinal appearance, Trawick showed that grit in a testy showdown with recent Duke grad Nolan Smith, holding his own against the future pro, whom Trawick even induced into a technical foul. In China, Trawick made the most of reduced minutes, averaging 12 points per game as the Hoyas won all three games, you know, that didn’t give rise to international incidents.

So what to expect of him this year? Trawick is still not the natural distributor that the point guard position typically requires, but his attack-first mentality may mesh well with adept passerts at other positions (Otto Porter, Nate Lubick, Henry Sims). His assertiveness also may be a welcome change of pace when JTIII gives a rest to Markel Starks who, while somewhat of a combination guard himself, is far more of a traditional point guard than Trawick. Because Starks himself is no proven commodity, and because there is no clear back-up for Jason Clark at shooting guard, Trawick should be able to get as many minutes as he earns. (And he will be continuing to work off the court, recruiting future Hoyas.) With a big, strong frame, Trawick should be able to fill either guard position, though his still-developing jumper may limit the backcourt partners with which he can be paired. This year’s Hoyas largely will be learning on the job, and many of the faithful will be happier to see errors of commission–occasional over-aggression leading to stupid errors–rather than those of omission–timidity and passivity. Trawick’s rapid rise through the ranks should make clear that the latter isn’t in his future.