NBA Draft: What Does Jerry Easter Bring to USC Basketball?

USC got a boost when it added Eric Musselman as its head coach in 2024-25, who was highly successful at Arkansas based on the energy he brought as well as the amount of talent he was able to bring to the Razorbacks. Now, he's bringing the noise to University Park in Los Angeles, California, hoping to make the Trojans more than just a football school by bringing hype to campus.

Southern Cal had a ton of roster turnover heading into this season, but brought in an elite crop of players to help fill the void, adding Rodney Rice (Maryland), Jordan Marsh (UNC-Asheville), Ryan Cornish (Dartmouth), Chad Baker-Mazara (Auburn), Ezra Ausar (Utah), and Jacob Cofie (Virginia).

They also brought in some serious freshmen talent – though they lost five-star Alijah Arenas for the season to a knee injury, they also added Link Academy combo guard Jerry Easter, who was an EYBL Scholastic Champion last year with the Lions and brings two-way potential to the Trojans as a true freshman.

Easter had offers from all over the country, including Alabama, Arkansas, Baylor, Missouri, Ole Miss, Oregon, St. John's, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Washington, SMU, and UCLA, eventually opting to sign with Musselman's Southern Cal Trojans. He was the no. 42 player in the country, the no. 3 combo guard, and the no. 2 player in the state of Missouri when he came out of prep ball to play for USC. He scored a 95.28 score out of 100 according to Rivals Industry Ranking, and was considered a unanimous four-star recruit.

What makes Jerry Easter such an impactful player comes from his scoring – he can do it in transition, in the half court, and when he is attacking the basket. He is considered a combo guard because he's not a pure lead initiator, but he has shown flashes of ability to create for his teammates, making him dangerous for multiple reasons when he has the ball in his hands.

Though not an elite shooter, he has shown the ability to get hot in certain situations, lending credence to the theory that he could be a microwave type of scorer at the collegiate level. Consistency will be the key for Easter moving forward, but if he is able to hit three-point shots with any amount of efficiency, he can shoot up the ranks of this class and be considered an NBA talent sooner rather than later.