FAYETTEVILLE — Ada, Okla., junior shooting guard Jaxson Robinson has been on two very rewarding trips to Arkansas this year.
The first one was to play for Team Griffin in The Warmup AAU tournament, a performance that resulted in a quartet of elite offers for Robinson (6-6, 170).
“Obviously The Warmup helped my stock a lot knowing I had gotten my first four offers from just that one tournament,” noted Robinson, who hit nine 3-pointers and had 33 points in one game during the event.
Now regarded as the 48th-best 2021 prospect in the country by ESPN with a bevy of offers, he was back in Fayetteville this past weekend to check out new Razorbacks coach Eric Musselman’s program.
He offered up some highlights of an unofficial visit that he described as “insane.”
“Definitely the coaching staff and their facilities,” Robinson said. “The way they were talking about what they have planned in the future for my class and everyone after was insane.
“The new playing style they’re bringing to Arkansas will be fun to watch while Coach Muss is there, and they’re bringing new things to their locker room also, which were cool.”
Robinson also got a chance to take in Bud Walton Arena, the Basketball Performance Center and the Jerry and Gene Jones Academic Success Center with his parents.
“Bud Walton was crazy,” Robinson said. “ I couldn’t imagine playing there. The practice facility just got remodeled so it was super nice and the academic center was unbelievable.”
One plus for Arkansas is that Robinson is a big fan of Razorbacks assistant coach Chris Crutchfield, who was previously an assistant at Oklahoma.
“I love Coach Crutch for one because he wants what’s best for me as a player and I think he sees a lot in me,” Robinson said. "I’ve been around him quite a bit since he started recruiting me at OU.”
While Musselman’s stints as a head coach and assistant coach in the NBA are positives for Robinson, he adds in another.
“Obviously the (NBA) experience is there for coach,” Robinson said, “but besides all that he’s a great person who wants the best for his kids."
Robinson has offers from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Wake Forest, Baylor, TCU, Houston, Tulsa, and Texas-Arlington.
“He’s a great kid,” Team Griffin head coach Kellen McCoy told the Ada News. “He’s extremely respectful and very coachable. He has a high IQ for the game of basketball, and he loves it. It’s his passion, and he spends a lot of time on it. That work that he’s put in ... is beginning to pay off drastically.”
He is one of three Team Griffin 2021 prospects who Arkansas has offered along with ESPN's No. 51 prospect Trey Alexander (6-5, 185) of Oklahoma City Heritage Hall and Atlanta, Texas, standout Daimian Collins (6-9, 180).
They joined Robinson in leading Team Griffin to a Peach Jam 16-under title in July.
Robinson had 19 points with five 3-pointers in Team Griffin’s 85-77 quarterfinal win over Boo Williams. He also had a clutch 3-pointer in a 71-70 win over Vegas Elite in the semifinals.
“I'm just trying to work on being more versatile and getting to all three levels of my game to be the best player I can be,” Robinson said.
He then knocked down three 3-pointers and scored 11 points in Team Griffin’s 75-73 win over Team Takeover in the Peach Jam 16-under championship game.
“It was awesome,” McCoy said. “The guys just wouldn’t take no for an answer. The guys got down a couple of times but just found a way. They never gave up or quit. We were able to figure out a way to get it done.”