Indiana basketball freshman guard Jakai Newton is still in the recovery stages from a knee injury that has caused him to miss the entire 2023-24 season but he continues to make progress. On Wednesday, workout clips were posted on his instagram story that were promising.
Newton posted clips of himself rising up for numerous dunks without a brace on his knee as part of his workout. His explosiveness looked well on its way to returning even though he still has some time in his rehab.
On Aug. 16, the Indiana basketball program announced that Newton would be out indefinitely after undergoing a knee procedure on an injury he suffered earlier in the offseason.
Then in December, Indiana basketball head coach Mike Woodson said that Newton would likely not see the floor this season and that a redshirt would likely be the expected route.
“Unfortunately he’s not going to probably play this season because of the knee injury,” Woodson added. “We’ve just got to get him ready this summer and get him ready for next season. I haven’t made that decision for sure yet, but it looks like it’s heading in that direction.”
Newton committed to Indiana over offers from Auburn, Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Xavier, Clemson and many others. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 14.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game a junior at Newton (Ga.) High School.
He missed the majority of his senior season with a knee injury that he suffered during the AAU circuit in the summer.
“He’s a tough competitor, a little bulldog. He just plays hard. He loves to compete,” Woodson added. “He can play the one and the two. That’s what he played in high school. That’s what attracted us to him in terms of him being able to play both ways and score and initiate the offense. But, defensively is where I think he’s going to really excel because he’s just tough.”
Newton was ranked the No. 118 overall prospect in the 247Sports composite rankings and was a four-star prospect.
Here were Mike Woodson’s comments when Newton officially signed with Indiana.
“Jakai is an outstanding two-way player who takes pride in his ability to be a lockdown defender. He has tremendous athleticism and is aggressive at getting to the rim. He is well-coached and comes from a very well thought of high school program. He continues to improve and better himself with an outstanding work ethic. He has quick feet, a 6-10 wingspan, and a tremendous ability to elevate which will help him on both ends of the floor. He is a skilled player with a great build that should translate well to the Big Ten.”
Below are a few clips from Newton’s Instagram.
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