2024 WNBA Draft: Rickea Jackson Continues To Show and Prove Why She’s a Top 3 Pick

In what may have been the most insane barnburner game in a season full of insane barnburner games, Tennessee vs. South Carolina did not disappoint. Kamilla Cardoso hit the first three of her collegiate career, while also taking the first three she has in a South Carolina uniform, to keep the Gamecocks undefeated and send them to the SEC Championship game. If that's not storybook, buddy, I have no clue what constitutes as such.

I also point to this game as an effervescent reminder: Rickea Jackson is incredible, and unquestionably someone that should be drafted in the Top 3 of a star studded 2024 WNBA Draft Class.

Jackson's talent has always been palpable, jumping off the page at 6'2 and an athletic combo forward with legitimate scoring chops and potential to become a versatile 3-level scorer at the next level. Her defense has become more consistent with room still to improve. She rebounds. She can post up and face up. It's easy to see how a player with that skill set becomes a productive pro. Tonight was the kind of night that makes me point at the screen like Leo in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and go "She's a STAR at the next level in time!"

Down 20+ in the late 2nd quarter, Tennessee did something they've rarely leaned into this year, spreading the floor and letting Jackson attack out of ball screens. My GOD, it was awesome, and I'd argue it was the best game of the season from Rickea from a pure pro prospect evaluation standpoint. It was also up there as the most effective any team has been at attacking South Carolina's defense this season, as the Gamecocks didn't really have an answer.

Gamecock wing Bree Hall was tasked with guarding Jackson to open the game, and was fantastic early in the game with denial, using her activity to get into Jackson's handle and prevent dribble penetration. Tennessee struggled to get looks off the dribble with their guards, post looks were hard to come by, and off-ball actions were hit or miss. Putting the ball in Jackson's hands, and how they did, while mixing in a variety of screening actions, was pivotal in making this a game and showcasing Jackson's skill.

First look of Jackson getting a ball screen, she whirls around up to the top of the key off a zipper cut. She reads the post to see if there's a mismatch/positioning at first, then flows into the ball screen from Tamari Key after seeing no opening.

Taking how tight SC is guarding Jackson, a screen is great after movement. Key does a fantastic job sticking Hall with the screen (definitely bordering on illegal, but the best screens almost always do), making her recovery path more difficult.

Rickea does a tremendous job with the hesitation and elongating the play, making Cardoso a bit hesitant, which is huge in stretching out the pocket made by the screen itself. She then whips the ball right over top with one hand to the now rolling Key, a wide open layup.

That's what this is all about and what matters, the creation. I was so impressed with Rickea's poise and vision, taking the way she was being guarded and weaponizing it with her mind and eyes.

Watch this.

She gets the screen in the middle of the floor and Jewel Spear receives a pin-down from Jasmine Powell on the far side, Spear played extremely tight.

Rickea feels her own gravity as a scorer, which is so crucial.

Look how many eyes are on her, how many feet are towards her, and how much of the defense is geared into what she's doing.

It's one thing to get guarded like this, it's another to capitalize on it.

With her ability to create, the ability to counter is huge. She has a good first step for her size and build, but as noted earlier, smaller players that can stick in front make it hard to create from a standstill. Having counters is vital.

Seeing how a defense covers a screen, can she recognize that advantage, recognize how to attack it, and do it quickly?

Having the hair trigger on her pull-up along with the height and release point she gets on it gives us a great first answer on how she handles coverages that give her space to shoot. That brings me to the next part.

Manipulating with screens is so huge. Largely every player who isn't a 5 is going to get opportunities to utilize ball screens, but do you really get the most out of them? Rickea really impressed with her patience in this game, allowing her screener (almost exclusively Tamari Key) to get set, or seeing how she could best draw out a play and attacking with poise.

Later on in the quarter, she took a similar look, but used a screen flip to open up a pull-up 3 from the slot. That's big time stuff. Some players just have screens and the decision-making tree is pretty limited, but mixing in the hesitations and East/West plays to manipulate coverages was frankly special stuff to watch, especially considering the level of defense played against.

As SC toyed with different coverages, Rickea started using her handle and screens to open up different things.

These are reads and consistent things I'm expecting from a guard, which is what makes it that much more exciting that Rickea is flashing this sort of potential. Again, that consistency moving forward is the key. Can those reads rep out with more quickness? Can she continue to hone angles and ball delivery? 

For reference, this is a good pass, taking advantage of how much attention she draws with the screen and actions in the offense to hit the far corner. It's huge that she opens this up and makes the pass. The pro step and what I'm thinking with the future... with more consistent opportunities to run on-ball, can she make that read faster? Can she anticipate this one opening up like she did on some actions earlier?

That's the stuff that just makes you grin when thinking ahead.

On top of that, you just had moments of supreme confidence hit in this game, which were beautiful to watch. The "I know what I'm doing and you can't do anything about it" kind of feel to it. Again, hell yes.

This play was the one that made me say, screw it, I'm ruining my sleep schedule to rewatch this game and write about the great things I saw and can't stop thinking about.

This is the game that's going to stick in my craw for the rest of the season and into the draft. Multiple players throughout the 2024 class have done great things, had great individual and team performances, but this is the one that I'm going to keep coming back to when highlighting the upside.

Rickea has all the tools and a great framework. Put a small on her and you can use the screens as mentioned, or work her into the post where she's very effective. You can use her as a screener as well, which Tennessee did to open up a crucial three for a teammate. She can screen and then run into an action. She can run the break. She can pull from anywhere in the halfcourt or attack the rim.

She can quite literally do just about anything offensively, and at her size with the touch she has, the sky is the limit. When you see what happens when she's working in a more ball screen heavy offensive approach, the stratosphere changes.

So much of being a star level player is about consistency and being able to routinely impact at this level. In the right setting, with the right mindset and approach, Rickea Jackson has what it takes to become one of the best and brightest in the WNBA. The 2024 SEC Tournament Semifinal told you so.