The third installment of The Scout is here, this time breaking down High Point’s transfer PG, CJ Brown, from South Florida.
Without further ado, let’s get right into the breakdown.
Player Bio:
Before transferring to High Point, CJ Brown began his career as a 4-star recruit at South Florida, spending two seasons there under Ben Fletcher and Bryan Hodgson.
2024-25 (Freshman Season):
During his freshman season at South Florida, Brown averaged 7.2 PPG, 2.5 APG, and 2.3 RPG.
Joined the Top 10 Freshmen in USF history for Steals (8th), Free Throw Percentage (9th), Free Throws Made (T10), and Assists (10th).
Earned All AAC Freshman Team Honors and 3 Freshman of the Week Awards.
Was coached by now HPU Assistant Ben Fletcher after the passing of USF Coach Amir Abdur-Rahim.
2025-26 (Sophomore Season):
Stayed at USF after entering the transfer portal, returning to play for Bryan Hodgson, who has been hired from Arkansas State.
During Brown’s sophomore season, Brown averaged 10.9 PPG, 4.7 APG, and 3.9 RPG.
Brown helped lead USF to the NCAA Tournament, earning an 11 Seed before falling to Louisville in the Round of 64.
Film Review:
Film for GreenLight Media on X:
Playmaking:
The best strength of CJ Brown’s game lies in an area of emphasis for Flynn Clayman and his staff: good playmaking guards who don’t turn the ball over. Last season at USF, CJ Brown had an Assist Percentage of 29.7%, putting him in the 97th percentile, and, even more importantly, an Assist to Turnover Ratio of 2.27, which placed him in the 92nd percentile.
Last season, High Point’s backcourt, with Conrad Martinez and Rob Martin, was very similar in that regard, both when they entered and during their seasons at High Point. In his first two seasons at Arizona, Conrad Martinez had a 28.2% Assist Percentage, and at High Point last season, Conrad had a 23.2% Assist Percentage. In Rob Martin’s 3 seasons at Indiana State and SEMO, Rob Martin had a 27.5% Assist Percentage. During his senior season at High Point, Rob Martin had a 25.6% Assist Percentage. CJ Brown will fit right in an elite playmaking backcourt with Conrad Martinez, and Peach Jam Assist Single Game Record leader Trey Pearson.
Play Style:
One more thing that makes CJ Brown an almost seamless fit into the High Point system is that he already comes from a similar system. Last season at South Florida, 55.4% of plays involving CJ Brown featured a rim attack, both of which were in the 90th percentile in frequency. His 3rd-most-frequent offensive plays were in transition. Two of those 3 were also positive efficiency to the D1 average, those being Attack and Kick and Plays in Transition, with Attack and Kick being 75th percentile in Points Per Play.
Last season, High Point ran most of its offense in transition, ranking 98th percentile in the CBB with a 1.25 PPP, similar to CJ Brown’s 1.23 PPP. High Point does run fewer attack plays, but they are way more efficient and were able to boost Rob Martin’s PPP at the rim by over .1 PPP on more plays. Playing in an offense like High Point should really uncap CJ’s potential offensively, especially with his unreal explosiveness.
CJ Brown should fit seamlessly into the system defensively as well. Last season, while at USF, Brown had a steal percentage of 2%. Rob Martin entered High Point coming off a 1.8% Steal Percentage season and ended up having a 3% Steal Percentage season. Conrad Martinez was 3.1% Steal Percentage player at Arizona and was a 3.6% Steal Percentage player on more minutes at High Point. High Point also had a higher steal rate than South Florida. I would expect CJ Brown to be around 2% at least next season as a Panther.
Explosiveness:
The final part of CJ Brown’s game that just pops off the tape is his probably most glaring attribute, his athleticism. The term “Walking Highlight Tape” gets used a lot in College Basketball. CJ Brown is the true definition of “Walking Highlight Tape”. CJ Brown, since being at Kell High School, has been known for his bounce, with BallisLife among others coming to his games to watch him and his former teammate, Peyton Marshall, tear it up at Kell.
The athleticism isn’t only seen during his high school career. Last season in College Basketball, CJ Brown had a 50% FG on Dunk, 10%+ DRB, 1%+ Block Percentage, with an additional filter of 25% Assist Percentage at a height of 6’2” or less. The only other player to have those same stats is Josiah Lake II at Oregon State. In the past 3 seasons, notable players with the same stat profile are Javon Small from West Virginia, Shadada Wells at McNeese, Devion Smith from Utah,, and, most notably, Jordan Marsh from UNC Asheville.
Shooting Percentages:
The one glaring issue with CJ Brown is his shooting percentages and the pure volume of shots. Last season at USF, Brown was in the 85th percentile for FGA Per 40 Minutes but ranked in the 11th percentile for True Shooting Percentage, the 6th percentile for 2PT Percentage,, and the 24th percentile for 3PT Percentage. Even during his freshman season at USF, despite being a better shooter, he was only a 47% true shooter, shooting 26% from behind the arc.
CJ Brown doesn’t need to be an elite shooter for High Point to succeed; his playmaking alone makes him an amazing addition. With that being said, if CJ can find a more efficient offensive output, even to an average D1 shooting level, CJ Brown immediately becomes one of the best true PG’s in College Basketball.
Final Thoughts:
I am very excited to see what CJ Brown can do in the Big South, especially in Flynn Clayman’s system. Both of High Point’s main point guards last season (Conrad Martinez and Rob Martin) had been superb playmakers in their previous stops and continued to flourish on that end, but both guards took strides as scorers, especially seen in Rob’s late-season resurgence. If Flynn can get CJ Brown open shots and open lanes, and that same jump happens for an uber-athletic guard, it could be a complete game-changer for High Point.
I already think CJ Brown has a very good chance to be on one of the All-Conference lists at season’s end, just based on his last season at USF. Now, CJ reunites with Ben Fletcher, the coach who had CJ shooting at 45.5% from the field and an offensive system that will feed into CJ’s style in transition. If High Point can play as much in transition next season as they did last season, they will get the absolute most from CJ Brown. That most likely ends with CJ Brown earning 1st Team All Big South Honors at season’s end and potentially National Award Watch List attention.