University of Georgia Athletics
Wilkins Eager To Create Own UGA Story
November 12, 2025 | Men's Basketball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
As you might expect, the eagerness was there at the beginning. How could it not be?
With 13:15 left in the first half of the Georgia men's basketball team's season opener against Bellarmine on Nov. 3, Jake Wilkins, wearing the most famous number in program history, No. 21, which hangs on the wall high up in Stegeman Coliseum, entered the game. In the span of about 90 seconds, the 6-foot-9 freshman forward missed two layups and a 3-pointer. He came out of the game soon after, but Wilkins' debut would get much, much better.
Dominique Wilkins is the greatest Georgia men's basketball player ever, and the only one to have his jersey retired. It has now been un-retired so that his son Jake can wear it as he follows in his legendary father's footsteps. When Jake took the court in the second half, subbing in with 14:59 to play in the game, he dominated for a stretch.
Between the 14:31 mark and 11:16, Wilkins hit a 3-pointer, got a steal that led to an emphatic dunk, got another steal that led to a layup, missed a 3, and converted a three-point play. By the end of the game, a 104-59 Georgia rout, Wilkins had 12 points in 15 minutes of action, plus two rebounds, two assists, two steals and an assist.
The next time out, against Maryland-Eastern Shore, Wilkins scored 16 points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked a pair of shots. Last Sunday, against Morehead State, he scored 15 points, including a spectacular windmill dunk, and had four rebounds. Heading into Friday's game against Georgia Tech at the Steg, Wilkins is third on the team in scoring (14.3 points per game, despite only playing 17.0 minutes a game.
Wilkins may be the son of a legend, but he's not taking the court thinking about living up to everything his father did. He's much more interested in becoming the best player and teammate he can be.
"Having your own name and building your own legacy, that's everything," Wilkins said before the season began. "Even though my dad is who he is, and he played here, and he had a great career, you've still got to try and have your own success."
In three seasons at Georgia, Dominique scored 1,688 points — the most in program history at the time — and was the SEC Player of the Year in 1981, as well as a two-time All-American. Drafted No. 3 overall in 1982, 'Nique was a seven-time All-NBA player and a nine-time All-Star who ranks 16th on the all-time scoring list with 26,668 career points, between Oscar Robertson and Tim Duncan. He has also been inducted into the Naismith and College Basketball Halls of Fame.
Dominique's 1,688 points for Georgia now rank sixth all-time, but his 21.6 points-per-game average is third, and he still ranks No. 1 all-time with 723 career field goals. While known more for his offense, he also ranks fifth in program history with 142 blocked shots and is tied for 12th in rebounds per game (7.5).
All of that would be a lot to live up to, if Wilkins let it. But he's charting his own path. Baseball and soccer were his first two sports, he said. He wasn't good at baseball — "I swung at everything," he said of hitting — and as a goalkeeper in soccer, "I was bored."
It was during his sophomore year of high school that Wilkins realized that he had a bright future in basketball. "That was when I was like, okay, I can really make something happen with this," he said.
A four-star recruit from Lilburn, Ga., Wilkins averaged 14.1 points and 8.1 rebounds a game as a junior while helping lead Grayson High School to its first state championship. He had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the title game against McEachern. Wilkins said winning the state title was the best moment he's had on a basketball court.
"That was just a great day," he said. "I remember they went up by two points and then I got a putback, then another putback, so two putbacks back-to-back, and the whole energy of the game changed."
Wilkins plays with a high motor, like his dad, and prides himself on "being able to fly around, with second and third efforts, and just being able to be the guy that (the coaches) can trust and depend on."
He showed that in Georgia's opener and the next two games, and no doubt will again many times during the season ahead. He'll always be Dominique's son, but on the court, he's his own man, doing everything he can to help the Bulldogs win.
Staff Writer
As you might expect, the eagerness was there at the beginning. How could it not be?
With 13:15 left in the first half of the Georgia men's basketball team's season opener against Bellarmine on Nov. 3, Jake Wilkins, wearing the most famous number in program history, No. 21, which hangs on the wall high up in Stegeman Coliseum, entered the game. In the span of about 90 seconds, the 6-foot-9 freshman forward missed two layups and a 3-pointer. He came out of the game soon after, but Wilkins' debut would get much, much better.
Dominique Wilkins is the greatest Georgia men's basketball player ever, and the only one to have his jersey retired. It has now been un-retired so that his son Jake can wear it as he follows in his legendary father's footsteps. When Jake took the court in the second half, subbing in with 14:59 to play in the game, he dominated for a stretch.
Between the 14:31 mark and 11:16, Wilkins hit a 3-pointer, got a steal that led to an emphatic dunk, got another steal that led to a layup, missed a 3, and converted a three-point play. By the end of the game, a 104-59 Georgia rout, Wilkins had 12 points in 15 minutes of action, plus two rebounds, two assists, two steals and an assist.
The next time out, against Maryland-Eastern Shore, Wilkins scored 16 points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked a pair of shots. Last Sunday, against Morehead State, he scored 15 points, including a spectacular windmill dunk, and had four rebounds. Heading into Friday's game against Georgia Tech at the Steg, Wilkins is third on the team in scoring (14.3 points per game, despite only playing 17.0 minutes a game.
Wilkins may be the son of a legend, but he's not taking the court thinking about living up to everything his father did. He's much more interested in becoming the best player and teammate he can be.
"Having your own name and building your own legacy, that's everything," Wilkins said before the season began. "Even though my dad is who he is, and he played here, and he had a great career, you've still got to try and have your own success."
In three seasons at Georgia, Dominique scored 1,688 points — the most in program history at the time — and was the SEC Player of the Year in 1981, as well as a two-time All-American. Drafted No. 3 overall in 1982, 'Nique was a seven-time All-NBA player and a nine-time All-Star who ranks 16th on the all-time scoring list with 26,668 career points, between Oscar Robertson and Tim Duncan. He has also been inducted into the Naismith and College Basketball Halls of Fame.
Dominique's 1,688 points for Georgia now rank sixth all-time, but his 21.6 points-per-game average is third, and he still ranks No. 1 all-time with 723 career field goals. While known more for his offense, he also ranks fifth in program history with 142 blocked shots and is tied for 12th in rebounds per game (7.5).
All of that would be a lot to live up to, if Wilkins let it. But he's charting his own path. Baseball and soccer were his first two sports, he said. He wasn't good at baseball — "I swung at everything," he said of hitting — and as a goalkeeper in soccer, "I was bored."
It was during his sophomore year of high school that Wilkins realized that he had a bright future in basketball. "That was when I was like, okay, I can really make something happen with this," he said.
A four-star recruit from Lilburn, Ga., Wilkins averaged 14.1 points and 8.1 rebounds a game as a junior while helping lead Grayson High School to its first state championship. He had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the title game against McEachern. Wilkins said winning the state title was the best moment he's had on a basketball court.
"That was just a great day," he said. "I remember they went up by two points and then I got a putback, then another putback, so two putbacks back-to-back, and the whole energy of the game changed."
Wilkins plays with a high motor, like his dad, and prides himself on "being able to fly around, with second and third efforts, and just being able to be the guy that (the coaches) can trust and depend on."
He showed that in Georgia's opener and the next two games, and no doubt will again many times during the season ahead. He'll always be Dominique's son, but on the court, he's his own man, doing everything he can to help the Bulldogs win.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
Players Mentioned
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