It meant something to Kobe MaGee that he was the first recruit to visit Florida State since Luke Loucks took over as Florida State head men's basketball coach.
It meant something that FSU reached out to the Drexel transfer guard within 10 minutes of when he entered the transfer portal on Monday.
While he could have waited and possibly explored other visit options, MaGee saw no reason to wait.
That led MaGee to striking fast and becoming the first player to commit to Loucks during his tenure, announcing his decision on Saturday after visiting campus on Thursday.
"Being the first kid on campus, that means a lot to me. It shows the dedication..." MaGee told the Osceola after committing to FSU. "It was just a new program that was kind of my speed... I didn't want to lose that opportunity. I thought it was just the right time to make the move."
MaGee is coming off a breakthrough junior season for Drexel in which he led the Dragons in points per game (14.0) and three-point percentage among regular contributors (43.9%). It was a big improvement from his 6.3 points per game and 35.4% three-point percentage the prior season.
If MaGee had made one more three-pointer this past season, he would be eligible for the national leaderboard and rank ninth nationally in three-point percentage.
"Every year, I add something to my game. This year was obviously shooting..." MaGee said. "I always really had this level of skill, but it was more like the confidence that was given to me by the coaches (at Drexel). They gave me all the confidence in the world to do what I do, and as a returner that's what they expected from me. So I kind of had to live up to the expectations."
As he pondered where to transfer for his final season of college eligibility, Loucks' FSU ties made a large impression on MaGee.
"It is very appealing. I think as a basketball player, everyone's goal is to go to the NBA, so when you have a guy like that coming to a college program, it means everything," MaGee said. "For me, I look at his resume. He was a Florida State alum, he won here with Coach Hamilton. He pulled in a couple coaches that were head coaches at previous schools so that was the most appealing thing to me. They're genuine guys, they take care of us, they really care for me and my family. To see my mom smile like that (on my visit) on a day like that, it was amazing."
This past season, MaGee also led Drexel in steals per game (1.0) and was second in both rebounds (5.6) and assists (1.9). He's the type of stat-sheet stuffer as well as the type of big guard (listed at 6-foot-6) that former head coach Leonard Hamilton loved recruiting. It seems the same is true for Loucks early in his tenure.
A film session between Loucks and MaGee during his visit may have been what sold MaGee on becoming a Seminole.
"He was showing me some film of my games from this previous year and the Golden State Warriors when he was there. He was showing me similarities of where he could use me in their offense," MaGee said. "I thought that would fit perfectly within my game. He was showing me other ways that he could develop me into a better player, so it was very appealing."
It probably also didn't hurt FSU's recruitment of MaGee that he's spent his ...
