Here’s how Drexel guard Kobe MaGee went from flashes of potential to rising star power
From a high school senior with no offers to leading the Dragons with 16.5 points in their first eight games, the Allentown native has emerged into a go-to presence on the court.
In his third season at Drexel, Kobe MaGee’s successful path from an unheralded recruit to a top-10 scorer in the Coastal Athletic Association is just one example of how coach Zach Spiker has uncovered diamonds in the rough and developed them into stars.
The guard showed flashes of potential in his first two seasons and carved out a niche within Spiker’s rotation, which spoke volumes when considering the established veterans he leapfrogged in the lineup.
Now, MaGee has asserted himself as a go-to presence. Across the first eight games, the Allentown native leads the team with 16.5 points, largely because of the blistering 48.1% that MaGee is shooting from three-point range.
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Not bad for a guy who in his final year of high school wasn’t sure he’d even get to play in college.
“I was a senior in high school with no offers,” MaGee said. “I went to [the] Philly High School Live [showcase] and played my heart out. Drexel saw that, they saw my leadership, and they offered me along with one other school, but Drexel showed the most love, so I showed the most love back, and I committed. It was the best decision I ever made in my life.”
Entering the season, it was apparent that MaGee would be a pivotal part of the Dragons’ success this season. Spiker’s program had most of its established rotation exit through the transfer portal or graduation.
“Seeing all the guys hitting the portal, it kind of hit me a little bit, but you can’t stop someone from trying to achieve the highest level that they can, so I really wasn’t worried about it,” MaGee said. “I knew the leadership roles and on-the-court roles for [Yame Butler, Shane Blakeney, and myself] would change. I think we handled it pretty well, and I think our mindset is that we just go to war with some dogs. That’s about it.”
MaGee’s scoring has been hard to miss, especially for those who were in the building for his 28-point outburst against Colgate or who saw him drop 23 points against Chicago State in the third-place game of the Sunshine Slam’s Ocean Bracket. If you ask MaGee, feel free to call him a dynamic scorer — but don’t finish the sentence there.
“A lot of people look at me right now as a scorer, and I’m way more than a scorer,” MaGee said. “I’m a defender. I’m a leader. I can score the basket, I can get you touches, I can get you assists, I can get you rebounds, whatever you need, I’m there for it. I’m a multidimensional player, and I think everyone needs to see that.”
On the backs of an unleashed MaGee, Butler and forward Cole Hargrove, Drexel is off to a 5-3 start. Many preseason prognostications predicted a rough season on 33rd and Market. The Dragons were predicted to finish 11th in the CAA preseason coaches poll — just one season after they finished second in the conference.
MaGee, however, is excited to prove these predictions wrong.
“I personally set our expectations high,” MaGee said. “With everyone that left, they kind of ranked us a low number in our conference. I think that was the wrong move. It kind of put a chip on our shoulder. Everyone has that fire in them; we all have the talent, so I think we could really get it done this year with the team that we got.”
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