Westtown’s Jameel Brown helps give Penn State men’s basketball its best-rated recruiting class ever and a foothold in Philly

When Micah Shrewsberry took the Penn State head coaching job, he knew that recruiting would pose a challenge. In addition to competing with basketball blue bloods such as Michigan and Michigan State and rising stars in Purdue and Illinois, Shrewsberry would be recruiting in new terrain. He had spent most of his career in the Midwest, far away from key recruiting areas like Philadelphia and Maryland.

National Signing Day was a culmination of months of work by Shrewsberry and his staff, and it offered hope for the rebuilding program. The Nittany Lions finished with the highest-rated recruiting class in Penn State history.

In 247Sports and ESPN rankings, the group ranked top-25 nationally and fourth in the Big Ten. Shrewsberry brought in five recruits, ranging from athletic big men to versatile wings. While each recruit’s path to Penn State was unique, one recruit’s journey to Happy Valley began when Shrewsberry was still working as an assistant at Purdue.

Jameel Brown, a 6-foot-4 combo guard and four-star ESPN recruit, originally committed to play for Purdue after being heavily recruited by Shrewsberry. Then a Purdue assistant coach, Shrewsberry took an early interest in Brown, going the extra mile to build a relationship with the former Haverford School standout. Those efforts did not go unnoticed.

”I remember Coach Shrews came and watched me work out at 7 a.m. at the Haverford School early [in my] 10th grade year,” Brown said. “Ever since, I just kept building that relationship with him.

“When Coach Shrews left, I kind of wanted to double back a little bit just to make sure I was making that right decision for my future because I had a good relationship with him.”

Shrewsberry and Brown’s relationship was put to the test in December 2019, when Brown broke his wrist. By the time he recovered, the coronavirus had shut down the world and any chance the young star had to get back on the court. When the pandemic finally slowed and Team Final AAU played its 2021 season, Brown struggled to play up to his potential, putting together several poor outings at Peach Jam.

Even amid adversity, Shrewsberry stayed loyal to Brown, letting him know that nothing had changed. He was still the guy.

“It meant a lot to me,” Brown said. “Going through that injury and knowing that he was still there for me, [and] going through a couple bad games at Peach Jam … He was there for me, [and Penn State associate head coach Adam Fisher] was there for me, just saying that they still have my back. The college process is so stressful, so to know that you’re still wanted by a coach and by a school is definitely a great feeling.”

One of the reasons why Shrewsberry stayed so committed to Brown is that the young guard is exactly the kind of player that he can build an offense around. Brown excels at every one of the fundamental skills required of a Power 5 guard. His size and hands allow him to chase down rebounds, his explosiveness allows him to drive into the paint, and his IQ allows him to spread the ball around effectively. Perhaps most importantly, however, Brown is an advanced shooter who can put the ball in the basket from anywhere on the court.

”When he enters the gym, he’s ready to shoot,” Fisher said in a signing-day press conference. “There’s a lot of lines on all these courts, and he’s going to pull up from everywhere. He’s got deep NBA range.”

Brown’s ability to shoot the ball at an advanced level is nothing new, either. In fact, his success from deep traces all the way back to the basketball courts of his Philadelphia neighborhood. On those courts, Brown grew up watching former Penn State great Tony Carr, who lived just minutes away. Carr, a graduate of Roman Catholic High School, starred for the Nittany Lions for two seasons. In his sophomore year, he led the team to an NIT Championship before later being selected in the second round of the NBA draft by the New Orleans Pelicans.

Carr’s success on the court mesmerized Brown, who could always be found standing on the sideline, his eyes glued to the game. He watched those neighborhood games like it was game film, allowing him to pick up on the things that would make his game successful years later.

”I love the way he picks his spots,” Carr said. “One thing I always hone into him is just keep the game easy. You don’t have to complicate the game; it’s simple, and I feel like he does that great. He picks his spots, he takes his shots, and that’s going to translate to the next level because as you go higher up everybody gets better.”

The versatility in Brown’s game helped him excel at the Haverford School, where he played for three years under coach Bernie Rogers. This year, he transferred over to the Westtown School, where he plays for a program that has produced NBA talent such as Daniel Ochefu, Cam Reddish, Mo Bamba, and Brandon Randolph. At Westtown, Brown also gets the chance to play alongside the No. 1 player in the 2022 class, Dereck Lively II.

Playing at Westtown with players such as Lively allows Brown to experience collegiate-level offensive schemes and concepts. That will be invaluable when Brown looks to compete for a starting spot on the Nittany Lions next year.

“At Westtown School, [I’m] improving a lot more,” Brown said. “Learning [coach Seth Berger’s] NBA-style offense, learning more pick and rolls, and playing with Dereck Lively is definitely going to help me a lot. [I can] prioritize making reads off the help man and off the big man [and] learn how to attack soft hedges, hard hedges, switches.”

Brown can be a player for Shrewsberry to build around as a new standard of Penn State basketball is implemented. He also helps Shrewsberry establish credibility in an important and fertile basketball recruiting ground.

”He’s a Philadelphia kid, so that helps us,” Shrewsberry said at the signing-day press conference. “It helps us continue to roll in that area [and] get good players from that area…I haven’t recruited Philadelphia a whole lot … but I think Jameel gives [us] a little street cred over there.”

Shrewsberry’s rebuilding of the Nittany Lions’ program is one that will require consistency in recruiting and player development. So far, Shrewsberry has generated optimism that the program can once again return to its former status in the Big Ten.

”I feel like Coach Shrews is getting that program where it needs to be,” Carr said. “With a great talent like Jameel, it can get Penn State back to that top-10 level.”