After some live weekend events with the dead period officially over, Clemson has been handing out offers to players that it’s been able to see perform in person.

Yesterday, the Tigers extended a scholarship offer to Orlando (Fla.) Orlando Christian Prep 2022 guard A.J. Brown.

Brown (6-4, 170) is a 3-level dynamic scorer, helping OCP win the Class 2A boys basketball state championship, which extended its two-year winning streak to 47-0, an Orlando area record.

Between his play this past season and so far this summer, he’s caught the eye of many coaches around the country.

Brown caught up with The Clemson Insider regarding his recent Clemson offer and current recruitment.

“I found out yesterday and my reaction was that I was excited because [Clemson] is in the ACC and that’s a huge conference, one of the biggest actually,” he said. “Knowing that I got an offer from them is just showing that my hard work is paying off.”

Over the past month and a half, Brown has been developing a relationship with Clemson’s coaching staff, primarily assistant coaches Dick Bender and Kareem Richardson.

“I think we have a great relationship,” Brown said. “I’ve been talking to Coach Bender and I’ve also been talking to Coach Kareem Richardson, he was the one that actually gave me the offer. But I’ve been talking to both of those coaches and building a strong relationship with them.”

Last weekend, Brown played in the Georgia Basketball Coaches Association (GBCA) live event. Clemson’s staff saw Brown play and they told him they really liked how he played, so the Tigers officially extended an offer to the Florida guard. 

They wanted to see Brown play in person first and his performance this past Saturday was enough to seal the deal.

“They just liked the way that I scored the ball and liked the way that I’m a competitor on both sides of the court,” he said. “I can play offense and defense and they think I can make a big impact on the team.”

Brown has been all around the country this summer playing in live events, including the Pangos All-American Camp in Las Vegas against high-level competition, nearly two weeks ago.

“It’s been pretty big actually because last season, Covid hit, so not a lot of coaches could watch me,” Brown said of being able to participate in these events. “This season, all the coaches are coming out and really seeing what I can do and what I can bring to the table for their team.”

While Brown has been around the country this summer, he’s only been on one visit. He took an official visit to Penn State back on June 2 but is still figuring out the rest of his schedule at this moment. Clemson is currently trying to set up a visit and Tigers’ coaching staff told Brown that they would like to have him on campus.

So what would a team be getting in Brown exactly?

“I’m a two-way player,” Brown said. “I think one of my strengths is getting to that mid-range and pulling up, but I can score on all three levels, I can attack the rim, I can shoot the 3 and like I said, knock down the mid-range. Also, I can defend wherever you want me to defend. I can stay in front and just contain them.”

Brown has seen Clemson play on a couple of occasions and he likes the way the Tigers play. He views himself as an adaptable player, who can play in most systems, so he wouldn’t have a problem sliding right into the system that Clemson head coach Brad Brownell runs.

At the end of the day, Brown is looking for a school that’s the right fit, with the caveat that the program wants and needs him. He’s also looking for a great coaching staff and a great education for after basketball.

In addition to Clemson, Brown was also offered by Texas A&M and VCU earlier this week. Besides those three programs, he holds offers from Penn State, Alabama, Ohio, Iona, Penn, Temple, USF and Yale.

Time to get the latest Clemson apparel to show your Tiger pride. Order your officially licensed Clemson gear right here!