Cal adds Grand Canyon transfer Jovan Blacksher Jr.

Cal basketball coach Mark Madsen addressed one of his biggest remaining roster needs by landing a true point guard when Grand Canyon transfer Jovan Blacksher Jr. announced his commitment Tuesday.

Blacksher, a 5-foot-10 guard who has one season of eligibility remaining, has racked up accolades during his five years at Grand Canyon.

He was named the WAC Freshman of the Year in 2019-20, a second-team All-WAC selection and conference tournament MVP as a sophomore, a first-team All-WAC player in his third season, and the All-WAC Player of the Year. WAC preseason of the year entering 2022-23 before a knee injury limited him to 12 games.

Blacksher averaged double figures in scoring and at least 1.5 steals per game in each of those four seasons – including a career-high 15.8 points per game in 2021-22 – before coming off the bench for the Grand Canyon last season, averaging 4.8 PPG in 15.3 minutes per game while recovering from his ACL injury. He averaged a career-best 5.4 assists per game in 2020-21, giving Madsen and the Bears the experienced point guard they coveted.

Cal has one scholarship remaining after previously adding transfer center Lee Dort (from Vanderbilt), forward BJ Omot (North Dakota), guard DJ Campbell (West Carolina), guard Christian Tucker (UTSA), forward Joshua Ola-Joseph (Minnesota), forward Andrej Stojakovic (Stanford), forward Rytis Petraitis (Air Force) and center Mady Sissoko (Michigan State). They join just two returning players, forward Devin Curtis and guard Vladimir Pavlovic and incoming freshman guard Jeremiah Wilkinson.