"This is giving me Jabari Smith vibes" - NBA fans react to Ace Bailey’s electrifying 25-point debut

Ace Bailey got his first taste of college basketball when he debuted with the Rutgers Scarlet Knights against St. John's. The guard/forward has a remarkable presentation. He dropped 25 points on 8-of-18 from the field and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc, grabbing five rebounds and dishing one assist.

Bailey is considered one of the top prospects in the 2025 draft class, and his latest performance proved that. It's only his first preseason game, but the potential is huge, and fans are aware of that. They took to X (formerly Twitter) to share their opinion on Bailey's debut.

Some compared Ace Bailey to NBA star Paul George and up-and-coming talents like Jabari Smith and Brandon Miller.

"This is giving me Jabari Smith vibes," one fan tweeted.

"Reminds me of Brandon Miller," another fan tweeted.

"He plays a lot like Paul George. Has to be exciting for Rutgers fans," another fan tweeted.

Others dove into comparisons with Duke Blue Devils' Cooper Flagg, widely considered the No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 class.

"He’s better than cooper Flagg the defense versatility is very high potential too," one fan tweeted.

Somebody predicted that Bailey would join one of the most exciting young teams in the league.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights have an intriguing team for this season. Bailey joined the program alongside Dylan Harper, son of former Chicago Bulls champion Ron Harper. This was just an exhibition game, but they already showed glimpses of how special this season can be.

---

Anonymous NBA scout makes interesting prediction for Ace Bailey, Cooper Flagg's draft stock

The 2024-25 season of college basketball will present multiple talented players trying to get to the NBA.

Up until last week, Cooper Flagg was considered the clear-cut favorite to hear his named called first in next year's edition of the draft. However, an anonymous NBA scout said on Friday that Ace Bailey could give him a run for his money.

“He’s [among the] top-3 youth players in the world. Everyone has Cooper Fever, [but] he will challenge Cooper for No. 1," the scout said, per Adam Zagoria. "It’s not clear cut.”

This could be a very interesting race and if Dylan Cooper joins it too, fans would be up for a terrific college basketball season.