Marcus Thornton (basketball, born 1992)
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
August 12, 1992 Atlanta, Georgia |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Westlake (Atlanta, Georgia) |
| College | Georgia (2010–2015) |
| Position | Small forward / Power forward |
| Number | 2 |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Marcus J. Thornton (born August 12, 1992) is an American basketball player. He is a 6' 8" small/power forward. Thornton was considered one of the top high school seniors in the class of 2010, earning both Parade All-American[1] and ESPN RISE All-American honors,[2] along with being named Mr. Georgia Basketball from both the Atlanta TipOff Club[3] and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.[4]
High school
Thornton ended his senior season averaging 24 points, 12 rebounds, 3.5 blocked shots, 3 assists & 1.5 steals per game while still maintaining a 3.8 GPA in the Math-Science Magnet Program at Westlake. In his high school career, Marcus grabbed over 1,000 rebounds and scored over 1,500 points. His team made it to the Georgia state championship “final four” (or better) for three consecutive years.
Thornton was also selected to play in the prestigious “Capital Classic” All-Star[5] game in Washington, D.C., as well as the Georgia North-South All-Star game. Unfortunately he was not able to participate due to an injury. Thornton's season included many other awards such as the 2009 Chick-Fil-A Classic Christmas Tournament MVP, Georgia Division AAAAA All State First Team and Region 4-AAAAA Player of the Year.
College
Thornton committed to Clemson in November 2009, which he chose over Maryland, Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, Xavier, Virginia Commonwealth University and Dayton. After Oliver Purnell resigned from Clemson in April 2010 to become DePaul's new head coach Thornton requested and received his unconditional release from the Tigers.
Recruiting for Thornton resumed and while Clemson remained high on the list, other schools who sought the Parade/ESPN All-American included Georgia Tech, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Alabama, Butler, North Carolina, Tennessee, UCLA, West Virginia, Texas and DePaul. On May 19, 2010 at noon in the Westlake Gymnasium, Marcus announced to a full house that he had chosen to be a Bulldog under head coach Mark Fox.