Marsalis Roberson Talks Recruiting

Marsalis Roberson‍, if he commits to Cal, will be the the fifth Bishop O’Dowd Dragon to commit to or play for the Golden Bears in the last decade. The talented combo guard played alongside Monty Bowser last year, and currently has one other Power 5 offer from Nebraska.    

Roberson was arguably O’Dowd’s best player his junior year, leading the Dragons with 16.5 points and 6.3 rebounds a game, also adding 3 assists. He also led the team in a metric called stat-points, which combines categories such as made shots, missed shots, assists and turnovers into one number. Last year he won the Bay Area Preps HQ Player of the Year, a honor shared by recent NBA players Aaron Gordon, Jabari Bird, and Ivan Rabb.    

What makes Roberson special is his versatile skill-set, such as his extreme athleticism and tenacity in the fast-break (he had a lot of runnaway dunks last year). Roberson thrives on gliding through defenses and getting right to the rim, and also has the ability to pull up from deep, a critical factor in today’s game. Check out his junior year highlights:

    
Bishop O’Dowd has been like a feeder school for Cal, already gifting the Bears with two stars in Ivan Rabb and Paris Austin, and incoming freshman Monty Bowser. It’s no wonder Cal has gone after their players, as the program has won five NCS Championships and sent nine players to D1 schools over the past ten years. The team is currently ranked 4th in Northern California by MaxPreps.      

When asked about whether Paris Austin, Ivan Rabb, and Monty Bowser going from Dragons to Bears had any impact on his decision-making process, Roberson responded that it’s “not really” a factor, “but it feels good having some people to talk to about the process.”    

With regards to a 4-year program, Roberson said he’s “Looking for a good coaching staff that I can relate to, kind of like O’dowd coaching staff in a way. Trustworthy people, a family-oriented program, a good education, and opportunities.”

He said he likes Cal because “it’s close to home,” and “the coaching staff is really cool.” Once everything clears up he says he’ll take an official visit. His mom works as an academic advisor at Cal and he says, “I’ve always been in and around the campus since I was little.”    

Listed as a shooting guard by 247Sports and Rivals, Roberson says he’s “being recruited as a combo guard,” able to play both SG and PG. He’ll likely play a little of both. With Joel Brown as the only PG returning in 2021, landing him would be huge for the Bears.