Klatsky Is Having A Blast

By John Frierson

Staff Writer

When the Georgia men’s basketball season began back on Nov. 3, Brandon Klatsky had two main goals for himself. The redshirt junior guard, a former walk-on, wanted to do everything he could to help the Bulldogs have the best season possible, and he wanted to finally score the first points of his career.

“Oh, I need it,” he said during the preseason of getting his first basket. “I’m very eager. I hope it’s coming.”

After redshirting during the 2022-23 season, the 6-foot-4 Klatsky appeared in three games the following season, going 0-for-1 from the floor. Last season, he played in six games and went 0-for-3. Fortunately for Klatsky, he didn’t have to wait long this season to finally get into the scoring column.

In Georgia’s season opener against Bellarmine, a 104-59 rout, Klatsky entered the game with 1:20 on the clock — and what an 80 seconds it was. With 57 seconds left, Klatsky hit a 3-pointer, drawing a big cheer from the crowd. With 17 seconds left, he got a steal and scored on a layup. He followed that with another steal with 8 seconds to go.

“It was awesome. It’s a special moment, definitely. A long time coming,” he said a couple of days later. “There was definitely a lucky bounce on that 3, and once that one fell through, I just went back and kept playing, because you’ve got to finish the game.

“I was smiling ear to ear for the whole rest of the day.”

In the locker room afterward, Josh Brooks, Georgia’s J. Reid Parker Director of Athletics, tossed the game ball to head coach Mike White in honor of White’s 300th career win. White then tossed the ball to Klatsky, saying, “Great job, BK. Love you, man. So happy for you!”

“I told him I think he should take it back, but we’re working on that,” Klatsky said. “I think his milestone is cooler than mine, but it was just an awesome moment. I didn’t know they were going to do that.”

Klatsky added another 3-pointer in Georgia’s 120-81 win over Morehead State on Nov. 9. So far this season, Klatsky has appeared in six games for the 10-1 Bulldogs, playing 10 minutes total, and he’s 3-for-5 from the field and 2-for-3 on 3s.

“I would say every year I feel more confident as a player. This year, obviously, I’m feeling the most confident so far,” he said.

Even though Klatsky doesn’t get a lot of playing time, he can still make a difference on the practice court and from the bench. And he’s working just as hard as his teammates to improve individually and help the Bulldogs get back to the NCAA tournament.

“I think I definitely have had a large impact in practice,” he said. “And I’m so glad I could show it a little bit (on the court).”

Away from the court, Klatsky has a passion for a lot of things, from Pokémon and sports cards to pinball machines. He said the interest in pinball comes from his father, Brian, who had them in the house growing up in Colts Neck, N.J. Klatsky said he had one in his bedroom in high school, but as he got more into basketball, his interest in the games faded.

Now, that interest has returned in a big way. He has one at his house here in Athens. He had a “John Wick” one from the huge movie franchise, but that has been replaced by a Guns N’ Roses model.

“That one is insane,” he said with a huge smile. “We got their music playing non-stop in the house, and it’s shaking the house. ‘Sweet Child of Mine,’ ‘Welcome to the Jungle.’ ‘Paradise City,’ all the classics — we just blast them while we’re playing.”

Blast is a good word to describe the time Klatsky is having at Georgia, especially this season, as the No. 25-ranked Bulldogs are off to a strong start and he’s finally scored a few long-awaited buckets. Georgia (9-1) hosts Western Carolina (4-6) at Stegeman Coliseum on Thursday.

 

Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men’s Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.