A testament to his outstanding play this season, Kentucky men’s basketball graduate guard Jaxson Robinson was named one of five finalists for the 2025 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year, as announced by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Wednesday.
The Julius Erving Award recognizes the top small forward in men’s college basketball each year. This year’s winner will be determined at the end of March by Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famers and committee members.
Robinson, who has been ruled out for the remainder of the 2024-25 season with a wrist injury, was a high-impact player for the Wildcats during his lone season in Lexington. The Ada, Oklahoma, native averaged 13.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists across 24 games played, while shooting 43.2 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from 3-point range. Robinson posted new career bests in rebounds per game, assists per game, field-goal percentage and 3-point field goal percentage this season. He scored in double-figures in 17 games and tallied 20 or more on four occasions. Robinson also reached 1,000-career points this season, passing the threshold during Kentucky’s win over Florida on Jan. 4.
The 6-foor-6 wing played his best ball in conference action, averaging 14.4 points in 11 Southeastern Conference games while shooting 46.2 percent from the floor and 45.7 percent from deep.
A potent threat from the outside, Robinson hit three or more triples in nine games, including seven-straight contests from Jan. 11 – Feb. 4. He canned at least one 3-pointer in his last 21 games of the year and 23 of 24 outings overall.
Robinson had several performances to remember throughout the duration of the 2024-25 campaign. On the road at No. 14 Mississippi State, Robinson erupted for a season-best 27 points while hitting 7-of-10 3s as the Cats took down the Bulldogs, 95-90. The seven made 3s were tied for the most ever by a Wildcat against Mississippi State, matching Dontaie Allen’s performance in 2021. The very next game, Robinson poured in 22 points against Texas A&M, while also tying his career high with eight rebounds to help lead UK to an 81-69 win over the 11th-ranked Aggies.
A part of head coach Mark Pope‘s first team in Lexington, Robinson has been instrumental to a record-breaking season that saw the Cats set program records with seven wins over Associated Press-Top 15 teams and five against top-10 opponents.
2025 Julius Erving Award Finalists
Chad Baker-Mazara: Auburn
Cooper Flagg: Duke
Jaxson Robinson: Kentucky
Ace Bailey: Rutgers
Next Game
Kentucky vs Troy (On time)
