GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Greensboro Day School's John Newman III will take his talents to the Palmetto State.
Friday, the GDS guard announced he's committed to playing basketball at Clemson University.
Newman is one of the state’s highest rated players in the Class of 2018, and he's been part of two state championship teams at Greensboro Day.
He says he didn't always think getting to this point would be possible.
"I never would've saw myself being here, committed to an ACC school," he said. "Five years ago, I was probably the worst player on my AAU team, but I just kept working, and I think I'm a living testament of hard work pays off."
Newman says his decision to commit to Clemson goes beyond basketball.
"I went with my gut feeling, and I knew this was the place I wanted to be," Newman said. "I think the genuine feel of the people – I feel like they didn't just want to know me as an athlete, they wanted to get to know me as a person."
Newman sees Clemson as a team on the rise, and he expects to be a solid addition to the team.
"On the court, you're going to get a great two-way player, a tenacious defender and someone who can score the ball too. I play both ways pretty well, so yeah, someone who can do a little bit of everything," he said.