USC Basketball: Most Important Player #8 - Malik Marquetti

Andy Enfield's first true recruiting class at USC was a roaring success. The Trojans definitely needed a talent overall after losing their top four scorers, top two rebounders, as well as their assists and steals leaders.

Assistants Tony Bland, Jason Hart and Kevin Norris worked relentlessly and brought in four talented players in Jordan McLaughlin, Malik Martin, Elijah Stewart and Malik Marquetti.

8. Malik Marquetti - Wing

Malik Marquetti is probably the least hyped of the Trojans' foursome, but he is going to be an essential element for the 2014-15 Trojans. Much like Julian Jacobs was able to do last season, Marquetti can immediately step in and start filling the stat sheet.

Jacobs often put up stat lines that included some points, a few rebounds, a couple of steals and assists and even a block or two. Marquetti should be able to do the same. He can do a little bit of everything for USC. He's not going to be a primary scoring threat like a couple of the other freshmen, but when you look at the box score, you're going to be surprised at how strong of a game he had.

For example, in the Trojans' exhibition win over Cal State Los Angeles on Saturday, Marquetti finished with only two points on 1-for-3 shooting. However, looking across the stat sheet, Marquetti made an impact elsewhere with six rebound and a team-high five assists in 19 minutes.

On one of his assists, he could have attempted a shot after cutting to the basket where Jordan McLaughlin hit him with a bullet pass. Instead, Marquetti caught the ball and immediately dished it off to Malik Martin as Martin's defender came to help. Martin properly finished off the play with a strong jam that Rivals named one of the two most spectacular plays of the game.

While the 6'6", 190-pound Malik Marquetti may not be the primary option, that doesn't mean he can't score the basketball. He averaged 22.8 points for Millikan High School in Long Beach last year. He's best out on the open floor where he can use his athleticism.

Marquetti's wingspan is even wider than his height would suggest. He's a very good defender and takes pride on that side of the ball as well as passing to his teammates. You can also follow him on Twitter (@MalikBOMAYE).

Here are some highlights of Malik Marquetti in high school playing for Millikan. You have to love his hustle and that one of his highlights is taking a charge, but then the 1:14 mark -- wow!: