My parents are the main reason I'm in this position, without them who knows where the hell I'd be,” says Jarrett Jack, 21, a statement that many young ball players wish they could make. With the NBA draft closing in, the Maryland born, 6'3” point guard is just weeks away from making one of the toughest decisions of his life. “I think guys get caught up in playing basketball and they forget that everybody is not gonna make it,” he says with a hint of cockiness and an air of concern, “but, I still don't know yet, if it was an easy decision, I would have made it already.”
Jarrett Jack has been making tough decisions since his high school days at Worcester Academy, (Providence, MA) where the local press granted him pop-star celeb status, featuring him daily as the next great baller. The perfect mix of natural talent, burgeoning skills, and a great competitive spirit sparked rumors of superstardom for Jack. Heavily recruited by several Division I teams, Jack chose to join Georgia Tech's Yellow Jackets in the fall of 2002. “Playing college ball is something I've dreamed of doing all my life. If I graduate they would retire my jersey,” an honor that makes the lucrative temptings of the NBA a bit less enticing.
It was a turbulent 2004-2005 Georgia Tech season that set the stage for Jack to enter the draft. After leading his team to the Final Four in 2004, high expectations were unmet by the Yellow Jackets, who were forced to play the understudies while nursing a bruised and battered starting line up. Still, Jack turned heads with his relentless competitiveness, sinking key shots on a severely sprained ankle, and carrying his team to the Sweet Sixteen. With the scouts watching, the whispers began about draft potential. “My name is hot right now,” he says nonchalantly, “If I wanted to go this would be a good time.”
In May, Jack announced that he would enter the draft but not retain an agent, a smart play for the student-athlete, which allows him to shop around but still choose to pull out and return to finish his last year of college.
With his parents and “classy” Coach Paul Hewitt by his side, Camp Jack is in full-fledged pre-draft frenzy. “I think he is one of the best point guards in the country,” says Hewitt. I know he is absolutely going to impress them on and off the court, everyone says if he stays in, he's going to go first round.” But Jack knows it's hard to trust the hype, “I believe the worst news before the best, if you listen to the worst you don't get your hopes up.”
Packing his bags for NBA pre-draft camp in Chicago, Jack is preparing to leave the sweltering Georgia summer to find success in the NBA. But the heat is still on and with only a week left to make his decision, he knows the best way is to play it cool. “They tell you a lot of information, but not everything,” he says with unwavering determination, “It's a game of cat and mouse.”
Jack was drafted number 23 to the Denver Nuggets who traded him to the Portland Trailblazeres.
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