James Blackmon Jr.
Blackmon in the 2014 McDonald's All-American Boys Game | |
No. 1 – Indiana Hoosiers | |
---|---|
Position | Shooting guard |
League | Big Ten Conference |
Personal information | |
Born |
Chicago, Illinois | April 24, 1995
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
Career information | |
High school |
Bishop Luers (Fort Wayne, Indiana) Marion (Marion, Indiana) |
College | Indiana (2014–present) |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
James Blackmon Jr. (born April 25, 1995) is an American college basketball player who is currently in his junior season with the Indiana Hoosiers. He is known for his shooting range and accuracy.
High school career
Blackmon played three years at Bishop Luers High School and his senior year at Marion High School. In his senior season, he averaged 33.4 points and 4.2 three-pointers (47%),[1] and broke his father's school record by scoring 54 points in a game. He ranks #9 on Indiana's all-time scoring list.[2] He was ranked the 20th best player in the class by ESPN and was recruited heavily by Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Kansas, and Michigan State.[3] He originally committed to Indiana before his freshman season, but reopened his recruitment before his senior season.[4] His final verbal commitment to Indiana was televised live on ESPNU.[5] He scored 13 points in the McDonald's All-American Game and won the three-point contest.[6] He also scored 23 in the Jordan Brand Classic.[7] He finished third in Indiana Mr. Basketball voting, behind Trey Lyles and Trevon Bluiett.[8]
Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
James Blackmon Jr. G |
Marion, IN | Marion HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Oct 31, 2013 | |
Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: | ||||||
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 32 Rivals: 22 247Sports: 12 ESPN: 20 | ||||||
Sources:
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College career
Freshman year
During Indiana's five-game preseason Canada trip, Blackmon led the team in scoring with 18.8 points, despite focusing mainly on his defense. As a freshman, he earned the starting spot in the backcourt alongside Yogi Ferrell.[9] He averaged 15.7 points per game, the sixth best average for any freshman in the country. He ranked second on the team in both scoring and rebounding (5.3). Blackmon was a prolific three-point shooter, breaking Eric Gordon's Indiana freshman record with 77 three-point field goals made. He earned Honorable Mention All-Big Ten, a unanimous spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman team and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week twice.[10]
Junior year
On November 14, 2016, Blackmon Jr. was named National Player of the Week by NBCSports.com and Big Ten Co-Player of the Week.[11][12]
College statistics
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014–15 | Indiana | 33 | 33 | 30.0 | .420 | .387 | .806 | 5.3 | 1.5 | 0.7 | .1 | 15.7 |
2015–16 | Indiana | 13 | 12 | 24.5 | .480 | .463 | .852 | 4.2 | 1.6 | 1.2 | .38 | 15.8 |
2016–17 | Indiana | |||||||||||
Career | 46 | 45 | 27.2 | .450 | .425 | .829 | 4.7 | 1.5 | 0.9 | .2 | 15.7 | |
Source:[13]
Family
Blackmon's father, James Blackmon Sr., was drafted into the NBA after an outstanding career at Kentucky. He now coaches at Marion. His father is of African-American descent, while his mother Sailaja is of Indian descent. The younger Blackmon has three brothers, Vijay, Jalen and Nazeon
See also
2014–15 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team
2015–16 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team
2016-17 Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball team
References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to James Blackmon. |
- ↑ http://www.maxpreps.com/athlete/james-blackmon/aPVWYkdFEeOZXQAmVebBJg/gendersport/basketball-stats.htm
- ↑ http://www.ihsaa.org/sports/boys/basketball/scoringrecords/tabid/133/default.aspx
- ↑ http://espn.go.com/college-sports/basketball/recruiting/player/_/id/117563/james-blackmon-jr
- ↑ http://www.insidethehall.com/2014/06/18/freshman-focus-james-blackmon-jr/#more-39598
- ↑ "Indiana lands No. 4 SG James Blackmon". ESPN.com. 2013-11-04.
- ↑ Helfgot, Mike (2014-03-31). "Alexander on Kansas: 'I wouldn't mind staying two years'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2014-08-13.
- ↑ http://jordanbrandclassic.com/images/stories/docs/2014/2014nationalboxscore.pdf
- ↑ http://indiana.247sports.com/Article/Release-Indiana-signee-James-Blackmon-Jr-an-Indiana-All-Star-187831
- ↑ http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/college/indiana/2014/08/13/indianas-james-blackmon-jr-stakes-claim-starting-spot-alongside-yogi-ferrell/14024229/
- ↑ http://btn.com/2015/03/09/view-2015-all-big-ten-mens-basketball-teams-honors/
- ↑ IUHoosiers - Blackmon Jr.
- ↑ Blackmon player of the week
- ↑ http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/james-blackmon-1.html