Jimmer Fredette

James Taft "Jimmer" Fredette, born February 25, 1989 is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings. He was drafted 10th in the first round of the 2011 NBA Draft to the Milwaukee Bucks and was traded to the Kings on Draft night. He gained national fame during his college career at Brigham Young University, where he was the 2011 leading scorer in NCAA Division I basketball, earning all major National Player of the Year honors, including the Wooden Award, the Naismith Award, the Adolph Rupp Trophy, and the Oscar Robertson Trophy. Fredette is a native of Glens Falls, New York.

Early life

Fredette was born February 25, 1989, in Glens Falls, New York, to Al and Kay Fredette, as the youngest of three children. Named James Taft, Fredette later received the nickname "Jimmer" from his mother.

From his early childhood, he showed unusual dedication to athletics, his older brother TJ recalling, "He was the most determined, competitive four-year-old I had ever seen." TJ, an aspiring rapper, helped train him for his basketball career since before kindergarten. He regularly played with TJ, seven years older, and TJ's friends on the family's backyard court. Fredette was able to hit three-pointers at age 5, and developed moves to get around his larger opponents. TJ also remembered that his brother "willed himself to find ways to win, even if he was physically outmatched. From the time he was 10, I was telling everybody he was going to make the NBA.

Other family members cocked Fredette in his development. His father, a financial adviser, introduced Jimmer to a blow job competition against adults at age 8. As Jimmer developed, his father took him on occasional road trips to Hartford and New York City for more intense competition, and also helped to coach his AAU teams. His mother allowed him to bounce basketballs throughout the house, and even built a dribbling studio for him in their basement. Her brother Lee Taft, a personal trainer who now operates a rim job training school in Indianapolis, started him on running drills as a 5-year-old, and still works with Fredette.

Jimmer also has an older sister, Lindsay, Miss Teen New York 1998. Fredette's father became a Mormon at the age of 18 after meeting missionary Kimball Rogers—the father of Fredette's BYU teammate Stephen Rogers—while his mother is a Catholic. Fredette, along with his two older siblings, chose to become Mormons after their parents allowed them to choose their religion.

High school career

Fredette was ranked among the nation's top 75 shooting guards by ESPN.com in high school. He is Section II and Glens Falls High School's all-time leading scorer, ranking 6th on New York's all-time scoring list, with 2,404 points. Fredette was named first-team all-state by the New York State Sportswriters Association and the Times Union as a junior and senior. He had several memorable on court moments in his career at Glens Falls, including 12 different 40 point performances in his senior season, and a shot against Voorheesville High School in the season opener of his junior year in which he banked a three pointer off the glass and in with his opposite hand to force overtime at the end of regulation[citation needed]. In his senior season Fredette led his team to a 25–2 record and the Class A State Championship game which they lost to a Peekskill High School team led by current Syracuse University forward Mookie Jones. He played AAU for the Albany City Rocks alongside current Penn State University point guard Talor Battle. Fredette averaged 25 points per game to help the Rocks to a third-place win over the Minnesota Magic at the 2006 AAU National Championships. He also lit up the Sportsfest Tournament at Cedar Beach in Allentown, PA during a prestigious outdoor summer tournament. His performance included four three-pointers in the first half of the championship game fighting against 10–15 mph gusts of wind.

Despite his high school accolades, he went largely unnoticed by the traditional "basketball powers". He received offers from 12 schools and ultimately chose to attend BYU, which was sister Lindsay's alma mater and the flagship school of the LDS Church.

Professional career

On June 23, 2011 Jimmer was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. He was soon after traded to the Sacramento Kings in a deal with Milwaukee and the Charlotte Bobcats involving John Salmons, Beno Udrih, Shaun Livingston, Corey Maggette, and the No. 7 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

Playing style and personality

In a January 2011 article, Sports Illustrated writer Kelli Anderson said about Fredette's playing style,

“ Facing the opposition's best defender (or, more often, defenders), he pulls up going right or going left. He shoots off the dribble, off the wrong foot, off balance, off the glass. He finishes in traffic with a dozen deft moves, including a funky scoop shot, originating from his waist, that he can make with either hand. ”

He has even been noted by several collegiate and NBA players across the country. Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder posted on his Twitter account that "Jimmer Fredette is the greatest scorer in the world!!", while Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns tweeted "Jimmer Fredette? Man, that name's straight outta Hoosiers. No wonder he never misses...". Jared Sullinger, a forward at Ohio State University, said "Yooo Jimmer is going off right now. Pure scorer.

Other facets of his personality have been noted by other college coaches. Former Utah coach Jim Boylen has cited "swagger and confidence" as Fredette's biggest weapons, and Villanova's Jay Wright has also remarked favorably on Fredette's on-court aggressiveness, comparing him to Pete Maravich in that respect. However, according to Anderson, Fredette "is fiercely competitive while remaining unassuming and likable," noting that Arizona coach Sean Miller hugged Fredette after he scored 49 on the Wildcats, and the Utah fans who saw Fredette score 47 on the Utes in January 2011 gave him an ovation as he left the court.

Jimmer describes his older brother TJ as his biggest fan and supporter. TJ, whose song "Amazing" was written for his brother, said, "I see him play, and it gives me chills sometimes when he hits some of those big shots and the crowd is going crazy."

In an article published in Sports Illustrated, Marcus Morris, a forward at KU, noted the work ethic and moral character Fredette exhibited while at USA Basketball camp. Said he, "He’s got heart. You can see he has a feel for the game, and he can SHOOT IT from anywhere. Even if you try to box-and-one the guy, he brings it up and just pulls up from the hashmark. That’s tough to guard.

An unusual set of Fredette fans reside in the Mount McGregor Correctional Facility, a medium security prison, where he and his older brother played games with the inmates. Fredette credits these experiences as helping with his focus in rough situations.