Johnnie Jacksons Recruiting Heats Up

MIDDLE ISLAND, NEW YORK -- Johnnie Jackson's first shot in the Rim Rocker tournament was a swished three-pointer. His last shot of this tournament was a swished two-pointer. It should have tied the game up against Long Island Lutheran. It was ruled a three-pointer and Fairley walked away with a victory.

Yes, the referees missed this one badly. But don't blame Johnnie Jackson. He did what was asked of him. Jackson dropped down a clutch jumper as time expired to give his team the victory.

For his part, Jackson was named to the All Tournament team. He was terrific from start to finish. Jackson scored most of his points the first night from the wing, scored many of his points the second night by attacking the basket, and used a balanced game against Long Island Lutheran to score 29 points in a win. He did it all this tournament.

Jackson, a 6-5, 190 pound swingman from Fairley H.S. in Memphis, Tenn., has a great looking stroke (rainbow jumper) from the perimeter, and uses excellent fakes to get good looks at the basket. He has range out to the three point line.

The one area is as Jackson gets stronger, he will need to post up some opponents and take advantage of his good offensive skills. He only did that on a couple of opportunities in this tournament.

Early in the summer, Jackson told the Insiders Report that he was interested in Temple, Texas, Boston College, Louisville, Memphis, Southern Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee and Vanderbilt.

But the list has changed as most players have signed in the Fall. Providence College, Boston College, East Carolina, Massachusetts, and Stony Brook were on hand this past weekend to take a look at Jackson. In addition, Georgia Tech is also interested in Jackson, since Johnnie is a skilled player.

Jackson averaged 23 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals per game as a junior at Fairley. He is right around those figures as a senior. Jackson has a 2.7 GPA and a 16 on the ACT. He is awaiting a test score. "I am open," Jackson said. "I will talk to any school that's interested in me. I haven't set up any official visits. So I can take some trips."