The Sport Count

Remember when you first started watching the NBA and you had a player who was your ‘guy’?

As in the ‘guy’ whose game-by-game stats you would analyse personally just to make sure his averages weren’t being dudded by the league statisticians? Well, forget Magic, Larry, or Michael; Jimmy Jackson was my ‘guy’. I still have his #24 Dallas Mavericks jersey and wear it around the house sometimes.

I really wish I knew what he was up to these days.

A recent Google search has helped little to locate the once feared NBA swingman. He was last seen in Los Angeles during the ’05-06 season as a member of the Lakers, but for some reason, there were no offers forthcoming from any NBA teams at the conclusion of the season.

Jimmy left the city (I assume), and although rumoured to have become a college ball analyst for the Big-10 network, at present, he is nowhere to be found.

For those of you who don’t know much about “JJ”, he was drafted in the same lottery as Shaquille O’Neal (’92-’93), out of Ohio State University as the #4 pick, and within three seasons was averaging 25.7 points per game — even having a 50 point game against the Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf led Denver Nugget.

However, after a terrible ankle injury and an unfortunate love triangle between Jackson, Jason Kidd and Toni Braxton, Jimmy’s form would never be the same. From the 1996-97 season until his 13 game stint with the Lakers, Jim played for 11 teams with a 14.3 career point average.

So if you recognise him from this photo, and/or have any information on his whereabouts, please send the team at The Sport Count an email. And maybe, if anybody reading this happens to knows him (Dick Motta?), do you think you could ask him to sign my Mavs jersey?

Posted by: Daniel Mifsud