Saint Louis University Billiken guard Jordair Jett recently made a pass that he probably wouldn't have attempted, let alone envisioned, as a freshman. During Saturday’s home victory against George Washington University, he identified forward Grandy Glaze coming in alone under the Colonials basket cross-court, whistled the ball through a batch of defenders, and got it to his junior teammate so quickly that Glaze barely had enough time to get his hands up.
Known for his gutsy, slashing drives to the basket, Jett is the team’s floor leader, and players on the court best be ready for the rock.
Jett’s statline for the game was impressive enough, with 34 minutes played, 16 points scored on six-of-13 shooting, plus a margin of four assists to just one turnover. But with the sold-out Chaifetz Arena crowd on pins and needles during a wild second half, Jett missed some free throws. And a couple of his layups, earned by his trademark, daring streaks through the lane, didn’t drop. There were audible moans in the stands, as the Billiken faithful has come to expect nothing short of excellence every time Jett touches the ball.
In short, success has bred a desire for more. The Billikens audacious run to the top 10 has caused long-suffering Billiken fans to embrace the pathology that comes with winning. They look to the past and wonder what could’ve been, if this or that player hadn’t transferred or graduated. They worry about the future, with all five starters departing the team after this spring. It can be hard to focus on the present when you’ve got eyes looking in both directions.
Jett, though? Well, these days he’s a pretty happy guy, arguably the most visible and popular undergrad walking around SLU’s Frost Campus.
“It feels really good. It’s a lot more fun when you win games,” Jett deapans. “As a freshman, we struggled. By my junior year, we were really good. And now we’re really good, which is a lot of fun. It’s been great to go from my freshman year, when I just walked around campus with my headphones on; now, I’m speaking to everybody, and it’s a lot more fun.”
That confidence comes from his play, sure. As a frosh, he scored 7.5 points a game and paced the team in steals, but the team struggled through a year in which the Bills played shorthanded due to several suspensions and transfers. He and the team recovered; by his junior year, Jett was averaging 9 points a game, as part of a multi-headed guard rotation that included the team’s longtime point guard Kwamain Mitchell and Jett’s class of ‘14 running partner Mike McCall Jr. He was a super-sub last year, starting early in the season, then coming off the bench down the stretch, as the Bills shredded through a loaded Atlantic 10 conference, winning both the regular season and conference tourney titles.
His play last year, along with the departure of Mitchell, all but guaranteed him a starting slot this season. And he’s run with the new responsibilities, turning in an average of 13.8 points a game, with many of those points coming in both the second halves of games and the second half of the season. In essence, he’s clutch. And he’s a senior, with all the responsibility that entails.
As fans may not expressly know, he’s leading his team while carrying 18 hours this semester, an ambitious bit of academic scheduling that’ll leave him just three credit hours short of a degree; he plans to pick up the remaining hours this summer.
“It isn’t hard to concentrate,” he insists. “School’s the number one thing we’re here for. And Janet [Oberle, SLU’S associate director of athletics] and Rachel [Bechert, the team’s coordinator] help me out a lot. We have study hall on the road. There’s not a time when we’re not studying. I talk to my mom about school and my brothers. It’s been fast and fun. I can remember a lot of things that happened as a freshman, and now I’m graduating. And I’ll finish school this summer. I’ll be training here and getting ready to figure out what I’ll do next.”
IT STARTS WITH STRENGTH
As a longtime sports presence on NewsChannel 5 and a daily talk-show host on CBS Sports Radio 920, Frank Cusumano knows how to tell a good story. And he’s got one ready when asked about Jett.
“He so soft-spoken and quiet, but every once in awhile you get a sense of bravado,” Cusumano says. “We asked [senior forward] Dwayne Evans who the strongest player on the team was, and he said it was a toss-up between himself, Grandy Glaze, and Jett. Well, [Jett] heard that and said, with a smile, ‘No, it’s not a toss-up. I bench 300, and they don’t.’”
Asked about that exchange, Jett admits, “I’m naturally strong and have been my whole life. [Billikens strength coach] Erick Schork has been helping me maintain my weight. I don’t want to gain too many [pounds], but I don’t want to lose too many. As a senior, he doesn’t want me getting any bigger. It’s all about getting defined now, getting that definition.”
In the SLU huddle on gameday, Schork’s spent as much time with Jett as anyone, working with him for his full, four-year playing career.
“I think that over the years he’s matured,” Schork says. “He’s put more of an emphasis on his body. I think he understood that going from last year—when he played 20 to 25 minutes a game, to losing some key players this year—that his role would increase. The goal was to get him fit enough to play 30 or 35 minutes. He’s so strong. It did get to the point of diminishing returns. He doesn’t need to be built like a running back to hit the hole. So when he was squatting 430, we had to cut him off. Then all it all became about speed. For other guys, we’ll put them on a conditioning program for strength, but the goal wasn’t to make him stronger. It was to meet the demands of playing time.
“You know,” Schork continues, “when the kids come in, they’re a little bit selfish. There’s that transition between home and school. He puts the team first. He’s not an angel by any account, but he’s genuinely a good person and he’s become more of a team guy. He’s matured and encouraged the young kids. I guess that shows how he’s changed the most. He’s gotten stronger and matured physically, manufactured the body that he has now. Mentally, he’s understood the greater picture. He’s understands how he fits into the team. He understands that his name is getting thrown around. He understands the lifestyle. All of those are plus points for him.”
Earlier this conference season, LaSalle’s head coach, Dr. John Giannini, suggested that Jett had a sports career ahead of him—in football. Schork notes that Jett was recruited out of high school and that the idea isn’t crazy. “He could play linebacker,” Schork says. “I think he could play tailback. For the first few steps, he does stuff that makes it look easy. I just think he’s got the athleticism that could transfer to any field he wants it to. As for football, there’d be no holding him back on the squat rack; we’d have to push him harder. But he’s got the body for it.”
Head coach Jim Crews says there’s a pro-basketball career in Jett’s future. “He’ll play after college," Crews says. "But I’m not smart enough to say where.”
Cusumano’s got ideas. Asked to compare Jett to a historical player, Cusumano takes about one second to say “Quinn Buckner, who was also a standout defensive back and an unbelievable guard. They’re really similar in size and demeanor, too. Here’re my thoughts on Jett. Out of 350 programs in America, you’ve got about 1,000 guards. He would be the last person I’d want to dribble against for 40 minutes a game, with the way he leans and pushes off. He may be the baddest man in college basketball. At the end of a game, everybody on the Billiken bench, everybody in the building, knows that he’s going to shoot, he’s going to the rim. He says, ‘Stop me if you can. I’m not going to mess around.’
“If I had to bet,” Cusumano continues, “it wouldn’t stun me if he got into the NBA summer league and guarded the hell out of people, got to the rim, and shocked the world. The range is the big thing. He does handle it like a one, he scores like a two, he rebounds like a forward. But he doesn’t have unbelievable range. But the guy was recruited to play football. That speaks volumes. Dwayne Evans might be a third team all-American. But when it comes to voting on the player of the year in the Atlantic 10, they’ll vote for this guy.”
Still, Jett doesn’t squash the football talk, nor does he dwell on it. “Yeah, I’ve thought about it, even before [Giannini’s comments]," he says. “Right now, I’m just focused on the season. I’ll make all those decisions later.”
Schork’s take is that “when you talk to the guys, you give them different levels of goals. There’s now, the short future, and long-term. One thing will lead to the next for them. Now, he’s playing great for SLU. But he’s auditioning for the next thing. He’s putting his brand out there. I think it’s important that guys are serious and conscious about that. We talk to them about that, but try to balance it without making (their futures) a burden.”
A TEAM FETED
Early this week, ESPN will be on the SLU campus, taping some spots that’ll tie to the team to former coach Rick Majerus. National media, generally, has become fully aware of the program, with interview requests rolling in from everywhere. Late last week, with commitments stacking up, the best way to catch up with Jett was to visit the Alumni Weekend reception held at Lorenzini’s in the Chaifetz facility.
As the gathering was breaking up, a couple of alumni were asked to speak, including Joe Wiley and Troy Robertson. The latter, a perimeter player during the Spoonhour/Romar years, gave a speech that centered on three points. One was that the players should treat their team as a brotherhood, a second family that would continue through adulthood. Secondly, he added that St. Louis is a small town and that being an athlete here meant the potential to network in the community in a way that other students cannot. And, lastly, he asked that the team stay close to routine during the run-up to March Madness.
Crews, in his second year as the team’s helm, says his team has the first point covered, with Jett a big part of the overall cohesion of the team.
“I think Jordair came from a different environment than others here,” he says. “I think he’s a little bit of an introvert, especially around people older than he is. But he understands people really well. He’s an engaging person, enjoyable to be around. He has a good sense of humor and can be teased. We’ve talked about it, but the one thing that I really admire about this team is that they come from different states, different countries. Also, there are a lot of different personalities. But it’s the most non-judgemental group that I’ve been around, and that’s pretty cool.”
There’s no doubt that Jett’s the emotional triggerman in this unit. Even as Evans has maintained his steady scoring and rebounding and the other seniors (McCall Jr., center Rob Loe and swingman Jake Barnett) have all brought winning elements to the proceedings, Jett’s now the guy that everyone wants to talk to. Whether it’s 90-year old Jack Genetti or the Bills’ third all-time leading scorer, Roland Gray, everyone gets in a word with him whenever they can.
Jett admits he didn’t know much about the Billiken tradition when he arrived. “All new,” he says. “All this was new.”
Most college students find a lot of “new” in their lives, undertaking a four-year blend of new experiences, people, and travels. For athletes, a lot of successes and failures are lived in front of crowds, though some experiences still remain very individual.
Recently, for example, Jett got his driver’s license. One of his first orders of business was to drive himself to the dentist. By all accounts, the newfound freedom to drive has made him very happy.
Overall, it’s been a pretty good spring for Jett. And it’s not over yet.
