Aaron Jackson (basketball)

Aaron Jackson
No. 9 – CSKA Moscow
Position Point guard / Shooting guard
League VTB United League
Euroleague
Personal information
Born May 6, 1986
Hartford, Connecticut
Nationality American
Listed height 190 cm (6 ft 3 in)
Listed weight 83 kg (183 lb)
Career information
High school Northwest Catholic
(West Hartford, Connecticut)
Worcester Academy
(Worcester, Massachusetts)
College Duquesne (2005–2009)
NBA draft 2009 / Undrafted
Pro career 2009–present
Career history
2009–2010 Antalya BB
2010 Virtus Bologna
2010–2012 Bilbao Basket
2012–present CSKA Moscow
Career highlights and awards

Aaron Jackson (born May 6, 1986) is an American basketball professional player who currently plays for CSKA Moscow of the VTB United League as a Point guard.

Personal life

His nickname is Ajax, he is sometimes designated as such by fans and media, it's derived from the similarly named Greek hero who Jackson learned about in a history class, he later got a tattoo depicting the warrior on his arm.[1]

He was offered a passport by Bosnia and Herzegovina in exchange for playing for the national side, this would have allowed him to be counted as a EU player on rosters in some leagues, however he refused as it would mean he would spend even more time away from his family in the U.S.[2]

Duquesne shootings

On September 17, 2006, Jackson and four other Duquesne teammates Sam Ashaolu, Stuart Baldonado, Shawn James and Kojo Mensah were the victims of an unprovoked shooting on the university's Pittsburgh campus. Ashaolu was shot in the head and neck, Mensah in the shoulder and arm, Baldonado through his back into his elbow, James in his left foot whilst Jackson was only grazed on the wrist by a bullet, he carried the injured Baldonado to his car and drove to hospital.[3]

The shooter William B. Holmes II pleaded guilty to the shootings and was sentenced to up to 40 years in prison whilst the other gunman, Derek Lee, was sentenced to up to 14 years in prison, former university student Brittany Jones was sentenced to two years of probation for helping her armed friends enter the student dance where the shootings took place, the altercation started after a woman who came to the party with them flirted with one of the players.[4]

Jackson was able to play the next season, the only one of the four to do so, he was a roommate and friend of Ashaolu and helped him through his rehabilitation, even having to carry him to his car and drive him to hospital after a seizure. Though Ashaolu was never able to play basketball, he graduated in 2009 along with Jackson who earned a psychology degree.[5]

Player profile

A tall point guard who can also on occasion play as shooting guard, his most potent assets are his speed and athleticism. In attack he's an unselfish creator of scoring chances both for himself, using his velocity and body control to weave through the defence and score close to the basket, or for others thanks to his passing and high basketball IQ to organise the attack. Defence, not initially a strong point, is now his forte as he uses his dynamism to aggressively pressure the ball handler, he's not afraid of contact and regularly grabs defensive rebounds.

On the minus side he has tended to rely on his speed in attack, attempting low percentage shots or passes too often, he can struggle to break a defence whilst not on the break, however he's been progressing from year to year and has benefited from working with reputed coaches like Ettore Messina.[6][7]

College Career [8]

After playing at local Northwest Catholic High School Jackson moved on to prep school Worcester Academy for his post-grad year, playing under later Hofstra coach Mo Cassara, after an impressive for the Hilltoppers he was recruited by Duquesne in April 2005.

The basketball program was in the midst of one of it's worst stretch ever, reaching 10 wins just twice in 11 years in repeating losing seasons. The 2005–06 season wouldn't change that, on the contrary as a 3-24 record was the worst in the school's 92 year history even though Jackson had comparatively good stats for a freshman and started in all games.

Coach Danny Nee was fired and replaced by Ron Everhart, he would make sweeping changes to the roster, bringing in 10 new players whilst only keeping two from the previous team, including Jackson after a meeting between the two.[3] In a team shook by the shootings (see above), Jackson was a leader for the team, playing in all games again he was in the conference top-10 for assists and steals whilst active in scoring and rebounding as part of an improved 10-19 record. Aaron's junior season continued that trend, though he earned less minutes as per Everharts rotation policy he led his team in assists whilst also contributing in rebounds and scoring in double figures regularly as part of the Dukes first winning season since 1994.

Fittingly he reached the pinnacle of his collegiate career in his last college season, the only senior in a team with seven freshmen, he started in every single game as he led the team in scoring, assists (with a school record of 194) and second in rebounding and steals. His stats also ranked in the top 5 for the whole Atlantic 10 Conference in seven categories (of which scoring, assists, steals and minutes) which led to him making the All-A 10 first-team. On a team level it was as successful a season, the Dukes earning 21-13 record in the regular season, the best since 1971, which allowed them to enter the NIT. Jackson had his last Dukes game in the first round against Virginia Tech, an befitting farewell as he scored 46 points (joint fourth highest for the school) in a double overtime loss.

At the end of his Duquesne career his name was in the university's record books, tied 1st in games played (all of his team's games in every season), 3rd in career assists (with 505), 6th in steals (169) and 7th in FG %.

Professional career

Following this impressive collegiate career, albeit not in a strong program, Jackson declared for the 2009 NBA draft. Having played in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, a pre-draft tournament that the major college players forgo, he knew he wouldn't be a top pick and that proved to be the case as he went undrafted. He then participated in the NBA Summer League for the Indiana Pacers, in a de facto competition with A. J. Price for the 3rd point guard spot on the roster he was the least impressive and went unsigned.

Preferring to play in Europe over a D-League contract he moved to Antalya Büyükşehir Belediyesi of the Turkish Basketball League for the 2009–10 season, penning his first professional contract.[9] He had a good first pro season, a starter for his team he was in the league top 20 for points (15.17 pg), assists (3.97 pg) and efficiency whilst also contributing heavily in rebounds (4.93 pg) as his team finished in mid-table and missed the playoffs.

However his season wasn't finished as he then signed for Italian Serie A side Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna in April 2010 as a replacement for injured Petteri Koponen to play in the playoffs.[10] He was an instant fit for the team, starting in all games of their run to the playoff first rounds, scoring in double figures on average along with good assists and rebounding stats prompting the management to try and extend his contract.

Bilbao Basket

It was to be in vain for Virtus as, after a fruitless summer league appearance with the Cleveland Cavaliers, he signed a contract with Bilbao Basket in June 2010 for one year with another in option to play in the Liga ACB.[11]

He was brought in by coach Fotios Katsikaris to be the starting point guard and flourished in a league widely considered as being second to only the NBA. After a brief adaptation periods he became the focal point of his team's attack and led them to a solid 6th place in the league. It was in the playoffs that Jackson would explode, playing more minutes than any other player and in the top 10 of a multitude of stat tables (scoring, rebounding, assists, steals amongst others) as Bilbao eliminated Valencia and Real Madrid, the latter one of the best teams in Europe, let alone Spain.[12] This allowed the Men in black to reach their first ever ACB final, although they lost to Barcelona in the final round.

After Bilbao took the option on his contract, Jackson continued his form the next season, ranking amongst the league's best 5 point guards with a near copy of his previous season's stats. On a team level there was no repeat of last year's heroics, after an unspectacular league season where they finished 6th, they lost in the first round of the playoffs despite Jackson again raising his game as a top scorer for his team in both games.

Above all the season allowed him to play in Europe's premier competition the Euroleague and play against the continent's best teams, he alternated average and great games to obtain decent average stats in his first European season. None so evident were two games in the Top 16 again favourite opponents Real Madrid, the first was a shocker with only 2 points in 20 minutes for Aaron in a loss, whilst only a week later he had a Top 16 Week 4 MVP performance, scoring 15 points with 10 assists and only 1 turnover in 93-69 victory that allowed Bilbao to finish above Madrid in their group and reach the Quaterfinals.[13] There he was more regular in his performances however opponent and future finalist CSKA Moscow proved too strong for his team and they lost the series 3-1 to end a good European season.

Having reached his peak in the Basque team, he turned down an offer to extend contract and left Bilbao, choosing his career over his professed attachment to the team and fans.

CSKA Moscow

Jackson then joined his former opponents CSKA on June 19, 2012, penning a lucrative 3 year deal with the European giants, forgoing another go at the NBA despite interest for a guaranteed contract from some teams.[14]

Joining a packed roster at the Moscow club, including Miloš Teodosić, Theodoros Papaloukas and to a lesser extent Anton Ponkrashov as competitors for the starting point guard berth Aaron went from the team's playmaker to a supporting role. However he adapted to this role and earned the trust of coach Ettore Messina, formerly at Real Madrid, who gave him a more prominent role as the season developed, his personal stats, whilst logically less than previously, remained decent. He participated in CSKA's titles in the competitive VTB United League and the weaker Russian League, his first silverware, however they again faltered in the Euroleague, losing in the semifinals to Olympiacos, who had defeated them the previous year as well, Jackson having an off game.

Despite this, and the option in his contract to terminate it after a year, he stayed in Moscow for the 2013-14 season, he even played in competitive games against NBA teams in pre season friendlies although he didn't particularly shine. Messina started the season with Teodosić and newly arrived Jeremy Pargo above Aaron in the competition for a starting berth, however he worked on his defensive game in contrast to Pargo and became a starter when Teodosić injured himself in March 2014. The army team made it to the 2014 Euroleague Final Four and seemed on their way to the final before a meltdown allowed opponent Maccabi Tel Aviv to win the game by a point, Jackson, one of many players that disappointed on the night, injured his knee late in the game and missed the team's consolation come from behind title in the VTB United League.[15]

Having seen the club not compete for the Euroleague title two years in a year, the directors at CSKA wanted to change things around, Messina was replaced by Dimitrios Itoudis and Nando de Colo was signed to be the team's playmaker, as Teodosić was also kept that left Jackson and Pargo in competition for the substitute role, despite interest from Valencia and Pargo's costly contract it was the latter who was released.[16] Jackson repaid the faith with a strong start to the 2014-15 season, contributing heavily in assists and rebounds whilst also regularly scoring in double digits to obtain good valuations, including a stretch in the VTB United League in December that saw him nominated for the month MVP award.[17] After recovering from a minor hip injury he also had a decisive contribution in the Euroleague victory against Anadolu Efes Istanbul in January, scoring 21 points on a 100% FG shooting along with 4 rebounds and 4 assists to finish behind teamate De Colo in the Top 16 Round 3 MVP rankings.[18] In a rotation system with De Colo, Teodosić and Sonny Weems occupying either the point guard or shooting guard position, Jackson is more often a substitute, however he contributes a lot when coming on or when starting, especially in defence where his progress has been meteoric, leading him to be considered as one of the top 10 defenders in the VTB United League.[6]

Career statistics

Euroleague[19]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

Note: The Euroleague is not the only competition in which the player participated for the team during the season, he also played in domestic competition.

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2011–12 Gescrap BB 20 20 25.18 52.3 34.1 80.0 2.8 3.9 1.0 0.0 9.1 10.3
2012–13 CSKA Moscow 30 6 18.22 57.6 30.2 77.3 1.9 1.3 0.5 0.0 5.0 5.1
2013–14 CSKA Moscow 30 7 17.15 60.9 30.2 82.4 1.6 2.0 0.7 0.0 4.8 6.4
Career 80 33 20.18 56.93 31.5 79.9 2.1 2.4 0.73 0.0 6.3 7.26

League (Italy,[20] Spain[21] & VTB United League[22])

Regular season

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2009-10 Canadian Solar BO 2 2 28.5 87.5 40.0 66.7 5.0 6.5 2.0 0.0 13.0
2010-11 Bizkaia Bilbao Basket 34 25 26.38 48.0 43.0 85.0 3.35 2.70 1.29 0.02 11.47
2011-12 Gescrap Bizkaia 34 33 25.44 53.0 35.0 74.0 3.26 2.82 0.88 0.0 10.38
2012-13 CSKA Moscow 16 6 19.03 62.8 31.3 85.7 2.3 1.4 1.0 0.0 6.4
2013-14 CSKA Moscow 16 6 22.56 72.7 42.9 87.0 4.6 2.9 0.8 0.1 7.5
Career 102 72 24.38 64.8 38.44 79.68 3.72 3.26 1.19 0.02 9.75

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2009-10 Canadian Solar BO 5 5 33.6 42.9 66.7 75.0 4.6 4.2 1.8 0.0 15.0
2010-11 Bizkaia Bilbao Basket 9 9 27.22 44.0 27.0 87.0 3.55 3.2 1.11 0.0 8.77
2011-12 Gescrap Bizkaia 2 2 32.0 44.0 71.0 90.0 4.0 3.5 1.0 0.0 19.0
2012-13 CSKA Moscow 13 8 26.08 54.8 42.9 81.6 3.4 2.5 0.7 0.0 8.7
2013-14 CSKA Moscow 1 1 11.15 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 0.0
Career 30 25 26.01 37.14 41.52 66.72 3.31 2.68 1.12 0.0 10.29

References

  1. ↑ Morales, Jesús. "Ajax: the fastest guy of the Liga.", Liga ACB, 5 April 2011. Retrieved on 15 April 2015.(Spanish)
  2. ↑ Minteguia, Igor. "Bosnia won't have their Bo McCalebb in Aaron Jackson.", Solobasket.com, 2 April 2012. Retrieved on 15 April 2015.(Spanish)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Harlan, Chico. "Basketball: A season in chaos."Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 25 February 2005. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Judge tosses lawsuits by Duquesne basketball players who were shot on campus."WTAE-TV, Pittsburgh, 1 April 2013. Retrieved on 18 March 2015.
  5. ↑ Katz, Andy. "One dream denied, one fulfilled."ESPN, Pittsburgh, 17 December 2009. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "10 contenders for Defensive Player of the Year", VTB United League, 31 March 2015. Retrieved on 14 April 2015.
  7. ↑ "Prospect Interview: Aaron Jackson", Indiana Pacers. Retrieved on 14 April 2015.
  8. ↑ "Aaron Jackson", Duquesne Dukes. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Aaron Jackson Signs With Antalya of the Turkish Basketball League", Duquesne Dukes, Pittsburgh, 29 July 2009. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.
  10. ↑ Aquino, Luca. "Virtus has chosen Aaron Jackson", Corriere di Bologna, 30 April 2010. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.(Italian)
  11. ↑ "Bizkaia Bilbao Basket signs point guard Aaron Jackson", Liga ACB, Bilbao, 23 June 2010. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.(Spanish)
  12. ↑ Borja Tovar "Basque cinderella BBB makes the ACB final in a shocker", Talkbasket.net, 3 June 2011. Retrieved on 1 April 2015.
  13. ↑ "Top 16, Week 4 bwin MVP: Aaron Jackson, Gescrap BB", Euroleague, 10 February 2012. Retrieved on 11 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Goldman, Taylor. "Getting to Know...Former Duquesne Star and European Basketball Standout Aaron Jackson", IMG Academy, 26 June 2012. Retrieved on 11 April 2015.
  15. ↑ "Lokomotiv Kuban – CSKA. Preview", Lokomotiv Kuban, 21 May 2014. Retrieved on 13 April 2015.
  16. ↑ "Valencia Basket, waiting on the possible exit of Aaron Jackson from CSKA", Mundo Deportivo, Valencia, 19 July 2014. Retrieved on 13 April 2015.(Spanish)
  17. ↑ "December MVP", VTB United League, 29 December 2014. Retrieved on 14 April 2015.
  18. ↑ "Top 16 Round 3 bwin MVP: Nando De Colo, CSKA Moscow", Euroleague, 17 January 2015. Retrieved on 14 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Jackson, Aaron - Stats", Euroleague. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.
  20. ↑ "Aaron Lee Jackson - Statistiche totali", Legabasket. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.(Italian)
  21. ↑ "Jackson, Aaron - Historial estadístico", Liga ACB. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.(Spanish)
  22. ↑ "Aaron Jackson - Career", VTB United League. Retrieved on 27 March 2015.

External links