PDA

View Full Version : Jon Scheyer Interview



TheRookieWall
06-09-2010, 06:51 AM
I'm writing for TheRookieWall.com and had a chance to interview Jon Scheyer a few days ago. Here is the story.

For the full transcript please visit our website in our signature.

Winning, winning, and more winning.

Jon Scheyer has won 225 basketball games in his high school and college career. Not only did Scheyer help his Glenbrook North High basketball team to a Class AA state basketball championship his junior year in Illinois, but he was a senior leader on the Duke team that cut down the nets after the 2010 NCAA National Championship.

Winning is what drives Scheyer to succeed, he told us in a recent interview with The Rookie Wall.

“The reason I’ve played my whole career is to win, so to win at your high school level is great and to win in the college level is a really big accomplishment and is something I’m really excited about,” said Scheyer of his two championships.

Despite having a ton of high school success, many questioned Scheyer’s strength and ability at the next level because he was a tall but scrawny kid. Coach Krzyzewski, the legendary coach at Duke, was the one person that saw through his slight frame and saw the leadership and intangibles Scheyer possessed.

Coach K found the perfect ringleader for his Duke team in Scheyer. He taught Scheyer all the things required to be successful on the court, and those lessons certainly led to Duke’s success the past four years with Scheyer at guard.

“[M]y basketball knowledge has gone up tremendously since [playing] for [Coach K], said Scheyer of what he’s learned through the years under Coach K. “Just about being a great teammate, and just being accountable.”

With all the winning Scheyer had an impressive college career for the Dukies, but we all know you need a National Title to really leave your mark at Cameron Indoor. In addition to cementing a legacy at Duke, winning the National Championship this year would lead to a truly special moment. When the Duke Men’s Basketball team went to the White House to honor their NCAA National Championship, President Obama shocked Scheyer, and his teammates, when he called Scheyer his “homeboy,” since the President had been following him since his high school days in Chicago.

“[T]hat was probably the coolest moment of my life,” said Scheyer of President Obama referring to him as his homeboy.

Currently working out in Chicago with Josh Oppenheimer to improve his game, specifically his ball handling, Scheyer is ready for the road ahead. He knows he’ll have to face the stigma attached to Duke players (which he addresses in the interview), but with his former teammates and friends J.J. Redick and Gerald Henderson to call on for advice, Scheyer has the support to leave his mark on this draft class, just like he did with the Blue Devils.