CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Five-star wing Justin Jackson arrived on the college basketball scene last year with a scouting report that is rarely attached to players in this era: His strength was the mid-range jumper.
The mid-range jumper is a lost art in basketball, and in some statistical circles, it's considered the worst shot in basketball. But Jackson developed his niche almost by accident.
Jackson's parents, Sharon and Lloyd, started teaching him the proper way to shoot from the time he was a toddler on a Little Tikes goal. When Jackson moved up to a real basket, his parents wouldn't let him shoot outside of his range.