by Kent Sterling
Jalen Coleman is two-and-a-half years away from playing big time college basketball somewhere. There are a lot of programs who like Jalen a whole lot – and rightly so – but in order to achieve his dreams, there are areas in his game in need of improvement.
I didn’t tell Jalen that when we spoke. He told me. That’s the best part of this sophomore at Cathedral (Indianapolis). He knows exactly what he wants and who he is, good and bad.
Anyone who watched Cathedral make its run to the Indiana state championship game, or Jalen’s Indiana Elite summer team has seen the talent. He is capable of scoring the basketball in ways that few can. Others try, but the body control needed to spin, knife through traffic, and elevate while also shooting the ball with accuracy is a rare trait.
Another rare trait is that he can take complex instruction about physical movement, and put it into practice almost immediately. Coaches love a guy who they can tell, “Why don’t you try this,” and then the kid does it perfectly. Kids like Jalen makes coaches feel smart, and there is nothing coaches relish more than feeling smart.
What is Jalen working on? Watch the video to find out.