John Jenkins

For discussion of Vanderbilt Commodores men's basketball games and recruiting.

Moderators: kerrigjl, BrentVU, jfgogold, NateSY, KarenYates, Vandyman74, roanoke, VandyWhit

TwoSaints
Vice Admiral
Posts: 3130
Joined: Fri Dec 30, 2016 1:23 pm
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 6 times

John Jenkins

Post by TwoSaints »

I don't know whether everyone is aware of this, but John Jenkins is playing for the US National Team in the FIBA qualifying tournament this year. He led them in scoring in their game yesterday. The first round had six games spread out over eight months, with two games in November, two in February, and two in July. The US was in a group with Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Cuba and won five of six (the only loss was in one of the games against Mexico, in Chihuahua City). Cuba was eliminated and the others advanced.

The second round started yesterday with a crushing victory over Uruguay, 105-71, after a pre-game talk from Coach K. (Jim Boylen is coaching this team.) JJ dominated, scoring 22 points on just 8-9 shooting (6-7 from 3).

For this round, the US (6-1) is in a group of six with Brazil (5-2), Puerto Rico (4-3), Mexico (4-3), Uruguay (4-3), and Colombia (4-3). Brazil is good, with two big stars in Marcellinho Huertas (an Olympic veteran) and Didi Louzada of the Portland Trailblazers. They've got a bigger point differential than the US but have lost their last two games (to Puerto Rico and Colombia), so they're struggling a bit. We have another game on Sunday (7pm Central) against Colombia in Baranquilla, which seems like a tough place to play. From then the tournament continues with a couple of home games in November (Brazil and Colombia) and a couple of road games in February (Uruguay and Brazil). (It's uncertain whether JJ will be on the team for those games.)

Seven teams advance from the two remaining six-team divisions, so the US shouldn't have too much trouble advancing to next year's World Cup. The other division of six has a very good Venezuela team and undefeated Canada, which is the real powerhouse. It's interesting to compare the USA team with the Canadian team. You'll see why Canada is so much more dominant: Canada's roster includes OKC star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, his cousin Nickeil Alexander Walker (Utah), former NBA champ Cory Joseph (Detroit), Kelly Olynyk (Detroit), and Dwight Powell (Dallas). They have other familiar NCAA names as well, like ex-Zag Kevin Pangos, Melvin Ejim of Iowa State, and current Purdue giant Zach Edey. That's a lot of talent. The current US squad, by contrast, is relying on second-tier players who currently aren't on NBA rosters. JJ is one of their stars, along with ex-Zag David Stockton, and ex-MSU star Robert Woodard II (he's on a two-contract with the Spurs, but not their 15-man roster). The only US player with extensive NBA experience is their mainstay, Langston Galloway. He was last seen getting absolutely torched in the 2021 NBA Finals against Milwaukee, which pretty much ended his effective career in the league (he's been on a couple of 10-days since then, but nothing more). The roster changes a good bit, depending upon who's available (for instance, Luke Kornet played in the two games last November).


quasidiehardvandyfan
Ensign
Posts: 63
Joined: Thu Jan 06, 2022 7:48 pm
Been thanked: 4 times

Re: John Jenkins

Post by quasidiehardvandyfan »

Thanks for this update, TwoSaints. Jenkins was one of the greatest to come through our program, was always frustrating to see that he couldn't quite cut it at the pro level. I know he was on the Olympics team (practice squad maybe?), so he's always been close. Glad to see he's having some success, hoping he's getting paid decently!
Locked Previous topicNext topic