Mom Fancy Pace has always been a tough woman. For 21 years she worked in the army and when retired in 2001 she was an iron sergeant. She is a strong woman and it must have been because when his son Cory was born December 26, in 1990, the one in front of her was the tallest baby boy seen in Tacoma, the city next to Seattle. She had to be even stronger in 2003 when she lost her husband. His son was 13 years old and already a prospect in basketball. The family had already moved to Texas for some time. Cory tattooed the CJ initials on his arm. But they are not for Cory Jefferson but for Charles Jefferson. The father.
Cory Jefferson is from Killeen, Texas, where he had a star-studded school career, winning four consecutive State titles, with three 30-win seasons. He was named Player of the Year in Texas before choosing Baylor among the countless scholarship proposals he received. He stayed in Texas. For two seasons he played little and learned a lot, in 2012/13 as a junior however led the team to the NIT championship, scoring at least twenty points in the last three games. In the wake of those performances, he briefly considered declaring for the draft one early, but ultimately Jefferson stayed and completed a great career at Baylor: he finished fourth All-Time in blocks, fourth in double doubles and ninth in rebounds. In his last year he placed 14 double doubles. At that time it was strictly considered an internal player. “In fact – he said to “GoSpursGo”when he was playing for the affiliate D-League team in San Antonio – I’ve always had a good shot but I’ve always respected the role I was asked to play. Now I have the opportunity to express myself freely “. “He has great athletics and versatility to play around the paint,” said his coach at Austin Spurs, Ken McDonald – but showed consistent progress with his perimeter jumpers”.
Jefferson was the last player chosen in the 2014 NBA draft. No. 60. His coach at Baylor, Scott Drew explained the reasons for a late call. “They wanted him to go to Europe instead of trying to play in the NBA right away. He refused and they did not choose him,” he said. It was San Antonio who called his name but the dream of playing for his favorite franchise died at dawn. He was immediately traded to Brooklyn. Actually in San Antonio they really followed him. After playing in Brooklyn and then Phoenix (against whom he produced a double double playing for the Nets), with a training camp in Cleveland, the Spurs called him to be part of their organization by assigning him to Austin, about 50 miles from where he grew up. He was in the Spurs roster for the summer league when he decided to come to Milan.
Last year in Austin he had 15.4 points and 8.4 rebounds on average, made the All-Star team, nd more important he converted 81.4 percent of his free throws and 38.4 percent of his threes with 86 threes taken in 42 games. At that time he had been already followed by Olimpia, but his season ended in the Philippines, with the Alaska Aces where he dominated with 29.5 points and 14.0 rebounds per game. And there he also showed beyond his athleticism a growing confidence with his long-distance shot.
He is a novice in Europe, Jefferson, but has played 58 games in the NBA, has won 107 games in Baylor, more than anyone else, in a program that has produced stars everywhere (Curtis Jerrells, Quincy Miller and Pierre Jackson of Maccabi, Quincy Acy playing in the NBA, Perry Jones who was a first-round pick), with whom he played three NCAA tournaments and won the NIT. He was an All-Star in the second American league; He played the University Games. One thing is certain: he’s ready.
