Jordan’s stock on rise
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| Iowa's Eric May (25) tries to go up for a basket as he is surrounded by Illinois' Jeff Jordan (13), Dominique Keller, rear, and Mike Tisdale, right, in the second half of an NCAA College basketball game at Assembly Hall in Champaign, Ill., on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2010. (AP Photo/Heather Coit) |
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CHAMPAIGN – He walked away from the game of basketball, but Illinois junior guard Jeff Jordan didn’t last long outside the lines.
The school announced in June that Jordan had quit the Illinois basketball team. By October, he was back in the basketball office asking about a return. Now Michael Jordan’s oldest son says he’s here for the rest of his playing career – this season and next season – after realizing he couldn’t stay away.
“It was probably not until a month into school, seeing the guys going to practice when I started to get the itch,” Jeff Jordan said after making his first college start in the Illini’s 59-42 victory over Iowa on Tuesday. Illinois (10-5, 2-0 Big Ten) plays at Indiana on Saturday.
Jordan had five assists and no turnovers against the Hawkeyes. After leaving campus during the summer for an internship with Nike in Oregon, Jordan handled a smooth transition upon his return to the program.
“I felt pretty comfortable,” Jordan said. “The guys, they made me feel right at home, like I never left. When I got in and started practicing with the guys, it felt real comfortable. I just want to go out there and play hard.
“They were calling me and I was calling them, just to see how it was going. Once I started talking to them and talking to coach [Jerrance] Howard and coach [Wayne] McClain, I made the decision that I wanted to come back. It was a good decision.”
Even though Jordan had no expectations upon his return, he said, coach Bruce Weber coveted Jordan’s leadership, maturity and experience to help guide a trio of freshman guards. Jordan ranks sixth on the Illini in minutes (18.7 per game), and his role is growing by the week.
“This is what I anticipated,” Weber said. “About 15 to 20 minutes, maturity, leadership, pushing the ball, energy. He can take it another step farther. He’s in a little better condition. He could play a little harder, get some steals and deflections. If he could do that, he would really add something to our team.”
Jordan started the second half against Gonzaga. In the two conference games, he has seven assists and one turnover with no points, helping fill the Illini’s need for a backup point guard.
Jordan said he’s about 80 to 85 percent back with his conditioning.
“When I had the conversation with [Weber], it was just like, ‘Come in, play hard, get back into shape and we’ll go from there,’ “ Jordan said. “He wanted to define roles early, but it didn’t work out like that. I told them all I was here to stay.
“Coach Weber, I think he kind of felt shaky at first. But I told him I was here and want to get better and help the team as much as possible. I think they trust me, and they feel comfortable I can do what they want.”
