I had the opportunity to conduct an interview with a point guard from the class of 2014, Jalen Coates.  (Coates: Luther Burbank High School – 2014) Coates is a 5 foot 7 inch, 155 pound point guard out of Sacramento, California. I created a list of 11 questions that I believe our audience would find interesting about the life of a young basketball recruit. These are the questions that I asked Coates, followed with his answers.

Interview with Point Guard Class of 2014 Jalen Coates 

Question: Which schools have expressed the most interest in you?

Jalen Coates: There has been zero schools to show interest in me so far, I am now going into my Junior year.

Question: Which universities have offered you?Which universities do you express interest in? Do you have a top 5?

Jalen Coates: No universities have offered me, I express interest in UCLA, University of Oregon, Georgetown, Wake Forest, Kansas, Louisville, and SDSU. My top 5 are UCLA, University of Oregon, Georgetown, Wake Forest, and Kansas.

Question: Do you have a dream university?

Jalen Coates:  My dream university is University of Oregon.

Question: What do you look for in a University?

Jalen Coates: In an university, I look for a nice facility, how the coaches treat the players, and how the team is ran, I like to get up and down the court playing in a fast paced offense. Also, living conditions.

Question: Does the fan base of the university make an impact on your recruitment?

Jalen Coates: I’d appreciate playing for a program with a great fan base, if the fans are loud, crazy, and show the University support all season long, I’m that much more interested.

Question: Based on national media and fan bases, does it matter what conference you play in?

Jalen Coates: I’d like to play in the Pac 12, ACC, Big East or Big 12. Due to the past history of small guards in those conferences.

Question: What would you consider to be your strength?

Jalen Coates: My strengths are seeing the floor, advancing the ball up the court with a pass, passing first looking to create for my team, and finishing well over the bigger players.

Question: What would you consider to be your weakness?

Jalen Coates: My weaknesses at this point are slowing down towards the end of the game, and being more of a floor general, as in being more vocal on the court so my team hears my voice.

Question: What do you consider to be your best attribute?

Jalen Coates: My best attribute I would say is my Strong Upper Body, which allows me to absorb the contact and still manage to get me shot up amongst the bigger players.

Question: What would you say your work ethic is like?

Jalen Coates: My work ethic- Im sometimes self motivated, but most of the time I feel like I need to go harder when I’m motivated by the people around me.

Question: Name a college or NBA athlete that people compare you to. What college or NBA athlete do you idolize and how do their skill sets match yours?

Jalen Coates: I idolize Chris Paul & think my game resembles his the most because he’s a pass first Point Guard, who has the ability to take over the game and score when his team needs a big bucket down the stretch.

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