Justin Jackson

Justin Aaron Jackson was born in Tomball, Texas, to Lloyd and Sharon Jackson. Both of his parents were college athletes; Lloyd ran track and Sharon played basketball. Justin was home schooled and attended Lone Star College as part of his homeschooling. He played basketball for Homeschool Christian Youth Association (HCYA), a nonprofit Christian service organization created to serve home school families and students in Houston and the surrounding area. Jackson led the HCYA Warriors to a national championship in 2012 and won the Maravich Award (2011), the Sullivan Award (2012) and the Jefferson Award (2013) as the top home schooled player in the country. As a senior, he posted per-game averages of 31.5 points, 9.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.9 blocks and was named a Parade All-American and McDonald's All-American. Jackson was named co-MVP of the 2014 McDonald's All-American Game in addition to being selected as the recipient of the Jack Daly Sportsmanship Award at the McDonald's All-American game. He and his wife are advocates for Down Syndrome awareness and have supported GiGi's Playhouse Down Syndrome Achievement Center. In 2020, Jackson organized the Call of Duty COVID-19 Relief Tournament to support those negatively affected by COVID-19. Learn more about Jackson by following him on Twitter (@JJacks_44) and on Instagram (@jjacks44). In his three years in Chapel Hill, Jackson grew from a solid role player to a star performer. He arrived on a stacked Tar Heel squad that was led by Marcus Paige and Brice Johnson. Jackson carved a role for himself with 10.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 37 starts. The 6-foot-8 forward scored a season-high 22 points in a ACC Tournament win over Virginia and averaged 15.0 points in three NCAA Tournament games as the Tar Heels advanced to the Sweet 16. Jackson improved to 12.7 points as a sophomore for the team that advanced to the NCAA Tournament finals. He had a pair of double-doubles in non-conference play. Jackson averaged 12.8 points in the Big Dance. As a junior, Jackson led the team with 18.3 points and hit 37.0 percent of his three-point attempts. He opened the season with 27 points and scored 34 points in a loss to Kentucky. The wing was steady in the NCAA Tournament as the Tar Heels won their sixth National Championship. He averaged 19.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists in the Big Dance. With one season of eligibility remaining, Jackson declared for the 2017 NBA Draft and was selected with the 15th pickby the Portland Trail Blazers, although he was traded to the Sacramento Kings on draft day.