Jackson develops into team leader after rough start
Senior guard embraces role after being featured player on Akron last season
One of Antino Jackson’s first public appearances with The University of New Mexico men’s basketball team came in early August, when he strolled across the PerezShelley Memorial Gymnasium floor with a ball tucked under his right arm.
He was headed for midcourt, the greenish halogen lamps of the St. Michael’s gym putting him on center stage for a collection of little kids attending Lobo coach Paul Weir’s weekend development camp.
Most of the kids sat on the floor and chomped on burgers grilled by Weir’s staff, watching Jackson get loose for what he promised to be a dunk show for the ages.
It took a couple of spectacular fails before the 6-foot guard got one down, but he did just that as a handful of folks recorded the moment on their smartphones.
Little did anyone know, that was a time when Weir wasn’t so sure what he was getting into with Jackson. The new coach was still trying to feel things out with this fresh face to Lobo basketball.
Jackson was a graduate transfer from Akron, having started 57 of the final 70 games he played in a Zips uniform. He averaged nearly 12 points a game his sophomore season and nine his junior year before deciding to leave the Ohio school when he obtained his undergraduate degree after just three years.
Free to choose any school that would have him, he settled on UNM since it was in dire need of players — and point guards — following the mass exodus of the previous year’s roster.
“I came from a school where I was one of the main people on offense and had plays run for me and stuff,” Jackson said. “My biggest thing is just being a team player and whatever we need, I’ll just rush in there and play.”
That rush to make things happen didn’t exactly sit well with Weir, a coach determined to rebuild the Lobos with a team-first, me-last mindset. He was looking for players who wouldn’t just say all the right things, but do them without drawing attention to themselves.
Learning to fall in step with that approach was a process that didn’t start quickly.
“I’ve never had a graduate transfer before,” Weir said. “I’ve never coached a senior for the first time and when he got here, I think he’ll tell you, he had a lot of bad habits as a leader on the court and off the court.”
That meant accepting the fact that Jackson’s spot on the
team and in Weir’s rotation were earned things, not entitlements. Just because he’d had more college experience than virtually everyone on UNM’s roster didn’t make Jackson the automatic favorite to get all the shots and make all the starts.
He has started eight of the Lobos’ 12 games, averaging 7.9 points and 2.8 assists. He often splits time with Chris McNeal at the point. He is fourth on the team in scoring and has made 20 3-pointers for UNM.
The Lobos (4-8) will host Prairie View A&M (2-9) on Friday night in the Pit looking to win their second straight game in what will be their nonconference finale. When looking back on the first half of the season, Weir said he has been pleasantly surprised by Jackson’s growth in every area.
“I never knew you could change a senior, but the way he’s changed since he got here. He’s gone from one of my least favorite players to one of my favorite players,” Wier said. “His commitment to us, his commitment to being a better person and a better leader has been part of the reason I think we’ve started to play better basketball here lately.”
For the record, Jackson did throw down a couple of dunks for the kids that day at St. Michael’s. One of his misses had the ball pound off the back iron and 20 feet over the backboard, drawing some of the largest cheers of the show.
Four months removed, he’s well on his way to being one of the bright spots for a team that will be forced to move on without him as soon as this season is done.
For now, all signs point to a positive impact for a player who has grown on Weir and the entire team. Jackson is known for his ability to see the floor and alter the game with his energetic style of play, something he has been telling everyone since the day he got here.
“I just try to affect the game the best way I can,” he said.