Demetrius Jackson Explains Decision To Go Pro

It wasn’t until this Tuesday afternoon that Demetrius Jackson’s mind was completely made up.

The (now former) Irish junior guard met with Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey on March 29, and after a discussion with the head man, announced a decision to leave school early and declare for the 2016 NBA Draft.

“[Brey’s] been a really great mentor for me and really has helped me,” Jackson said. “So talking with him definitely helped me come to a firm decision.

“It is big. A dream come true, and it’s been my goal for such a long time. So to be able to have the opportunity to kind of reach that goal, it’s just an amazing feeling.”

On Wednesday, Jackson laid out some of his ongoing plans leading up to the draft. He will talk with some agencies and would like to sign with an agent in the next couple of weeks.

As he goes through the selection process for representation and works out in preparation for his future career, Jackson will not continue classes at Notre Dame. The former Irish star said he does plan to finish his college education at some stage down the road, although the room broke out in laughter when he was asked how close he was to finishing his degree.

“I’ve still got a long way to go,” Jackson said with a smile.

The Mishawaka, Ind., native admitted it wasn’t an easy decision for him to forego his senior year. This is his home. In fact, the word “home” was mentioned 10 different times in his press conference (albeit in different contexts).

At an early age, Jackson lived in a couple of different foster houses until Dave and Beth Whitfield became his permanent one following his eighth-grade year. That move also enabled him to enroll at local Marian High, where he’d go on to become the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,934 points.

He grew up in the South Bend area. He played college basketball in South Bend. Now, his future is certainly bright — but he’ll have to move away for the first time.

“Some of the reasons that made it a tough decision for me was because my family back there,” Jackson said. “My teammates and coaches … when you go to a university, you really develop a close relationship.

“And also just, this being my home, kind of leaving the home nest for the first time, that’s definitely tough. But talking with Coach and talking with my teammates and everybody, they’ve really helped encourage me and really helped me to understand that this is kind of the best decision.”

Jackson is expected to at worst to be a first-round selection, with some mock drafts projecting him as a lottery pick. Last year’s final lottery choice, former Murray State point guard Cameron Payne, signed a two-year, $4,134,000 contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder as the No. 14 overall selection.

The final pick of the first round, former UCLA forward Kevon Looney, signed a two-year, $2,314,800 contract with the Golden State Warriors.

That means a good amount of cash flow is about to come into Jackson’s life. At this stage, he only knows one thing he’s purchasing soon.

“One thing when I was younger, I haven’t told very many people this, I promised my mother that I would kind of buy her a new home,” Jackson said. “That’s one of my goals, and hopefully something I’ll be able to accomplish in the next couple years.”

Brey’s squad will certainly miss Jackson next year. Still, a large core — including junior guard Steve Vasturia and junior forward V.J. Beachem — return for 2016-17.

Jackson left a large imprint on the program by the time his three years were done, raising the bar of expectations that the Irish maintain. Notre Dame was the only school in the country to advance to the Elite Eight each of the past two seasons. Jackson believes the class he signed with in 2013 will continue that excellence for Notre Dame even though he is moving on.

“Going to back-to-back Elite Eights, that’s definitely something really special for us,” he said. “I believe that they’ll reach that same goal next year, and be even further than that.

“I think that we really changed the culture of the postseason play. When I was in high school, people would talk about how Notre Dame would lose in the first round every year and things like that, but people don’t say that about us anymore.

“I just feel like we’ve really been able to accomplish some great things and make history.”

Maybe Jackson gets selected by the nearby Chicago Bulls. Or maybe his professional career starts further away, like with the Orlando Magic.

Regardless of where he ends up, he knows one place he’s always got a home. And that’s at Notre Dame.