John Scott '21 Recruiting Profile

My name is John Scott and I was apart of the Rich High School graduating class of 2021. Along with the high school diploma I also received my associates degree from Utah State University while in high school. 

Many kids from the time they were very young have always wanted to play basketball at a collegiate level. I'll be honest and say that at that age it was never a thought in my mind. However, during my freshman year of high school I decided that I wanted to play basketball. That freshman year I got cut from the basketball team. All because the coach said that I couldn't shoot.

I don't know what happened, but something woke up inside of me when he said that. I decided that I needed to start working really hard if I was to make a basketball team. I spent about 4-5 hours everyday doing whatever I could to become a better basketball player. Especially shooting in the drive way, playing in pick-up games, and weightlifting in the summer time. 

My sophomore year I made the basketball team at Rich High School. I played on the freshman team as a sophomore and got very small amounts of JV time. Many people told me that would probably end up being my ceiling, but I didn't stop there either. That summer I worked even harder. Hard enough that I started Varsity the next year as a junior. I ended up scoring the second most points on that squad. 

The summer before senior year I worked harder than ever before. OUr team hired a new coach, Lex Cornia, who really inspired me to become the best player, and even more important, the best leader that I could become. He worked with me in the summer and gave me a goal to make 20,000 shots that summer. I decided to take that goal up a notch and attempt to make 20,000 threes. For those three months of the summer I got up at 5 A.M. every morning, grabbed some of the younger guys on the team, and went to the school to work. I would shoot for an hour every day on our shooting machine and would make 256 shots per morning, and then after I would go and lift for an hour and a half. 

I only ended up making about 16,000 threes that summer. But as a result I became the best shooter that I have ever been. I was an ok shooter the years before, but the goal that Coach Cornia gave me propelled me to another level. Our team between junior and senior year was essentially the exact same team. However, we went from a 5 win team junior year, to an 18 win team the next year and took 6th place at the state tournament. 

That senior year I was voted head captain of that Varsity squad. The ball was put in my hands most of the time and was trusted to lead the team in scoring. I completed that task averaging about 16 points per game on a team that had multiple weapons. I shot 40% from 3 point range and 61% from 2 point range. On the season I shot 52% from the field. A huge jump from previous years. I was also entrusted to be the vocal leader on that team, especially on defense. The way that I am able to direct a defense led to many blocks, steals, and deflections for the rest of our team. As a unit we were ranked within the top 3 defenses in 1A Utah. 

Some individual awards that I was able to gain due to my play and leadership was an Utah Coaches Association All-Star, and was voted to the All-State 3rd Team. 

Following my end of playing, Coach Cornia entrusted me to coach the freshman basketball team in the summer time. I was able to learn a lot from this experience and win some tournaments with that team. It really helped me to understand the game a lot more, especially plays and how they work the best. 

Until October of 2023 I will be serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Santiago Chile. 

In conclusion, I think that the best thing that I can bring to any team is hard work, leadership, hussle, and energy. I am willing to work hard every single day and do exactly what is asked of me. And any role that I am given on a team, I will work harder than anyone to fulfill that role. No matter how big or how small it is. I hope that you will consider me in your recruiting process, and appreciate you even taking the time to read this statement.