What made MA’s star athletes reach the elite level?

What made them who they are today? What made them strive and succeed at what they love? Maybe it was the “IT Factor” as 7th grade Jalen Suggs told his coach.

 So many highschool athletes dream about reaching the elite level of going pro, but only 0.02% of highschool athletes do. That’s about 1 in 5,000, said Weebly.com.

Two of those athletes attended Minnehaha Academy. Jalen Suggs (‘20) and Chet Holmgren (‘21). Both of these athletes were drafted to the NBA within the first 10 picks.

So what made them great? What separated them from the other athletes striving for greatness?

Natural Talent

The first factor is the most obvious.

 “What [other high-school athletes] didn’t have that Jalen and Chet had was this natural ability that was just so much better than everybody else,” said Lance Johnson, Minnehaha’s former boys basketball head coach and current dean of students. What set them apart from the start, he said, was “the ability level … the attitude and the mindset to take that athletic ability to the next level.”

Jalen and Chet developed their ability at very different rates. Both were born with this talent but developed them at different points of their life.

“I noticed that [Jalen] had a very unique skill set at two years old,” said Larry Suggs. “Jay was just shooting on a [Mini] hoop, but as he’s shooting, he nailed probably almost about 30 or 40 in a row… And you know, back then, those little type hoops were tiny. So yeah, you’ve got to be kind of dead on to be able to shoot a mini basketball.”

Larry Suggs is the father of the star Jalen Suggs, owner of the youth basketball organization “Jsizzle”, and longtime youth basketball coach.

Jalen was introduced to basketball at a very young age, and he grew up around it and playing it.

“[Jalen] used to come to our gym during tournaments and stuff in second and third grade, and he was shooting threes,” Johnson said.. “I mean, it was like, ‘oh boy, this dude’s special.’ Chet, on the other hand, was a late bloomer.” 

Despite not being as impressive at a young age, Chet knew the game. He knew how to make plays, he had an overall high basketball IQ. The combination of the fundamental skills he had, combined with his advanced IQ helped him to pursue his natural ability. 

Work Ethic and Dedication

So what made them really stand out?

According to Larry Suggs, his son stood out for “his work ethic, his drive, and his determination, to almost be a perfectionist when it came to playing sports.”

 Jalen put in so much work, he never seemed to get tired of it.

“We would practice in the morning, 30 minutes, and then I’d say, ‘Hey, meet me back outside at 4:30,’” said Suggs. “He’d work out from 4:30 and then later on that night, we would either shoot or dribble around the golf course.”

 Jalen put in so many hours a week, practicing and playing the game so he could be great; all of the hours he practiced paid off.

“Most people say, wait till the summertime for you to be good. Why? Because you got a little bit more time on your hands to practice.” Suggs said, “…typically a summer is three months. So what I always tell people is, if it takes three months for you to be good, there are four of those [three-month segments] in a whole year. So if you practice for three months, January, February, March, that’s equal to one summer.”

Because Chet was a “late bloomer,” he was always practicing to catch up to Jalen and the other players around his age.

“Holmgren, in one year, he caught up to everybody, he put that much work in, you know, to be great,” Suggs stated.

Strive for greatness, but also achieve that greatness by putting in the work to be the best you can.

“One of the biggest things for athletes who are not super great, but they have great careers. They’re just the hardest workers, they outwork people…” said Johnson.

Character and Academics

“I would encourage everybody,” Johnson said, “don’t just decide to be great in a sport. Decide to be great off the court, and on the court.”

 A balance in our work lives, our school lives, and in all we do is something that is needed in life. We need to use that balance. Especially in sports.

 “It’s a whole balance in life. You need to do well in all, and that will help you in your sport.”

Larry Suggs and Lance Johnson both say you need to put in so much effort and so much work while being a good person to possibly be one of the 0.02% of athletes to go pro.

“…they weren’t only elite athletes on the court, they were also great citizens and great students. And to be honest with you, I’ve found that the two go hand in hand,” Johnson said. 

Putting in work as a player and as an athlete is key but putting in work to be a good human, a good student, is just as important.

“Be a great teammate…Listen to your coaches. Be disciplined.” Three of the many qualities that Johnson said athletes must have to be successful.