Putting
Himself in an Enviable Position
By Rob
Fernas
Times Staff
Writer
Not Long
Ago, Kennedy High Graduate Jelani Janisse Was an Unknown Post Player. Now He Has
a Scholarship to Play Point Guard at Kansas.
Jelani
Janisse's transformation from unwanted forward to sought-after point guard
provides a hopeful message to toiling gym rats everywhere.
To wit:
It's never too late.
Janisse
played his senior basketball season at Kennedy High in 1994-95 without
attracting so much as a nibble of interest from major colleges. Two years later,
he reeled in a whopper - signing a letter of intent with Kansas, a preseason
top-five school and No. 1 for most of last season.
"I'm
living a dream," Janisse said this week.
So, what
in the name of Dr. Naismith happened?
Janisse
was academically qualified to attend a Division I school out of Kennedy. He
hasn't grown significantly in two years. His statistics - a modest 12 points and
seven assists a game last season at L.A. City College - were comparable but not
better than his high school numbers.
Yet
Janisse may as well have changed identities considering the way colleges came
calling after he led L.A. City (30-6) to the state championship in March.
Pepperdine, Brigham Young, Loyola Marymount and Oregon are among the jilted
suitors.
Any one
of them could have signed Janisse in high school, but as Kansas Coach Roy
Williams pointed out: "Sixe-foot-three centers aren't very marketable."
After
playing in the post for most of his three-year varsity career at Kennedy,
Janisse switched to swingman as a freshman at L.A. City and changed positions
again before last season, when Coach Mike Miller asked him to play point guard.
Janisse
was thrilled by the request.
"That's
what I always wanted to play," he said. "I worked with Coach Miller for 1 1/2
hours everyday [last summer] to get my dribbling, shooting and passing skills
down. Once I did that, I started coming along."
Janisse's play at point guard improved steadily last season, culminating with a
terrific performance in the eight-team state tournament at San Jose State.
His two
free throws with 12 seconds to play clinched a 67-62 victory over San Jose City
College in the title game and helped earn him the tournament's most valuable
player award.
At 6-3
1/2 and 210 pounds, Janisse brings a physical presence to a position often
played by smaller guards. Although not a perimeter scoring threat - he took only
two three-point shots last season - Janisse excels in virtually every other
skill and is considered a defensive terror.
"If he's
your fifth option offensively, you have a great team, because he can guard
anyone," Miller said.
Janisse's strengths make him an ideal complement to Ryan Robertson, Kansas most
experienced point guard. Robertson, who like Janisse will be a junior, probably
has an edge to win the starting job based on his 10-0 record as a starter last
season when Jacque Vaughn was injured.
But
while Robertson is a good shooter, he doesn't measure up to Janisse defensively,
Williams said.
"I think
with both of these youngsters, we have the point guard spot covered the way we
want it to be covered," William said.
Janisse
will be the first junior college transfer to play for Kansas since Darren
Hancock in 1993 and only the fifth JC player signed by Williams in his nine
years as coach. The Jayhawks began recruiting Janisse in April after their point
guard of choice, Baron Davis of Santa Monica Crossroads, signed with UCLA.
Holding
out for Davis cost Kansas two other high school guards - including in-state star
Earl Watson, who committed to UCLA during the early signing period in November -
but Williams make it clear he doesn't consider Janisse a consolation prize.
"We're
extremely happy," Williams said. "[Janisse] is going to do some things that will
help our team. We've been really impressed with all our dealings with him."
Courteous and confident, Janisse relishes the opportunity to play on a national
championship contender that includes two probable NBA players - senior center
Raef LaFrentz and junior forward Paul Pierce.
LaFrentze and Pierce announced they would return to Kansas instead of making
themselves available for the NBA draft during Janisse's recruiting visit to the
school in May.
"From
not being highly recruited out of high school, to signing with Kansas - one of
the top three basketball schools in the nation - gives me a sense of
accomplishment," Janisse said. "I worked hard to get to this point. Now I'm glad
I got here. [But] the hard work is not finished."
Janisse
has maintained a workmanlike regimen for several years. In high school, he awoke
at 6 a.m. in order to catch the bus near his South Los Angeles home for the
daily ride to Kennedy in Granada Hills. Normally during basketball season he
wouldn't return home until after 7 p.m., when he would have to do chores and
homework.
"It was
pretty strict," Janisse said. "I'm used to lond days."
Since
school ended, Janisse has kept busy by working five days a week in a downtown
law firm.
He
earned an Associate of Arts degree in liberal arts at L.A. City.
"I
thought he had potential but at the same time he wasn't one of these kids who
could step right into a Division I program," said Yutaka Shimizu, Janisse's
coach at Kennedy. "I knew he would need some time to mature."
Did
Shimizu ever think Janisse would play for school like Kansas?
"I'm
happy for him - and surprised," he said. "But I knew the kid should go somewhere
because he was such a hard worker. He always had a good attitude and he wanted
to be a good player."
With
only small four-year schools interested in him, Janisse decided to attend L.A.
City College. In five seasons, Miller, 32, has coached the Cubs to a 132-36
record, four consecutive conference titles, one state championship and has sent
21 players to Division I programs.
"I
recruited Jelani with the promise that if he came to L.A. City, he would be
guaranteed a Division I scholarship after two years," Miller said.
Yet
Miller admits that Kansas isn't the place he originally envisioned for Janisse.
"He had
to have the right kind of character for this to happen," Miller said. "It takes
a lot of development over that two-year period. It didn't happen overnight. The
steadiness of [Janisse's] personality mirrors the steadiness of his
improvement."
Janisse
has every intention to keep improving once he becomes a Jayhawk.
"I can
say I did pretty well in my first year playing point guard," he said. "I can
just imagine how much better I can become."