Jalen Wilson, a 6-foot-7, 200-pound 2025 forward of St. Louis Park (Minn.) Benilde St. Margaret’s, is considered the top player in the state of Minnesota in the Class of 2025. Wilson attended Minnesota’s camp for the top eighth and ninth graders and the Minnesota Team Camp and is coached by former Gopher Damian Johnson.
Wilson averaged 12.5 points per game this season as the Red Knights finished 18-10, losing to Mound Westonka 56-49 in the Section 6AAA semifinals. He scored in double figures in 18 of 25 games, including a season-high 34 points versus Orono.
The Gopher Report recently caught up with Wilson after the Breakdown Summer Series to learn the latest about his early recruitment, relationship with the hometown school and upcoming sophomore season.
The Gopher Report: You just finished your freshman year of high school and you are now a sophomore. How does that feel?
Jalen Wilson: "I feel that I have more responsibility, on and off the court. Freshman year and sophomore year is a big jump and I think that I need to make sure that I make that jump right away to let everybody know that I’m official."
The Gopher Report: You lost a couple of seniors like Madox Alipate and Daniel Ijadimbola, who signed with Bemidji State. How do you see your role changing from this past year to the upcoming season?
Wilson: "I think the most important thing is me becoming more of a leader because we don’t have any seniors on the team and I got designated captain this year, so I feel that I need to, especially with the loss of the seniors, to be much more of a leader on the court."
The Gopher Report: Is that a pretty big honor to you since you are only going to be a sophomore and you are a team captain already?
Wilson: "I think that it makes me think that the coach has a lot of trust in me to lead our team, especially being named captain as a sophomore, so I just want to make sure that I carry all that throughout the season and live up to that leadership role that I have been appointed to."
The Gopher Report: Is that something you are looking for to, though?
Wilson: "Yes. Sometimes, I think about it and that it’s crazy that I’ve been chosen to lead the team as a sophomore and I think it is something that I’m really ready for and looking forward, too."
The Gopher Report: How do you feel that your game has changed from last year at this time to now?
Wilson: "I’ve definitely got stronger. Got a little bit taller. Faster on my feet. My jump shots improved a little bit and I think all-around, I just became better in everything than I was last year."
The Gopher Report: You grew about two inches from last year. Have you talked to your doctors about your growth plates?
Wilson: "I actually sprained my ankle a couple of weeks ago and they said that they were still open, but he could see that they were closing a little bit, but he said that they were definitely still open and I still have more growing to do."
The Gopher Report: Do you come from a basketball family?
Wilson: "Not really. My dad played basketball, but he wasn’t serious about it. I just started playing at a young age and at a certain point, I really decided that I wanted to take it serious. They played the occasional high school basketball, but not anything big."
The Gopher Report: How tall is your dad?
Wilson: "Six foot."
The Gopher Report: Where do you get the height from?
Wilson: "I know my dad’s dad was 6-4. I think and he has taller cousins and on my mom’s side. I have a couple of tall uncles and a tall grandpa."
The Gopher Report: Where did you get your love of basketball? From them a little bit?
Wilson: "I started playing when I was about five and it was about fourth grade when I made the jump to play actually serious basketball. When I was in fourth grade, I was playing the lowest level and then the next year, I moved up to play A, the highest level and once I got to there, I was like maybe I want to take this serious and then I started getting way better as the years went on."
The Gopher Report: I know that it is so early, only going into your sophomore season next year, but what schools are you starting to hear from right now.
Wilson: "I won’t call it interest, but I have a little bit like the coaches from Minnesota are looking at me and otherwise, that is it."
The Gopher Report: You were at the team camp yesterday. Did you see them watching you or did you get a chance to talk to anybody?
Wilson: "They didn’t talk to me directly, but they were telling my coach that they like my game and Ben Johnson asked if I was going to the eighth and ninth grade camp on Wednesday, so I am going to be there. Otherwise, they didn’t talk to me directly, but they were definitely talking about me and they watched one of my games."
The Gopher Report: Your head coach played at the “U.” Has he been a help to you with recruiting and telling you how it is going to be?
Wilson: "He definitely told me as the years goes on, a bunch of coaches are going to tell a bunch of things, but as of right now, I haven’t had to really deal with any of that yet. I’m starting to get to it, but as of right now, I haven’t really had to deal with talking to college coaches or anything about recruiting yet."
The Gopher Report: Coaches really can’t even talk to you until next year, so it might be quiet now, but I’m sure that is going to chance. Has that been a goal of yours to play Division I?
Wilson: "It is and I guess that it’s just something that I haven’t really thought about, but it’s crazy that I have the opportunity to play D1 basketball. I see it on TV and “dang, that could really be me out there in a couple years.”
The Gopher Report: What will it mean to you the first college game when you walk onto the court?
Wilson: "I think that it would mean the most to my parents because I have always played for them, really. They have taught me so much stuff. I wouldn’t be anywhere, if it wasn’t for them. My dad has helped me through basketball so much. My mom has supported me. Paying for all my stuff. Driving me places, so I think that I’ll be most happy to play for them. It will still be cool to me, but I’d definitely just be happy to see how they react to me playing college basketball."
The Gopher Report: What would it mean to maybe play for the homestate school?
Wilson: "I think it would be nice like “hometown hero” type of thing. I know that it would make a lot of family happy because they really like watching the Gophers. I think that if I played for them, it would once again, really make my family happy and I definitely have thought about it, like staying home, but I think the most, it would make my family happy."
The Gopher Report: You are playing for Howard Pulley. How much do you think that has helped your game?
Wilson: "It is the highest level of basketball you can play in Minnesota and when we go to the EYBL circuit, it really showcases how good I am with the rest of the kids in the country because that is pretty much where all best kids in the country go to play, so when I go there and I do good, it makes me feel that I’m just that much closer to going D1. It’s cool to see how I match up with other kids in the country."
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