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![\"BROOK](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3512561_web1_BJ-08202025CEBLCalgarySurgeJameerNelsonJr02.jpg\")
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BROOK JONES \/ FREE PRESS<\/p>\n
Calgary Surge guard Jameer Nelson Jr. learned a lot from his father, who was an NBA all-star.<\/p>\n
While it\u2019s almost a given the 24-year-old Junior is asked about his dad whenever the topic is basketball, he\u2019s learned to be appreciative of the impact Nelson Sr. had on him and those who watched him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was a little more ignorant to it, I kind of was just like, \u2018Why is everybody talking about this guy?\u2019 But once I got older, I\u2019m super grateful to have somebody like that for people to be talking about, just because they hear my name, they hear his,\u201d Nelson told the Free Press after Wednesday\u2019s practice session.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s super cool just to hear different experiences that they had while watching my dad, or where they were at certain times, or how they felt about his play and stuff like that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 6-1, 190-pound guard is steadfast about creating his own legacy on the court, but is taking the longer road to The League than his father.<\/p>\n
Nelson Sr. was a first-round pick out of Saint Joseph\u2019s University. Junior played college at George Washington for two seasons before transferring to Delaware for two years and Texas Christian for one. After going undrafted, he played last season with the Austin Spurs of the NBA G League, something he hopes to do again after he completes his time with the Surge.<\/p>\n
Nelson Jr. says he doesn\u2019t compare their careers \u2014 although there is a healthy rivalry between them when it comes to comparing skillsets \u2014 but rather says he couldn\u2019t have asked for a better role model. Senior was a model of consistency, which is something he instilled in his son from an early age.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always saw my dad coming in, barely spending a couple of hours in the house during the day, just because he\u2019s working out,\u201d Nelson Jr. said.<\/p>\n
Swimming, boxing, an on-court training session and a second workout were the norm before settling in for the night. Junior watched it every day and, without realizing it, studied it.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust to take a little bit of that, like a certain standard of, \u2018I know I gotta be in the gym five, six days a week just to get my mental right,\u2019 I feel like it\u2019s something I\u2019m super grateful for, just because it\u2019s something I don\u2019t even notice, because I don\u2019t know anything else,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are other people that have to learn it themselves and to see other people, or maybe they have a big homie that are showing, but I was just able to see it every day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those closest to the young hoopster don\u2019t think he\u2019s far away from making it big.<\/p>\n
Nelson Jr. is averaging 20.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists with Calgary this season, but has cranked it up another notch in the playoffs, leading all players with 32.5 points per game, including a CEBL playoff-record 39-point performance to lift the Surge over the Vancouver Bandits in the Western Conference semifinal.<\/p>\n
Head coach Kaleb Canales said after the historic performance he believes Nelson Jr. is \u201cknocking on the door of the NBA,\u201d and doubled down on that sentiment Wednesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cExtremely confident. Not soon, I think today. I think he\u2019s knocking on the door. I think when NBA teams evaluate players, they look at players who play both ends of the floor. He\u2019s elite defensively, and he\u2019s elite offensively,\u201d said Canales, who coached Nelson Sr. as an assistant with the Dallas Mavericks from 2013-14.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust happy for him. We\u2019re spoiled to have him, and we\u2019re going to enjoy him for Friday and, God willing, on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Canales, who has coached several sons of former NBA players, noted there is a pedigree that can often be passed down to the next generation, and that seems to be the case with Nelson Jr.<\/p>\n
Nelson Jr. remembers spending time in NBA locker rooms around the same guys he looked up to. He remembers how they spoke, how they carried themselves and even took note of how they were around their own family members.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was super spoiled with it,\u201d he said. \u201cI probably could have taken in way more than I was. Probably playing around with people too much and running as a kid.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perhaps he picked up more than he thought.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like his demeanour,\u201d said teammate Rugzy Miller-Moore. \u201cI like that he doesn\u2019t really care. It sounds kind of weird to say, but sometimes I aspire to be a guy that just kind of takes s\u2014 and just lets it go.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy favourite thing about Jameer is that he\u2019s an even-keeled type of guy. With the Elam time (Target Score Time), he\u2019s going to take his same shots. Doesn\u2019t matter if he went zero-for-10, he\u2019s gonna do his thing, and I think that\u2019s something to be proud of, and it\u2019s a very underrated skill.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Nelson Jr. has formed a high-powered backcourt with guard Evan Gilyard II. The duo combined for 68 points in the Western Conference semifinal and will be the key tandem for the Winnipeg Sea Bears to stop in Friday\u2019s conference final at Canada Life Centre (7:30 p.m.).<\/p>\n
\u201cCoach has given me a lot of responsibility, and I know my teammates are living and dying with me taking certain shots and me making certain shots,\u201d Nelson Jr. said of his playoff run. \u201cIt\u2019s just confidence, honestly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like I\u2019ve always had it, but with different roles, you\u2019ve got to be different people and stuff, and I\u2019m able to freely be who I am in this world here, and I\u2019m super grateful for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
X: @jfreysam<\/p>\n
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Joshua Frey-Sam Josh Frey-Sam reports on sports and business at the Free Press. Josh got his start at the paper in 2022, just weeks after graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College. He reports primarily on amateur teams and athletes in sports. Read more about Josh<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Josh produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.<\/p>\n \t\t
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