Basketball
Favorite athlete: Russell Westbrook
Favorite team: Sixers
Favorite memory competing in sports:
Winning the Cactus Jam in the Arizona this past winter
Music on playlist: R&B, Rap
Future plans: To go to college and play basketball and study construction.
Words to live by: “You carry yourself differently when your confidence is fueled by belief in yourself instead of validation from others.”
One goal before turning 30: Having a successful job
One thing people don’t know about me: I can speak 3 languages.
By GORDON GLANTZ
Ask any longtime coach in any sport, and they will be just as proud of their Most Improved Players as they are of their Most Valuable Players.
Such is the case for CB East basketball coach Erik Henrysen when it comes to discussing the evolution of quad-captain Shane O’Hara-Jamison, who recently completed his career after a first-round exit from the state tournament.
“He actually just won our Most Improved Player award,” said Henrysen. “That was based on his development from freshman year when he was on the freshmen team until senior year when he was really one of our
leaders and one of our go-to guys.
“We saw all of that development, but we also saw him develop into a leader for us.”
O’Hara-Jamison was off to a strong start with the freshmen team, but he found himself not seeing much playing time as a sophomore on the JV squad.
“That was one of the worst feelings ever,” reflected O’Hara-Jamison. “Even through little league and through eighth grade, I was always playing. That was one of the worst things I had to go through.
“My sophomore year - that was the first time I didn’t play in my whole basketball career. I played my played freshman year on the freshman team. Sophomore year, I was on JV and I barely played. I was upset, but I knew I had to put in the work to get to where I wanted to be.”
Coming from a family of construction workers, O’Hara-Jamison was not afraid to put his nose to the grindstone and do what was needed.
“In the offseason, I went crazy,” he said. “I was getting stronger. I was getting faster. I was working on my shot.”
Clearly at crossroads, mentally and physically, O’Hara-Jamison also had to rinse the bad taste of his sophomore year out of his mouth with a totally different overall outlook.
“A lot of people struggle with what other people think of them,” he said. “If you just have confidence in yourself, you can get through the toughest of times, no matter what other people have to say about you.
“I struggled a lot with it in my sophomore year. It just affected my confidence as a player. Going into my junior year, I just started working hard going into the summer. I started working on myself and I just started being me.”
While he got physically stronger and found his shooting stroke, O’Hara-Jamison also grew taller, going from around 5-9/5-10 to 6-1.
“Coming into my junior year, I had a great offseason with CB East,” he said. “That’s definitely one of the best things that ever happened to me. I got stronger. I got taller. I got faster. I just knew the hard work was going to pay off.”
Piggybacking on his junior year, it all came together this past season. O’Hara-Jamison was one of the team captains and was second on the team in scoring with an average of 12 points per game.
“It was nice to see somebody stick with it and grind it out,” said Henrysen. “He was able to get through the grind, look back and say, ‘It was all worth it.’”
O’Hara-Jamison, who speaks three languages and can hit a jump shot in any of them, made up for any and all lost time as a senior captain.
“He started every game for us this year, and he was one of our leading scorers at 12 points per game,” said Henrysen. “He was second on the team in scoring.”
But the seeds, Henrysen believes, were planted earlier.
“His freshman-to-sophomore and sophomore-to-junior jumps were pretty significant,” said Henrysen. “I think that sophomore year really opened up his eyes to some of the things that he really needed to do to be one of the guys that we were going to rely on. It’s a huge credit to him. He put the time in. He put the effort in. And he saw it all pay off.”
Taking Charge
O’Hara-Jamison also took the captaincy title seriously, wearing the stripes with honor.
“As a player, I feel like I progressed a good amount,” he said. “In my leadership role, I was able to help out my teammates as much as possible. If the coaches needed me to do anything – scoring, passing or
rebounding – I feel like I stepped up and got that done this year.
“Being named a captain, it meant a lot. I think I was ready to assume that position. I was ready to be there for my teammates, whether they needed anything – on or off the court.”
While some captains will do an “aw shucks” routine and tell you they would rather just “lead by example,” that was not O’Hara-Jamison’s approach.
“I’d say I’m a little bit of both, but I’m mainly vocal,” he explained. “In practice, it means making sure everybody is focused and making sure they aren’t skipping over any drills and not lollygagging or anything. And then, in pregame, I’m just making sure everybody is hyped and I’m giving them words of encouragement.”
For Henrysen, it was all part of the fun journey with this Most Improved Player.
“Shane would talk,” said Henrysen. “Even when he didn’t always have everything going his way, he was able to see the big picture.
“If you told me four years ago, ‘Shane will one day be a leader for you,’ it would have been hard to imagine. But, seeing his development grow to where he was able to make suggestions and things that would be helpful for us and with what we were doing, it was definitely a pleasant surprise and a rewarding experience.”
The Next Level
Just as he improved as a basketball player, O’Hara-Jamison did the same in the classroom.
“I get my work done,” he said. “It’s always going to be there, whether I get it done now or later, so I may as well just get it done. I struggled in the past and I’ve gotten better each year.”
With plans of joining the construction company of his father, James Jamison, he hopes to hone his skills at the Pennsylvania College of Technology in Williamsport, Pa., and play basketball there.
The interest seems to be mutual from the Wildcats, who compete at the Division III level.
“I think it’s a pretty good match for him,” said Henrysen.
O’Hara-Jamison -- who wanted to thank his parents, brother, coaches and teammates for their support – is confident he can carry it all over to the next level.
“I think, in my senior year, I was able to play the role I wanted to play and do the things I wanted to do,” he said, proudly adding that he will be the third in his family to go to college, following the trail blazed by his mother, Jacquelyn O’Hara, and his brother, Ian O’Hara-Jamison.
