After topping off his incredible Simeon basketball career with a fourth state title, Duke commit Jabari Parker was named the 2013 Morgan Wootten Player of the Year on Monday at the Ronald McDonald House.
It was truly a special moment for the future Blue Devil as he received the national accolade in his home city of Chicago, where he will play one last high school game in front of a familiar crowd next month in the McDonald’s All-American Game.
I had the chance to chat with Jabari on adding to his collection of hardware as well as on his anticipation for representing Chicago basketball at the United Center on April 3.
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Dime: Jabari, how does it feel to represent Chicago as this years Wootten Player of the Year?
Jabari Parker: It feels great to represent my city of Chicago. To be able to show that there’s Chicago youth out there doing good things means a lot.
Dime: As a future Blue Devil, what does it mean for you in that regard as well?
JP: It’s real big time. That just says that Duke always has a great, great program and is the most attractive program in my opinion.”
Dime: With the McDonald’s All-American Game coming up on April 3 at the United Center, what does it mean to you to play in front of a home crowd one last time before you head off to Duke?
JP: It just caps off the journey. When they said that I made (the) All-American Game, I recognized the long road it took to get there. Chicago did a lot for me so it’s just a big celebration for my high school career.
Dime: And as you reflect on your high school career, what did it mean to you to represent the same high school program as Derrick Rose while winning four-straight state titles?
JP: I’m just so grateful that i’ve been able to use my success to help promote my school. The Simeon program has done a lot for me so I just want to come here and represent myself and represent them in the best manner as possible.
Hit page 2 to check out our conversation with Taya Reimer…
Taya Reimer, a 6-3 forward out of Hamilton Southeastern High School in Indiana, was named the female Morgan Wootten Player of the Year at the Ronald McDonald House in Chicago this past Monday.
The 6-3 forward became the first female player from the state of Indiana to receive the Wootten POY honors — an award based on the academic, athletic and community-oriented background of the selected individual. With athletic prowess already running in her family, Reimer and her father Ben Davis, a 1991 All-American, have formed the first father/daughter McDonald’s All-American duo in the games history.
A multi-faceted player who dominates both in the paint and on the perimeter, Reimer will stay close to home and play her college ball at Notre Dame. After averaging 21.1 points, eight rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game in her senior season, we expect big things out of Taya in South Bend next season.
We had the chance to catch up with Reimer after she received POY honors. She reflected on how much this accolade means to her.
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Dime: How does it feel to not only represent the city of Indianapolis but Notre Dame as this year’s Wootten Player of the Year?
Taya Reimer: It’s really exciting for me. It’s a great honor for all of players who have won this award in the past and just to be in the same category as all them, is crazy for me. It’s such a blessing. I’m really excited to represent Indianapolis and represent Notre Dame well with this award and in the McDonald’s games as well.
Dime: With your father being ’91 All-American Ben Davis, you two have formed the first McDonald’s All-American father/daughter duo in the game’s history. Tell us your thoughts about that.
TR: It means a lot. Ever since I was young, knowing that he was a McDonald’s All-American himself, it’s always been a dream of mine. That was always something that I had in the back of my mind, even when I was really young. Just working towards that and hopefully being more than following his footsteps has always motivated me. It’s really great for us to be here in Chicago together and for us to both be McDonald’s All-Americans is really cool.
Dime: Being a youth basketball coach, what does it mean to you knowing that your players look up to you as not only a superior athlete but as an individual who displays great character?
TR: That’s something that was so big for me. I’ve had so many great coaches along the way who have really influenced me and gotten me to this point and beyond this. To inspire the kids that I’ve coached is great for me because I’m just trying to give back the same way that people gave to me and hopefully be a role model for those girls and teach them not only how to be better on the court, but off the court as well.
Were they the best high school basketball players this year?
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