My name is James Howard West, IV. My family and friends know me as Lil' J. These days, I go by JJ too since I'm a huge JJ Reddick and Duke fan; and I can shoot the lights out! My other favorite player is Allen Iverson, because I plan to be the next big thing out of Va in his image. I am a student athlete, with a big emphasis on the student part. Having both my mom and dad as teachers, there is no slacking off when it comes to school.
Being a part of the gifted education program and the Math & Science specialty program at my school, I have to work extra hard to maintain good grade or I lose out in the gym. (Yes, my mom will take basketball away if she is not pleased with my grades). Outside of that, I have a little brother Jalen (7), and a little sister Jayel (3) who are some of my biggest fans. I was born in Washington, DC on June 25, 1998. I then moved to Woodbridge, VA when I was 1 year old and have been there ever since. Those who know me say I was born with a basketball in my hand. I started playing on a recreation team when I was 6 years old, but was always in the gym with my dad who has been a basketball coach for the last 12 years.
My dad is currently the head boys basketball coach at Freedom High School where I would play unless I go private school. When I was 10, I started playing with Team Takeover and had the opportunity to travel up and down the East Coast. Just this past Spring, I left the team to play for my Dad under his organization -VA Dynasty. That is where I feel at home and motivated to be me on the court. With that said, I plan on making some noise with my new team Virginia Dynasty starting the new 2011 AAU season. Remember my name- James Howard West, IV. You can follow me on my Youtube account by typing in James West 4th. I'll rep Va to the fullest two up two down.
What are your dreams in life?
My dream in life is to finish high school with honors and go on to Duke University with an academic scholarship to study within the field of Science. It is also with great ambition that my hard work in the classroom continues to carry over to the basketball court so that I can play for Coach K. Then its on to the NBA so my mom can retire.
What was your best game?
I had plenty of good games. The one I can recall recently is when I scored about 27 points and 8 assists. That was a great game because I was allowed to "DO ME" and still get my teammates involved.
Why are sports/education important to you?
Both of those things can help me be more successful in life. My mom always tells me that "education comes first because you can always break your leg". Both of my parents have instilled in me how important education is and once that is taken care of, the sky's the limit. That's why I can't come home with a C, and I always have all A's.
What can you do to make yourself better on your sport?
To make myself better, I need to work harder in my daily workouts, perfect my defensive play, and most importantly, play every game like its my last. My dad works me and my future back court mate out R.J. Barney as he prepares us for Freedom. With me and R.J. we will when two state titles for my father I promise.
How do you make your team better?
That's the first part of my game- I am a team player. I have great court vision which makes me able to see where my teammates are to get them the ball. I can score when I want, but like Lebron I choose to get everyone touches, because team comes first.
What advice can you give other student-athletes?
Keep working hard in the classroom first, then carry that same work ethic into practice and into the game. Hard work and discipline is what gets you to the finish line.
Send a shout out to SoSportz:
I would like to thank SoSportz for supporting student-athletes and for taking the time to get connected with me. This is a great website, and I predict this to be a high class source for athletes like me to get exposure. SoSportz is great, and I plan to have them track me through my career and my recruiting process. God Bless.
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