Once in a long while, a player comes along with as much hype surrounding him as Jonathan Hargett did.
The Virginia native and former stand-out at West Virginia was once compared to Allen Iverson, but he now sits behind bars, a cautionary tale recounted by Slam Magazine.
Hargett was flashy and skilled. He played alongside future pros Amare Stoudemire, Jarrett Jack, and Ben Gordon in high school, but his life ended up taking a much different path than the lives of those men.
After an impressive rookie season with West Viriginia, the NCAA struck Hargett with harsh penalties that would ultimately spell the end of his career at the collegiate level.
He was arrested on drug charges and served 45 days in prison. He tried unsuccessfully to get drafted into the NBA and, after a stint on the pro-am circuit, interest from NBA teams was stifled by another arrest on drug charges in 2008.
Hargett was sentenced to five years in prison.
Just at the Slam piece shapes its lede in the opening, Hargett’s story sounds like one told to young players at basketball camps around the country, trying to steer them down a path toward success.
Check out the article in its entirety here. It is certainly worth the read.
Photo Credit: Scout.com
Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_
