He was so talented in high school that he juggled multiple sports.
We all know Julio Jones as a national champion, the face of the Atlanta Falcons and one of the National Football League’s headlines names, in terms of the gridiron. However, he was also a human highlight on the hardwood at Foley (Ala.) High School in basketball. As a five-star athlete, Jones shared the coastal hype with another star who fulfilled his dream on the court.
Prior to attending the University of Kentucky and getting drafted to the National Basketball Association, DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins was a superstar at LeFlore High School in Mobile, Ala.
He and Jones were roughly one hour away from each other and in an NBA 2K Tournament with Andre Drummond of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Cousins described one of the craziest dunks he had ever seen.
“This is going to trip you out on who it was, but it was Julio Jones,” Cousins said.
The craziest poster dunk Boogie has ever seen was from … Julio Jones ?#NBA2KTourney pic.twitter.com/bsiQLu2mgu
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 6, 2020
Of course, Cousins made a blunder in saying Jones plays for the Atlanta Hawks yet he quickly went into what made the dunk so exciting.
“He dunked on one of my teammates,” Cousins said.
“We have been trying to find the video from it, but I believe my man got the tape and got rid of it. That was like the only film from high school that we can’t find. That was the craziest dunk I have ever seen and it was a tip dunk. It was sick… It took about 15-20 minutes to get the game started back, because people rushed the floor.”
At this point, all Alabama football fans want to see this tape.
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Seeing a high-flying Jones catch touchdown passes is great, but watching him dunk and handle the rock would have been mesmerizing.
At 6-foot-3, one could only imagine how productive he was on both offense and defense.
Maybe it was his exploits in hoops that prepared him for what has been an exceptional football career to this point. He definitely would have been an incredible basketball star; nevertheless, Tide fans will be forever grateful that he chose the football path.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
