Dad was on the road. Mom had retired to the bedroom. The 10-year-old basically had the whole house as his playground. He already knew how he wanted to spend the rest of his night. He just needed to persuade his babysitter, Ms. Gail, to let him stay up past bedtime.
Jameer Nelson Jr. didn’t intend on using the extra hour or so to watch movies or play video games. Or raid the pantry for sweets. Nope. He envisioned something more meaningful.
Advertisement
He grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around himself to keep warm, making sure to cover his feet. He found a sweet spot on the couch in the family room. He grabbed a laptop, opened up YouTube and propped it up so he could see from the couch. This is how he would spend his night. Lying comfortably, the glow of a laptop screen illuminating the space, he watched replays of his dad’s best games. As many as he could before Ms. Gail finally whisked him off to bed.
That 10-year-old boy grew into a Division I player, even though it was in many ways an unlikely development. His dad never pushed him toward basketball. So if the son were to learn of dad’s legacy — the years taking on NBA stars, the legend he became at Saint Joseph’s — it would have to be on his own.
He was familiar with Jameer Nelson Sr., his father, the husband of his mom, the homebody. But these were the nights that introduced him to Jameer Nelson Sr., the NBA player, the rugged point guard from Philly, the gamer.
One of his favorite games to watch? Orlando vs. Chicago from Jan. 15, 2014. Dad dropped 31 on the Bulls that night, one point shy of his career high. It was the moment at the end that he kept coming back to. Time was running out. The Magic trailed 101-99. Dad came off a high ball screen from Glen Davis, leaving him on an island with Joakim Noah. A nasty hesitation move froze Noah in his tracks. Then his dad calmly sank a long jumper from just inside the 3-point line to tie the game, blowing the roof off of the Amway Center. The Bulls immediately called a timeout, and Jameer Sr. high-stepped toward the Magic bench with his arms extended below his waist and hands cupped as if he were carrying something heavy. He was doing his version of the “Big Balls Dance” made famous by former NBA guard Sam Cassell.
“It’s just really cool to look back at what he did,” Jameer Jr. says. “He was an All-Star. He was just a great player for his size. I think the average height in the NBA is like 6-foot-7. I’ll call him 6-foot. For someone with his size to be so successful for that long, it’s just amazing.”
Even today, he searches YouTube for replays of his dad’s games. It’s his way of playing catch up. Jameer Jr., now 19, transferred to Delaware in January, after two strong seasons at George Washington. Many believe the physical, high-flying guard is a better all-around athlete than his dad. Those comparisons to his pops hit differently now that he fully understands who his dad was as a player. Now that Jameer Jr. has NBA aspirations of his own, it makes him wish he had known sooner.
Advertisement
Jameer Sr. never wanted his son to blindly follow in his footsteps, nor did Jameer Jr. ever feel the pressure of a father wanting his son to take over the family business. But he did enforce the foundation of the Jameer Nelson legacy. He made sure to pass down the intangible element on which his career was founded: going hard.
“If I told him I wanted to be the best plumber in the world, he’d give me the best resources to be the best plumber in the world,” Jameer Jr. says. “He doesn’t care what I do. He just wants me to go 100 percent at it and be as successful as I can.”
Jameer Sr. was a freshman at St. Joe’s when he met his son for the first time. After a flight back to the states after representing USA Basketball in Japan, Jameer Sr. and Phil Martelli, then the coach at St. Joe’s, were welcomed home in the Philadelphia International Airport parking lot by Linda Billings, Jameer Sr.’s mom, his wife and their newborn baby. “It was just a beautiful thing to see,” Martelli recalls. “And so almost by extension, young Jameer became a part of my family. Maybe when he was 12 or 13, he started to end his conversations the same way his father ended his conversations — by telling me that they loved me.”
Jameer Sr. was just 19, but Martelli says age wasn’t a reflection of the young father’s maturity. He never let basketball or other interests deter him from his responsibilities of raising his son. When Jameer Sr. would return to campus for summer workouts, his son would tag along. He always put his son first. Martelli says it was a reflection of his parents, Billings and Floyd “Pete” Nelson, who kept him on the straight and narrow throughout his own childhood growing up in Chester, Pa., a city plagued by drugs and crime.
“Chester is not easy,” Martelli says. “Pete and Linda were unbelievable parents. They loved their son, and to see that passed on to Jameer at that age was incredible. To watch him parent while he was a kid himself, it just added to my appreciation for who he is as a human being. And I’ve always said, he’s one of the greatest ever in the city, at the school, in the NCAA, but who he is as a human being far surpasses who he was as a player.”
Advertisement
From St. Joe’s, Jameer Sr. launched a 14-year NBA career. But despite what his father did for a living, competitive sports didn’t interest Jameer Jr. He was more focused on playing with his friends in the neighborhood. When he finally decided to play sports, his game of choice was baseball. But during his sophomore year of high school, he quit that sport to take basketball more seriously, which shocked his parents. “My wife and I thought he was crazy because he was a really good baseball player,” Jameer Sr. says.
Jameer Jr. was an impact player by the time he was a senior at Haverford School, averaging 14 points per game. He helped the Fords to a 30-0 record and a state title. He committed to play for St. Joe’s, just like his dad, though the reason had nothing to do with his father. Martelli had been a constant in his life since that night in the airport parking lot. The coach had become like a grandfather, someone who had always been there. That connection made Hawk Hill his choice — even though it might come with unrealistic expectations. His father had been an All-American and the consensus college player of the year in 2004. The son wanted to be his own man. Playing in his dad’s shadow at St. Joe’s would make that a challenge.
“Once he decided to commit, we all sat down and had a conversation,” Jameer Sr. says. “We knew it was going to be tough and he’d have a lot of pressure, so we were willing to deal with it.”
Martelli made sure to not compare the two. While they do share the same name, they’re completely different players. And comparing Jameer Jr. to his father just wouldn’t be fair. Jameer Sr. made up for his lack of size and above-the-rim athleticism with quickness and sharpshooting throughout his playing career. “He was the definition of a prototypical point guard,” Martelli says.
Jameer Jr. did inherit some of his dad’s shiftiness off the dribble and he has the same work ethic, but that’s where the comparisons stop. Jameer Jr. is bigger, stronger and far more athletic than his dad was at 19. And at the college level he has used those traits to his advantage.
Jameer Sr. is relieved he and his son don’t have too many similarities in their games. Jameer Jr. is creating his own identity. “We have the same name, so people are going to point to that already,” Jameer Sr. says. “But it’s good to see him carve out his own way and make his own niche.”
The son’s path ultimately would not go through St. Joe’s. After the school fired Martelli in March 2019, Jameer Jr. signed with George Washington, where over the past two seasons he made 33 starts while averaging 10.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. With two years of eligibility left, he transferred to Delaware. He thought the move would put him in a better position to reach his goals. Being closer to family helps too.
Advertisement
Jameer Jr. knows there’s still work to be done in order to realize his NBA dreams. But the more he has played, the more he has appreciated the craft. He has gotten better at accepting his dad’s coaching and criticism. And Jameer Sr. will keep pushing his son to be the best version of himself.
“He does want to be a professional basketball player,” Jameer Sr. says. “He knows it’s not going to be easy. His work ethic has gotten better over the years, and he needs to continue to grow and get better; he needs to continue to develop.
“Kobe (Bryant) told me, ‘Look, get better every day,’ and that’s all you can do. That’s all you can ask for out of your work, and then you see what happens at the end.”
Martelli used to have an open-door policy for his practices at St. Joe’s. Anyone could attend. The only stipulation was that spectators had to sit upstairs. The coach vividly remembers when Pete Nelson brought his 2-year-old grandson to a two-hour session. Between drills, Martelli would occasionally glance up at them. He noticed that Jameer Jr. wasn’t moving an inch. He was focused on the action on the court. He was focused on his dad.
It took Jameer Jr. a while to understand who his dad was as a player. But he’s always recognized the role model. “I think I’ve appreciated my dad since the day I was born, but when I started recognizing him as a Black man how I appreciated him, is just how he carries himself, he just carries himself in an amazing way regardless of what people say or think,” Jameer Jr. says. “He’s an extremely hard worker. He always tries to put people in a position to be successful, whether it’s my sisters, me or whoever. He’s always trying to help. He does so much for the community and people all over. I’ve seen my dad at Thanksgiving giveaways, meeting people at the hospital, stuff like that. He uses his platform very well.”
The two are close. Relationally and geographically. His dad, the St. Joseph’s great, the one-time NBA All-Star, is the newly named assistant general manager of the Delaware Blue Coats, the G-League squad of the Philadelphia 76ers. So both father and son will be plying their crafts in Delaware.
Jameer Sr. will continue to guide his son throughout his playing career. But he won’t overstep his boundaries. If Jameer Jr. seeks advice, dad will coach him up. But he won’t say anything to him, basketball-wise, unless he believe like he needs to. And if Jameer Jr. has a question, his dad will give him candid feedback. He’ll tell him exactly what he needs to hear. Jameer Jr. says that’s the best thing about his dad as a coach.
Advertisement
“We do have a good relationship,” Jameer Sr. says. “But ultimately, as I tell him, I’m not his friend. I have to draw that line because when it’s time to discipline, it’s time to discipline. You can’t be a friend and a parent in my opinion. Everyone approaches parent life and parenthood differently, but I just look at it that way. I’m very supportive, very resourceful in trying to help him as much as I can and give him as much as I can. But I’m always going to be honest with him, always going to be pushing him to be better, where sometimes your friends, that peer pressure gets to you in a different way.”
Jameer Jr. says the best thing he has learned from his dad is how to do things the right way, whether it’s staying in a low stance on defense or holding his follow-through after a shot. It’s the little things that make a difference. It’s the little things that separate good from great — both competitively and in life — and that’s what Jameer Sr. has preached to his son for the past 19 years.
In four short years, Jameer Jr. has gone from an OK player to a good player. If he wants to play in the NBA, he’ll have to be great. He’ll have to put in the work, just like his father before him.
“Do that,” Jameer Jr. says, “and everything else will fall into place.”
(Top photo courtesy of Jameer Nelson Jr.)