Prospect Spotlight: Jake Thacker (2018)
Lehi High School will have a strong season despite moving into a tough region. A couple of the obvious prospects to look out for are Dallin Holker and 2019 Kevin Winsor. In addition to Holker and Winsor, Lehi will rely on solid guard play from Jake Thacker. Thacker, a 5’10 PG who plays club basketball with All Utah Basketball, will need to distribute the basketball and manage the tempo of the game at a high level this upcoming season.
Jake Thacker High School
Thacker believes that his role for the upcoming season is to be a “distributor and a scorer” in order for the team to reach their goal of winning the region. This will be a tall task for Lehi as this is one of the toughest regions in 4A. However, if Thacker is able to play a bigger role than he did last season, that will help the team’s chances greatly.
He also mentioned that he has worked quite a bit this off-season on his “ball handling and shooting”. Last season, Thacker was able to demonstrate that he is capable of shooting it from deep. However, his numbers were a little low for a traditional point guard.
Improving his handles and ability to shoot it from deep will enable him to be more of a scoring and shooting threat. This extra pressure on the defense will create more opportunities for his teammates.
In fact, Thacker stated that his goal for the upcoming season is to average “14 points and 5 assists”. With these type of numbers, he is hoping that he will be selected to the All-Region team. Further, with this short of increased production, Lehi could be doing more than just winning their region.
Thacker prides himself on being a competitor. He noted that he feels like he brings a college program a prospect who “can bring a competitiveness that will push the people around [him] to be become better”. It is crucial to have leadership and competitiveness from a point guard.
Lehi will be one of the more improves in 4A and has a good chance at competing with some of the top dogs. Thacker is a solid guard who can shoot the basketball from deep. His numbers will be significantly improved from deep.
Jake Thacker College Interest
Thacker has not received any college offers at this point. He described his recruitment as “Southern Virginia has talked [to] me a little and Westminster and Snow College”.
In addition to basketball, Thacker his hoping to attend a school that will prepare him to “get accepted into physical therapy school”. Moreover, he noted that location would be a contributing factor as he wants a place “that’s close to home”.
Thacker has a quick release and a confident shot. His shooting abilities mixed with an improved handle should aid him in demonstrating that he is capable of playing at the next level. He will have more opportunities in this upcoming season and should be on many college’s watch lists.