Recruiting Report: Jericole Hellems (2018)
NIXA — One of the state’s premier college basketball prospects, Chaminade 2018 forward Jericole Hellems is gearing up for a big season for Chaminade after a breakout summer with Brad Beal Elite.
Hellems grew up playing and competing at Chaminade as a young player alongside Jayson Tatum and Tyler Cook, two of the nations premier players in the 2016 class. Cook is now a sophomore at Iowa and Tatum with the Boston Celtics, but Hellems has since broken out of their shadow, first as a junior for the Red Devils, and again this summer with Brad Beal Elite.
A versatile wing player, Hellems is a versatile player that can do a little bit of everything, He can post up smaller players or take a big to the perimeter where he can beat players off the bounce or shoot from the outside.
He says is game has grown over the offseason and his offer sheet took off and he moved into the national 2018 rankings.
“Not that it matters, but it is still the fact that you work hard you can be rewarded for it,” he said. “Just a good time overall. Played a lot of good basketball.”
Hellems seemingly added new high major offers every day after a big July performance at Nike Peach Jam, but recently trimmed his list to seven: Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Mizzou, Arkansas, NC State, and Florida.
He says the biggest influence on his basketball career to date have been his parents who have supported him throughout his ups and downs as an athlete.
My parents have been important … they kept me going,” he said.
A fan of Kevin Durant, Hellems says he also is a big fan of former Chaminade stars Jayson Tatum and Brad Beal.
“They have been big for me,” he said. “I played with them and saw them grow.”
