2021-22 6A Preview: Pre-Season Player of the Year

When it came down to picking our pre-season 6A Player of the Year, we’ll fully admit that it was pretty much a no-brainer. The truth of the matter is that even if certain guys had decided to return to Oregon for the 2021-22 season, Jackson Shelstad Jackson Shelstad 6'0" | PG West Linn | 2023 State #55 Nation OR would have still been a serious candidate for the honor. But with them gone, it became pretty obvious that the fast 6-foot, 170-pound point guard from West Linn was the clear choice. Shelstad comes into this season ready to lead the Lions and does so without the pressure of college recruiting, as he announced in November that he’ll be an Oregon Duck.

"I decided pretty early but it was actually tough between my top three as they were all really good programs - Gonzaga and UCLA were numbers one and two at the time I decided to go to Oregon," Shelstad said. "It was a super tough decision but I feel like at the end of the day Oregon was the best place for me to go and where I want to be. I’ve had a good relationship with their staff for a long time - it’s been middle school since I’ve known them. Coach Dana Altman is going to push me to be the best player I can be, and it’s going to be a lot of fun playing in my home state having my family come to every home game. I’m excited."

Shelstad makes his decision relatively early, going into his junior year at West Linn. While some might wonder why the rush, for him the time was right. "Really I think when you know, why wait to decide," Shelstad said. "When you know, you might as well decide to commit and put it out there. After I went on a visit there, I met with Coach Altman and the other coaches and that’s when I knew I wanted to be a Duck."

Shelstad’s commmitment to Oregon obviously amplifies the comparisons between him and one of the all-time greats in state history, Payton Pritchard. It’s been going on even before he set foot on the campus at West Linn High School, but it’s something Shelstad has embraced - and even used it as further motivation.

"I’m super blessed that people compare me to him because he’s easily the hardest worker I’ve ever been around," Shelstad said. "I mean right now he’s playing in the NBA but if you look at his career at Oregon, it’s unbelievable. For me to be compared to him, that makes me want to work even harder because I’ve got to live up to that. I can’t be out here lounging around - I have to work to be like him, and that’s what I’m trying to do."

As he noted, Oregon, UCLA, and Gonzaga were Shelstad’s final three schools, but there were certainly a ton of schools that were vying for his services. Some of the many other programs that had offered included Kansas, Stanford, USC, Texas Tech, and Florida. Going into the summer he was largely a West Coast recruit but after playing with the Oakland Soldiers prior to and at the Nike EYBL Peach Jam, he became more of a national name.

"It was a great experience," Shelstad said. "I started off playing the first session with the 16U team and we struggled a little bit and lost our first two games, so after that it was hard and we couldn’t make it back into the actual Peach Jam. We won our next three in a row actually, but I got hurt and twisted my ankle so I couldn’t play in the last two games."

While Shelstad did suffer a minor injury, the time away helped him heal up enough to turn around and play with the Soldiers again. "I got moved to the 17U for the last session and that was really good," Shelstad said. "I like playing 17U a lot more as there’s a lot more space on the court and there are more athletes. It’s the way I like to play; it’s a faster playstyle and every game I was playing against the top players in the country, so I couldn’t have asked for anything better than that. It was a great experience."

Overall, Shelstad comes into this high school season with West Linn ready to dominate. Last season he averaged 26.8 points per game (good for second in 6A), shooting a sizzling 61 percent from the field and just under 45 percent from three, while dishing out 4.4 assists per contest. Despite those sizzling numbers, he wanted to continue his all-around development.

"Besides being in the weight room and adding muscle, I just wanted to keep my skills tight," Shelstad said. "I deepened my range a little bit and got my shot more consistent. But really I just got a lot bigger and added more weight on, and my athletic ability is better on the court so it’s easier for me to finish around the rim and around other players."

With that all said, it was easy to determine that Shelstad would be the 6A pre-season Player of the Year. Sure, individual awards are something he’s striving for but what’s most important to him is a state championship - and despite the Lions’ loss of big man Mason VanBeenen Mason VanBeenen 6'9" | PF West Linn | 2022 State OR for the season due to injury, Shelstad likes their chances.

"I think we’ve got a really good team and we can go super far," Shelstad said. "Obviously it hurts to have Mason out - he’s 6-foot-8 and a really skilled player and he makes a huge impact on defense blocking shots. So that hurts as we’re a bit on the smaller side but we’ve got a lot of really hard workers and really smart players, so I think we’ll be fine. We can shoot the ball well and have athletes, so I think we’ll be good."

Shelstad currently ranks as the #1 ranked player in the PrepHoops Oregon Class of 2023 rankings.