University of Georgia Athletics
A Quick Chat With ... Jordan Harris
November 28, 2016 | Men's Basketball
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Jordan Harris comes from a small place, the town of Iron City, Ga. In 2013, at least according to Google, the population was 313. Iron City is adjacent to Donalsonville, which had in 2013 a comparatively bustling population of 2,793.
The 6-foot-4, 185-pound Georgia men's basketball freshman guard knows about pressure, he said, because as a junior his whole community turned out to see him lead Seminole County High School to the 2015 Class 2A state championship.
A super-scorer in high school (30.5 points per game as a senior), Harris didn't see the floor in Georgia's season opener at Clemson. He made his debut in the Bulldogs' second game, against UNC Asheville, and made a 3-pointer in his first career field-goal attempt.
After that game Harris sat down for a wide-ranging chat. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: You played in your first game for the Bulldogs tonight and made your first shot, a 3-pointer. How did that feel?
Harris: It felt good, I mean I've been praying for that moment for a long time and it was here and I was ready.
Frierson: Were there nerves on the shot or pregame nerves of any kind?
Harris: I don't get nervous. I used to get nervous, until I played in the state championship game. After that it was like, I'm ready for whatever.
Frierson: How did that game change things for you?
Harris: My school hadn't been there in so long and my whole city went to it and the other team's whole city went to it, Coach [Mark Fox] was there, Coach [Philip Pearson] was there — everybody was there.
There was a lot of pressure on me because I was the best guy on the team and that got me ready for everything. I had 41 [points] and if I wouldn't have had 41 we would have lost, so that got me ready.
Frierson: As a guy that at his peak could knock the net around a bit but never got close to the rim, I'm very jealous of those that can dunk. What do you remember about your first dunk?
Harris: My first dunk, I got it in sixth grade. My first in-game dunk was in eighth grade. That first dunk in sixth grade, I got it playing around in the gym. In eighth grade, I was in Kentucky at a John Lucas camp and I got my first in-game dunk.
Frierson: As a guy that's very envious of those, it seems like that would be a transformational moment.
Harris: Once you dunk in a game, that changes your whole life. From that point on you're going to want to dunk all the time.
Frierson: Do you have a best dunk in a game?
Harris: I did a 360 — I'm ready to do one here.
Frierson: If you could eat one meal for the rest of your life what would it be?
Harris: Fried chicken and macaroni and cheese.
Frierson: What's the food when you go home, you walk in the house and smell it and you know you're home?
Harris: My grandma, she cooks for a living, so I go home and she'll cook chitterlings, chitlins, rice and squash. We're big on soul food and I love soul food, you know, green beans, baked chicken, your rolls, all that good stuff. That's what I like.
Frierson: What's something from your childhood that you really miss?
Harris: Me and my brothers, we used to build houses with the covers, like the blanket you sleep under, and we used to build mansions and stuff, and be like, this is my house. I'm going to try to get a mansion one day.
Frierson: What's the best new thing, at least new to you, that has entered your life in 2016?
Harris: Probably the Bulldog Nation, the coaches, my teammates — all of it.
Frierson: What's the transition been like for you, being one of a couple of new guys joining a group of guys that have been together a while?
Harris: I came here, in my home state, and I've actually known a lot of [the coaches] — they've been recruiting me since I was in, like, eighth grade. I've also been coming to Athens since I was in eighth grade, ninth, 10th grade, so it was all familiar to me. I knew all the people and I knew what was expected of me when I got here.
Frierson: If you could have played with or against anyone in history, who would it be?
Harris: Michael Jordan.
Frierson: With or against?
Harris: I would love to play with him, but against him, that would probably be a little crazy. I would definitely love to play with him.
Frierson: What's the most creative thing you do? Or what's something creative you wish you could do?
Harris: I wish I could sing, I wish I was like an R&B singer.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
