Of all the things that John Thompson III has said since taking the reigns as the Hoyas head coach, there is one that stands out. Coach has been asked about a number of players playing different positions; is Jessie Sapp a point guard or a shooting guard, is Jeff Green a small or power forward, etc. His response is classic: “We have basketball players.” The message is clear – don’t bother trying to label our players; they can all do a lot more than you think. This concept applies perfectly to Jonathan Wallace.

Coach Thompson was at Princeton when he recruited Jon Wallace. Somehow, maybe by a scout, maybe by high school or AAU coaches, Wallace got labeled as an Ivy League player. It seemed like once he was thought of to be an Ivy League player, the big-time D-I schools didn’t want him. Their loss. Here’s what they mean when they use the phrase Ivy League player – a smart player with good skills (shooting, ball handling, free throws), below average athleticism, and worse defensive ability. Now, it’s true that Wallace hasn’t made any highlight reel type dunks, but he has made more critical plays than any player in the NCAA who was recruited at the same level that he was.

The plays have been great, but I’ve been more impressed with Jonathan Wallace’s flair for the dramatic. Many will quickly point to the three-pointer in the final minute against North Carolina, but anybody can remember that play, even Dick Vitale. Here at Hoya Hoops, we try to remember every play and there’s more to JW than that shot against UNC.

Let’s revisit the Big East Tournament semifinal vs. Notre Dame. Georgetown was down by two with less than three minutes left. Notre Dame went into a full court press to try and disrupt the Hoyas. Wallace got the ball near mid-court and attacked the basket. As he got to the foul line he put up an unorthodox runner that went in. The Hoyas did not trail again in that game as Wallace made sure that the Irish never had the luxury of having the ball with the lead.

The recruiting business is everything to the top programs in the country, and in some ways it’s more satisfying to develop a player that wasn’t on anybody’s radar than claiming a top ten blue chipper. Wallace can be a pioneer for high school kids that aren’t highly sought after. Maybe sometime down the road, a coach will hear that a player is destined to be an Ivy League player and respond by saying, “Yeah, but that’s what they said about Jonathan Wallace.”