By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
When basketball flows through your veins, it’s difficult to accept another fate and not follow the sound of that rounded ball bouncing on the ground. That’s why Jhivvan Jackson, grandson of Flor Melendez and son of Leroy Jackson, chose the beloved sport to be featured along his road.
He did it from an early age, growing up in Puerto Rico with Panamanian roots too. At 12 years old, he joined his father, a former basketball player, in Dallas, Texas. That’s where his dream started.
The goal? Trying to get a scholarship from day one, while he was witnessing the Dallas Mavericks celebrating the NBA Championship with their leader Dirk Nowitzki being shaped by Würzburg, in Germany. And as said, basketball has always been part of his legacy. Even from the island.
“The love that we put into things we like helped me even from a basketball standpoint. Coming from an island, I always had a chip on my shoulder: not too many people from my age group made it out,” he opened to Eurohoops.
“In Puerto Rico, there are a lot of talented people, but chances aren’t given to everybody. I was fortunate enough to have that chance to get out of the island and chase my dream,” he added.
A few years before moving to the United States, he even witnessed history taking place. “My grandpa [Flor Melendez] was one of the assistant coaches of the Puerto Rican national team in the 2004 Olympics where Puerto Rico beat Team USA. I was wowed. We were all watching the game from the house. He was a part of that,” he said.
“I’ve always been around basketball since I started walking. I knew I was going to fall in love with it.”
Growing up, representing Puerto Rico wasn’t only an option, but a sense of pride. However, something changed quickly. “I have always wanted to compete, but during college, I couldn’t skip classes during the summer. From then on, they wanted me to be on the team, but they always called me to play during windows, not selecting me during international competitions and tournaments,” he said.
“I wanted them to invite me to prove myself when there were all the big-time players. I’m a competitor, so if they wanted to cut me, I wanted to get cut when everybody was there. I made it clear that I wanted a chance to see if I was good enough to play against the others. I wasn’t given it,” he added.
That’s when Panama entered the stage, hoping he could follow the legacy of his father Leroy, who won the silver medal at the FIBA Central American Championship in 1987. ” If Puerto Rico didn’t want me, and it was one of those situations where things just don’t go as planned, I still had a second option, since Panama always wanted me to join them,” he explained.
“I always tended to go to harder things, so why not take that challenge? I want to help the culture grow, going back to where they used to be when my dad played for them. Of course, things are smaller but we have a good team and the love for basketball is there. I wanted to be a part of this process,” he said.
“I always wanted to play for Puerto Rico, everybody knows it. But it just didn’t happen and I don’t have any problems with it. It’s always love and I will always support them because I was born over there.”
Following the steps the legend in Würzburg
The islander mentality brought him to start his overseas adventure… in an island, joining Menorca back in 2022. In his first professional game, he dropped 30 points in LEB Plata, showing his capacity.
Getting some more experience in Belgium with Spirou Charleroi, in Germany with Tigers Tübingen, and back to Puerto Rico with Osos de Manatì, it was time for him to come back to the BBL and now the Basketball Champions League, getting his feet set in Würzburg. Remember this name, right?
“Before coming over here, I knew Dirk had played somewhere in Germany, but I didn’t know it was Würzburg. It was pretty surprising when I got over here, I walked into the gym and they had a big picture of Dirk,” he first said when he figured that out.
The Nowitzki’s legacy can still be smelled in the city. “Dirk instilled the culture into the young guys. You can see it. They start out here from young. I think a lot of people over here look up to Dirk. Seeing that he did it from starting here, going all the way to the best, and being one of the best, if not the best, four men in the history of the NBA. I think that speaks volumes,” he said.
“The fans love basketball, they are one of the best, if not the best fans that I’ve had in my pro career. The support they give us is amazing,” he added. “We got a couple of young guys who are on that look to try to go to the NBA as well. It’s a basketball culture over here,” Jackson followed.
Trying to push the Germans as far as possible in the BCL, he’s averaging 19.6 points and 5.8 assists per game, with a crazy 34-point night over Derthona to start the Round of 16.
Living a full-circle moment from Dallas, where a key piece to that championship run was another Puerto Rican like JJ Barea, to Würzburg, he has been learning from skinny guys who could erupt.
“I’ve always tried to look at guys who look like me. Allen Iverson, just because of how hard he played, I could say he was one of my favorite players to watch. Also, I’m a big Lou Williams fan. That’s the guy I watched the most. Lou Williams AI are by far my two go-to guys to watch,” he said. And in Europe?
“I’ve always been a really big fan of Mike James, the way he scores the ball as a small guard. I’ve always looked to a lot of those guys who are small and could score the ball, making it everywhere. Him or Tyrese Ryce, guys who have been and won everywhere. I definitely look up to those kinds of players,” he said.
Another small guard who led a German team to success looked up to Tyrese Rice: TJ Shorts. “He was just playing BBL the year before I played. You see the things he is doing right now. He’s had the craziest three-year run in a long time. [I like] guys like that, who just are grinding and started from the bottom. They’re dogs and they help their teams leading by example. I look up those guys”, Jackson added.
Just like TJ Shorts did with Telekom Baskets Bonn a couple seasons ago, Jhivvan Jackson is taking responsibility to lead Saso Filipovski’s team all the way to success in their first-ever BCL campaign, first by getting directly to the Round of 16 and then starting such a stage 2-0.
However, he hasn’t been the leader of this time from day one, with Zac Seljaas taking that role before getting injured and being forced to miss the first two Round of 16 games.
Can Hannes Steinbach get to the NBA?
“Zac is our captain. It’s crazy that he played in the same team [Tigers Tübingen] I first played in the BBL when they gained promotion from second division the year prior. I always heard about him and to be teammates with him is nice,” he opened on his teammate.
“All the things I heard about him, being a really great guy, family guy, hard worker, are true. He shows it every day. Obviously, we really miss him right now. But his health comes first. He always leads us and gives us that energy and boost, on offense and defense. He’s our leader. We follow him and we’re just hoping for him to get to get better and come back whenever he’s healthy so he can help us,” he said.
Despite not having Seljaas on board, the German side has been showing to be competitive in the Round of 16, being at the top of Group I with AEK, still unbeaten such as Unicaja, Tenerife, and Nymburk.
Just like the Panama national team’s go-to-guy, there’s another player who has been shining with Würzburg thus far, despite being only a 2006-born: Hannes Steinbach, who has been averaging 10.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game in the Round of 16.
“In my opinion, he could be in the NBA in a couple years, if he keeps developing. He’s a really nice guy, he works hard. He’s got all the tools to be to be one of those really special, if not the special kid, coming from Germany. We really believe in him,” Jackson said about Steinbach.
Is he the next German gem from Würzburg? “He’s starting to find his groove now. And he’s been a big part of our team, helping Owen [Klassen] as well. I always try to instill some confidence in him and tell him to play his game. I think he’s one of those special kids that I think are going to be next up,” he added.
JHIVVAN JUST JHIWON THE GAME 🤯🤯🤯#BasketballCL | @jhivvans pic.twitter.com/CVVTPDKc5k
— Basketball Champions League (@BasketballCL) February 5, 2025
Especially thanks to the effort put on the court by the 26-year-old exciting guard, who pulled off a game-winning buzzer-beater to beat Promitheas in the last BCL appointment this week, they can dream.
“Every team’s goal is to win it all. Our coach help us on that a lot, not getting too high, not too low. We take it day by day, game by game. We got half the team right now, but it shows our character, those two games just keep fighting,” the Panamanian guard proudly affirmed.
“The mood within the team is good: we got these two wins, and we need four more games. We just got to keep playing and prepare like we always do,” he said, eyeing the two matchups with AEK after the break.
“We got a great coach that helps us on everything, we need to get in the game plan and just play hard. We wanna make that run and win it all. As long as we practice hard and take care of our health, we will leave the results to the stars,” Jackson also said.
While it’s still early to speak about whether Würzburg can make their way into this year’s Quarter-Finals or Final Four, the man from the island has been enjoying his bucket-presence.
Now, in the land devoted to basketball thanks to what Dirk Nowitzki has meant to the sport and its global worldwide audience, Jhivvan Jackson has found his place. Basketball has always flowed in his veins, and now he’s putting his blood on the floor to dream of a European title.
PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League
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