Former UK Player Parker Resurfaces @ Chipola
Jason Parker is hoping to pick up the pieces of a once promising basketball career next winter at Chipola J.C. in Marianna, Fla.
Parker, a native of Charlotte, N.C., has transferred to the Florida junior college power this spring, according to Indiana Asst. Coach Joel VanMeter.
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Parker, a 6-8, 265 pound power forward, has undergone a pair of knee surgeries in the past two years.
After playing as a freshman at Kentucky in 2000-2001, Parker took a red-shirt year in 2001-2002 following a serious knee injury.
Parker left Kentucky that spring and enrolled at South Carolina last fall. He was not on scholarship for the Gamecocks and paid his own way to school. Parker decided to leave South Carolina and spend a year playing ball at the junior college level.
"Jason has a lot of uncertainty that he has to work through," VanMeter said. "He has undergone a pair of knee surgeries, and hasn't played competitive basketball in over two years."
Parker attended West Charlotte H.S. in North Carolina before doing a prep year at Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia during the 1999-2000 school year. He signed with North Carolina out of high school, but when Parker was denied admission to UNC, he wound up at Kentucky.
As a result, his clock has been running since the fall of 2000, even though he never used up his sophomore year of athletic eligibility.
If Parker were to sign with an NCAA Division I school in the fall or spring of 2004, he would only have one year of eligibility remaining, VanMeter said. One school that has professed a strong early interest in Parker is Florida State.
But the D-I ranks isn't Parker's only option at this juncture. Division II, NAIA and professional options will be weighed as well.
"He's not limiting himself to college or pro status," VanMeter explained. "A lot will depend on how his season goes this year."
VanMeter said that Parker's knee is 100 percent now. While attending summer school classes at Chipola, Parker hopes to play pick up ball and get into playing shape for the 2003-2004 season.
JUCO Junction will keep you posted on Parker's status this summer and as the upcoming JUCO season approaches, so stay tuned to this site in the coming weeks and months!