He starred at every level of his amateur career and now Jahii Carson is set to light up the NBL when he makes his professional debut for the Wollongong Hawks on Friday night against Townsville.
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Slowed by a toe injury for almost three weeks, Carson has trained confidently over the past few days and is certain to play against the Crocodiles.
"I'm almost 100 per cent over the injury," Wollongong's jumping-jack guard said.
"I'm feeling good, I still have the same speed and explosion that I normally would have, so there's no concerns at all."
Growing up in Arizona, Carson played high school basketball at Mesa High School, averaging a school-record 32.2 points and 6.6 assists as a senior, and earning second team All-American honours.
The 1.78-metre playmaker was the Pac-12 Conference co-Freshman of the Year in his first season at the University of Arizona State and earned All Pac-12 First Team selection. He was All Pac-12 again as a sophomore and finished his two-year college career with averages of 18.6 points, 4.9 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
Despite narrowly being overlooked in the NBA Draft in June, Carson found a silver lining in the form of a contract with the Hawks.
He turned 22 just days after arriving in Australia in August and can't wait for tip-off against the Crocs.
"It's definitely exciting for me, especially because I'm so young and I haven't got to witness anything professional. It's all been college," he said.
"I try not to get nervous, but I have jitters as far as just being blessed to be here. Being in Australia, it has a nice vibe to it.
"The NBL being as competitive as it is, it's good for me. Seeing how the crowd's going to be, seeing how the atmosphere's going to be.
"It's my first pro game, my first actual game with a new team and new season."
Hawks fans will fall in love with Carson's breath-taking leaping ability.
"Hopefully I can become a quick favourite with the athleticism and energy that I bring," he said.
The Crocs finished last in 2013-14 but they might be the league's big improvers after winning last month's NBL Blitz tournament in Brisbane.
"I didn't get a chance to see them play, but of course I did my research on them and they definitely look like they're ready, but I feel the same about us," Carson said.
