Senior | Guard | 6’3″ | 215 lb. | Jacksonville, FL

If someone had to rank the most well-rounded and consistent players in Virginia Tech history, Jamon Gordon would be right near the top of the list. He’s averaged between 9.8 and 11.4 points every season. Jamon’s had at least 105 rebounds, 107 assists, and 63 steals each year. Gordon is currently 2nd in steals, 2nd in assists, and 25th in points in Virginia Tech history. He is the only current player in NCAA Division I with at least 1200 points, 500 rebounds, 400 assists, and 250 steals. Now that’s well-rounded, and says very little to the fact that he is one of the best defensive players the Hokies have ever had.

Jamon came to Tech as probably the most highly regarded recruit of the 2003 Class (at least of the ones that made it to VT). Scout.com ranked him as the 20th best point guard in the nation after his senior year at Andrew Jackson High School. He averaged 19 points per game that year and made the Florida-Georgia All-Star Classic in Orlando where he would room with one Zabian Dowdell and play against Coleman Collins. Gordon originally signed with Ricky Stokes, and decided to honor that commitment in large part due to his budding friendship with Dowdell.

Jamon was a starter from the day he set foot on campus. He started the first 11 games of his freshman year until a torn meniscus cost him five games. In his first game as a Hokie, Jamon stuffed the stat sheet with 20 points, six rebounds, five assists, and four steals to earn Big East Conference Rookie of the Week. He was a key contributor to VT’s first team to ever make the Big East Tournament, where the Hokies beat rutgers then lost to pitt. And who can forget his mini-fro? He looks so different now.

In Gordon’s sophomore year, his defensive skills really started to get recognized. He instantly became one of the most feared defenders in the ACC and was named to the ACC All-Defensive team thanks to 67 steals and 31 blocks. His block at the end of the nc state game sealed a 72-71 victory.

Last year, while many of the Hokies saw their production slip, Gordon kept TCB’ing (taking care of business). He increased his assists while lowering his turnovers, finishing with a 2:1 ratio. His rebounding and point production also improved slightly. And talk about filling out a stat sheet: Jamon had three double-doubles involving points and rebounds, and one double-double of points and assists. Somehow he was left off the ACC All-Defensive team.

In his swan song, Jamon has continued to keep doing what he does best: be consistent. He will set career highs in assists, steals, and points this year. Gordon has also stepped up as a leader and kept the Hokies focused most of the year. He came up just short of a triple-double in the game against campbell (22 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists), but who knows what he has up his sleeve the rest of the year.

Strengths: Jamon is a tremendous defender with lightning quick hands. He plays with intensity and emotion every time out and that rubs off on others. He’s a lead-by-example type who also knows when to get on a teammate. Jamon does a good job of taking the ball to the rim and either scoring himself, or setting up easy baskets for others. Plus, his steals lead to many fastbreak points for Tech.

Weaknesses: Jamon is not a pure shooter. He has never shot as high as 29% on three’s or 70% on free throws in any of his seasons. But he has learned to take the ball to the rack to get easier shots and he has a good mid-range jumper.

Greatest Game: This is a tough one because of how many stat-sheet-stuffer games Jamon has had. He had 20 points, 6 boards, 5 assists, and 4 steals in his first game. Gordon scratched out 21 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals in a win at clemson his junior year. Jamon totaled 22 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 7 steals against seton hall and 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists against campbell this year in back-to-back games.

But to me, Jamon’s best effort came his sophomore season against maryland in the regular season finale. In that game, he poured in 23 points with six rebounds and shut down John Gilchrist, who had lit up Tech in the first meeting of the season. This win propelled VT to an improbable 8-8 record in the ACC in their first season.

Favorite Moment: The block shot of Julius Hodge in the win over nc state in 2005 will always stick out to me, but nothing meant more than his floater in overtime at duke this year. His slash to the basket and running one-hander put Tech up 68-67 over duke with a half minute to go. VT got two defensive stops after that and won 69-67, but it was Gordon’s clutch shot that gave the Hokies the lead. This game meant so much to Tech because of the way VT lost at duke the year before on 40-footer at the buzzer and how that sunk Tech’s season. Another memorable moment from this game was Gordon hitting a shot basically from his rear after he slipped in the 2nd half. He has had a career full of memories for all of us.

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