It didn’t take much time or nudging to get Jackson Shelstad into the sporting life. For the University of Oregon men’s basketball point guard, playing games of all kinds started very early on. You might even say the athletic juices run throughout his family.
“I just happened to come from a very competitive family,” he explains. “My dad played football and baseball, but wrestling was his main sport in high school. And my mother played soccer and ran track in high school.”
Growing up in the sports-crazy West Linn also played a role in his journey to the court.
“It is a community that’s really big about athletics,” Shelstad says. “West Linn High School always seems to have teams playing in the state championships in every sport. And I came from a family that is massively into sports, so being in that area was the perfect fit. It got me hooked on sports at an early age.”
So that’s what it took to get him into playing hoops 106 miles down the road in Eugene? Not so fast. While the 6-foot, 180-pound Shelstad would eventually play with the round ball, it was that sport on the gridiron that initially caught his attention.
“Football was actually my first love,” he says. “I used to go to the Oregon football games as a kid. De’Anthony Thomas and Marcus Mariota were two of my favorite Ducks. There were so many guys I loved watching.”
In fact, although he was a standout in basketball in high school, Shelstad was equally proficient as a defensive back in football. In the end, he decided to commit to hoops for college. Still, he credits his many years in football for sharpening his skills as a basketball player.
“I definitely miss playing corner,” Shelstad says. “It was a really tough position, but the Friday night high school games provided a feeling you don’t get playing any other sport. Just the adrenaline rush being out there. But before high school, I actually played quarterback and that position helped with the point guard position. It taught me to be a leader, and that translated to being floor general on the court.”
He certainly has been the floor general in a short amount of time as a Duck. During his freshman season, he averaged 12.8 points a game and helped Oregon get into the NCAA Tournament. This past season, as a sophomore, he averaged 13.7 points per contest and had 10 multi-steal games, once again getting the UO back into the Tournament. Shelstad believes he grew up a lot between his first two seasons, citing becoming more vocal in his second year.
“I had to look up to others who had been on the team longer during my freshman year,” he says. “Now I’m trying to lead by example, as well as use my voice more on the court. That’s something I’m always going to try and get better at.”
But you can’t talk about the 20-year-old Shelstad without mentioning his three-point shooting. As a sophomore, he was the most proficient long ball shooter, sinking 44 percent of his attempts. More important than the stat itself, Shelstad is able to hit these shots in clutch situations with the game literally on the line.
“There are times when it feels really good,” Shelstad explains. “It’s like when the shot leaves your hand, that you know it’s going in. However, that also goes to the work you put in. When you practice it enough, you trust in that shot and you know you can make it. I don’t really think about it when I’m coming into the shot. I just kind of let it go.”
As for the near future, Jackson Shelstad is looking forward to his junior year and hopes to get the UO to a higher level. He’d love to see the Ducks go a little deeper in the NCAA Tournament the next time around. And yes, eventually, an NBA career is very likely. Having said that, he’s just focusing on getting better every day in life on and off the court.
“I just need to keep being myself,” he says. “I have to take care of my school work and all the little things. That, and I have to stay after it in the gym. It’s all about continuing what’s gotten me to this point and see where it takes me.”
By the same token, he’s proud to be a Duck and glad he can perform almost every game in front of the people who got him interested in sports right from the start.
“It’s always cool being an Oregon kid,” Shelstad proclaims. “It’s special to play in front of all my family. That’s the best part, for me, about being in Eugene.”
