Former Minneapolis prep athlete Jericho Sims picked in NBA Draft
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A Minneapolis high school not known for its athletics now has a former student in the NBA.
With the 58th pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, the New York Knicks selected former Cristo Rey Jesuit High School student and basketball standout Jericho Sims.
“When that pick came out and the New York Knicks selected him, I just thought of all those car rides and all those talks about him wanting to be in the NBA,” Stanley Clay, Sims’ former head coach at Cristo Rey, said. “He finally fulfilled his dream of being in the NBA.”
After a successful senior season at the University of Texas — including helping the program win its first Big 12 title — Sims is now getting ready to play professionally. Before his college career, his dreams of playing in the NBA took off while playing basketball at Cristo Rey, in Minneapolis.
While Coach Clay says his skill played a big role with Sims becoming a draft pick, he added that it’ll be his work ethic on and off the court that will help him have a long career.
Former Cristo Rey Jesuit High School forward Jericho Sims plays in a March 4, 2017, game against Prairie Seeds Academy. The New York Knicks drafted Sims 58th overall in the 2021 NBA Draft.[Courtesy of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School]
Cristo Rey aims to help families with limited learning options receive a quality education. School President Jeb Myers says despite the school not being a sports powerhouse in the state, Sims was an example for everyone at the school.
“That’s a credit to Jericho,” Myers said. “He always worked hard, he always knew what he wanted to do, and he kind of eliminated the distractions that would keep him from those things.”