St. Paul’s senior caps basketball season as Gatorade N.H. Player of the Year
CONCORD, N.H. (BVM) — In a season that left the Pelicans hoping for more, Jordan Geronimo proved to be the bright spot that they needed. The senior forward capped off his high school career as the Gatorade New Hampshire Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
Geronimo has taken off since his first days at St. Paul’s High School. Coming in, you might not have expected the 5-foot-11 freshman to one day become the state’s best player. After a growth spurt that now lists him at 6-foot-6, the senior for the Pelicans has done plenty of growing on the court as well.
St. Paul’s head coach, Max Gordon, has seen it first hand.
“He has a big-time motor and a drive to be great, and that raises the level of his teammates,” Gordon said. “This year in particular as a senior captain, he turned himself into a vocal leader and demanded the best of his teammates.”
In Geronimo’s senior season, he helped lead the Pelicans by averaging 18 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks per game. However, the 2019-20 season saw the Pelicans finish with a 8-14 record.
Geronimo’s play has progressed on both sides of the ball. Since his early days at St. Paul’s, Geronimo has worked on just about every facet of his game. His work in the gym has made him into a more dynamic player on offense and the forward’s 7-foot wingspan gives him the ability to cover guards and forwards on the defensive end.
“He’s turned into a consistent outside shooter, a composed driver, and a solid secondary ball-handler,” Gordon said. “He’s also tenacious on the offensive and defensive glass. All of this has progressed in his four years at St. Paul’s because he put in the work.
To improve his shooting, it was hundreds of makes every day on the shooting machine. He was in the weight room every day, he did drills every day, and to improve his playmaking and IQ, he watched a ton of film. This young man just puts in the work, and the growth happened fast.”
Before Geronimo’s senior season, the four-star recruit committed to play at Indiana University (IU). With his final season behind him, the future Hoosier will look to plug right into the IU system.
“Indiana is getting a really special young man with a ton of potential as a basketball player,” Gordan said. “He is going to listen to Archie (Miller) and his coaching staff, he’s going to work relentlessly, and he’s going to learn from any obstacles he faces as a freshman. If Jordan does this and continues to be the kind of person he is, I think the sky’s the limit.
“He has the length and athleticism of some of the all-time greats. He has a strong basketball IQ and great timing and versatility on defense, and he has a pretty jump shot. I think early on, Jordan will give IU defense and outside shooting. But as he grows, works, and gains experience over a year or two, he could be a ferocious scorer from three and getting to the rim, and end up being one of the best players in the country. I really think he has that potential and I know he’ll work for it.”
When Gatorade honored Geronimo as New Hampshire’s Player of the Year he became the first player from St. Paul’s to be chosen for the award. His work in the classroom is not to be understated either, as he’s maintained a 3.98 GPA throughout high school.
“The Gatorade Player of the Year award was first and foremost an honor for Jordan,” Gordan said. “It shows not only the player he has worked to become, but the person as well, because that award takes academics and character into account and Jordan is a young man who never stopped working in the classroom, even with scholarship offers in the bag. He is also a humble person who is loved by his peers on campus.”
His coach takes pride in knowing the work that goes in behind the scenes for a player to receive this kind of award.
“I’m really proud of Jordan and believe he deserves this award in every way, and I think it’s validating for all the unseen hours he put in,” Gordon said.
