Sparks' Rickea Jackson Has Surprising Pick on Best Basketball Signature Move
2024 All-Rookie Los Angeles Sparks forward Rickea Jackson recently appeared on the "Broadcast Boys" podcast for a wide-ranging hoops conversation.
The 24-year-old enjoyed a stellar first season for L.A., who selected her with the No. 6 pick out of Tennessee. While appearing in all 40 games with the 8-32 Sparks, the 6-foot-2 forward notched averages of 13.4 points on .456/.347/.807 shooting splits, 3.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 0.7 steals a night.
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Former Stanford All-American power forward Cameron Brink wasn't quite so lucky. The 6-foot-4 phenom, selected with the No. 2 pick ahead of Jackson, lasted just 15 games before tearing her ACL and being ruled out for the season.
Jackson took on a bigger offensive burden in light of the Brink injury, and enjoyed an encouraging individual stint in L.A.
Although she was raised in Michigan, Jackson has long had an appreciation for Los Angeles basketball royalty. That much came through when Jackson revealed what she considered to be the single-best signature move in the history of basketball.
"Kobe [Bryant] fadeaway," Jackson said of the Hall of Fame Los Angeles Lakers superstar shooting guard. "His body is going the opposite way of the ball at such a crazy degree."
When asked to clarify that she preferred the Bryant fadeaway jumper to Michael Jordan's, Jackson offered up a reasonable response.
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"I feel like Kobe studied Jordan, but I'm not going to lie, I feel like Kobe added a little bit more flavor and whatever to it," Jackson explained.
Bryant relished hitting his turnaround fadeaways, a lethal midrange move that has now sadly become a thing of the past all too often in both the NBA and WNBA.
Kobe Bryant hitting this clutch fadeaway over Lebron James, on this day in 2009. pic.twitter.com/JPCT4OXLoG
— KobeFiles (@KobesFiles) February 8, 2023
Jackson, for her part, strived to emulate the move during her first season in the house that Bryant built, now renamed Crypto.com Arena, but during his 20-year career known as Staples Center.
Rickea Jackson with a tough spin fadeaway over two ATL Dream defenders 🔥 pic.twitter.com/OvMcO4Zl5H
— ZekeHoops (@HandsOffAssata) September 1, 2024
Jackson is hoping to add to her own legacy with a reconfigured Sparks club this spring. Los Angeles is set to add some new talent during this Monday's draft, where it possesses the No. 9 pick in the first round. The rookie will join a developing Jackson, a healing Brink, incumbent All-Star forward Dearica Hamby, and newly-acquired All-Star point guard Kelsey Plum to form a unique core.
Under the guidance of new head coach Lynne Roberts, this Los Angeles squad seems poised to explore something of a "two timelines" approach, with players like Brink, Jackson, and this forthcoming rookie trying to contribute to winning alongside the 31-year-old Plum and Hamby.
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Currently also a scribe for Newsweek, Hoops Rumors, The Sporting News and "Gremlins" director Joe Dante's film site Trailers From Hell, Alex is an alum of Men's Journal, Grizzlies fan site Grizzly Bear Blues, and Bulls fan sites Blog-A-Bull and Pippen Ain't Easy, among others.