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Gonzaga Basketball

Jalen Suggs’ family on board with Gonzaga’s title drive

The mileage is piling up on the SUV, something the Suggs’ family hopes continues for the next two weeks.

Freshman point guard Jalen Suggs has helped Gonzaga to a pair of NCAA Tournament wins and the program’s sixth consecutive trip to the Sweet 16. Parents Larry and Molly and Jalen’s sisters Jennica and Jaelle drove 8½ hours from home in West St. Paul, Minnesota, to Indianapolis to watch the two victories.

On Tuesday, they were on the road home where Larry helps coach Minnehaha Academy’s boys and girls teams. Both daughters are in the program.

“This is the first time in seven years I haven’t been there for the playoffs,” Larry said. “Hopefully, I can make it back when the boys go back to the state tournament and also see my daughter play in the section finals.”

The family will drive back to Indy this weekend. One more road trip the following weekend would mean Gonzaga is in the Final Four.

Before hitting the road, Larry offered his thoughts on watching the Zags, his son’s friendship with UConn star freshman Paige Bueckers, his son’s pregame tribute to a longtime friend, GU recruit Chet Holmgren and what’s next for Jalen.

Spokesman-Review: How many GU games have you been able to see in person?

Suggs: I’ve been to four. Two in the beginning (of the season) and these last two. Mom made it to Spokane (when family members were allowed to attend late in the regular season).

S-R: The team is locked down pretty tight in Indianapolis. How close have you been able to get to Jalen?

Suggs: Probably section 223, row K. It’s pretty far up there, but the guys know where all the families are and they always look up and give a wave. We’re all in the same section, so they at least see you.

S-R: What’s it like watching Jalen, knowing you’ve been with him nearly every step of the way, during the NCAA Tournament?

Suggs: It’s been really exciting. For one, everyone he’s played with in AAU games seems like they’re all here. It’s like watching an All-Star game of AAU teams. It’s pretty cool to see him play with some of his friends and compete with some of his friends.

(Jalen has been teammates on gold-medal USA junior teams with USC’s Evan Mobley, Florida State’s Scottie Barnes and Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham.)

S-R: We talked during Jalen’s recruitment and you stressed fit and style of play was more important than simply picking an established blue blood. I remember you mentioning the path of Ja Morant (second overall pick out of Murray State).

Suggs: You have to go to where it fits. We still believe in that, and obviously it worked out. If you think about it, most parents don’t have the information so when they say, ‘Hey, your kid can be an NBA talent, but we believe you need to go to this college,’ the parents get nervous and say, ‘We have to do this.’ And style of play and fit goes out the window. I wanted to make sure Jalen was in a good environment and the players passed and shared the ball.

S-R: Jalen and UConn standout freshman guard Paige Brueckers became great friends growing up in the Twin Cities area. How have they helped each other on and off the court?

Suggs: It’s a very similar situation, she’s just on the girls’ side and he’s on the boys’. They’ve always been regarded as one of the best guards in the country. Through interviews, autographs, spending time in the gym, they’re able to call each other and share stories and go back and forth what they liked and didn’t like. And even how to handle some of the stressful situations that came along during their high school careers.

S-R: Jalen’s routine just before tip-off includes a few moments when he makes the sign of the cross, points to the sky and forms an ‘X’ with his arms in tribute of Xavier Pollard, a longtime friend who took his own life when Jalen was 16.

Suggs: Xavier and Patrick (Dembley) were two really electrifying guards that played in the Twin Cities. We started playing AAU basketball when Jalen was 4 or 5 and he would battle against those guys (four years older) all the time. Our team was just little guys, all of Jalen’s best friends, and they weren’t up to that level to bring the ball across half court.

We’d been getting pressed for three months and one day we executed the press break so nicely and we scored a bucket on Xavier and Patrick. We celebrated like we’d just won the national championship. As Jalen’s game grew, he was allowed to play with Xavier and Patrick a little more and those two really contributed to him doing what he’s doing today.

Jalen took a lot of stuff from Xavier, his confidence, trash talk, the work he put in, his fearless play. They had wars in the gym, really battled each other.

(Dembley played one year at Boise State and finished in 2020 at Division II Texas Permian Basin averaging 21.9 points.)

S-R: You’ve worked a lot with Chet Holmgren, a Gonzaga recruit and the top-ranked player in the 2021 class. Chet played with Jalen at Minnehaha and on the AAU circuit. What’s he like as a player and what are the chances good news could be coming Gonzaga’s way?

Suggs: I think they’ve got as good a chance as anybody in the country as long as they keep winning and sharing the ball and they like each other. That style is appealing to every youngster and I would guess Mark (Few’s) phone is ringing off the hook with the transfer portal and everything.

With Chet, I never played him at the post, always played him at the guard spot. I told him be skilled first and you can go work in the post later. He’s always been with Jalen in the gym since third grade. Now he’s 7-1 and can dribble and shoot, soft hands, phenomenal player.

S-R: Jalen is in the top five of nearly every NBA mock draft. What’s your confidence level that Jalen is prepared for the next step in his career?

Suggs: We don’t talk about it much because it’s not in the moment. We only focus on Zag basketball. We know it’s there, but we tend to take it one game at a time.

I’m pretty confident about him playing at the next level and believe he’ll be successful because he’s a winner and a team guy. At the end of the day, you play for fun and you go for the win. It’s a team game.