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Q&A: PG Jordan McCabe Talks Gophers Offer, Appearance on Ellen DeGeneres Show & More
Q&A: PG Jordan McCabe Talks Gophers Offer, Appearance on Ellen DeGeneres Show and More
By Chris Monter
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/658162?referrer_id=388419
Jordan McCabe, a 5-11 point guard from Kaukauna (WI) High, is one of the top ballhandlers and outside shooters in the Class of 2018. McCabe helped lead the Galloping Ghosts to the Fox Valley Association title and the Division 2 WIAA State Tournament championship this past season.
McCabe shot 44% from three-point range and averaged 24.8 points and 6.1 assists per game as they finished 26-2 under head coach Mike Schalow. McCabe scored in double figures in 27 of 28 games, including a season-high 42 versus Seymour 27 of 28 games.
He shined in the state tournament as he had scored 31 points to lead the Galloping Ghosts to a 72-45 victory over the LaCrosse Central and Wisconsin commit Kobe King in the WIAA Division 2 state semifinals and 24 points in the 91-62 win over top seed Waunakee in the WIAA Division 2 championship game.
McCabe averaged 14.2 ppg and 4.8 apg as a freshman and earned second-team all-league honors in the Fox Valley Association, while helping Kaukauna to a 20-4 record.
McCabe has already received offers from DePaul, Green Bay, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Missouri and West Virginia and is receiving interest from Xavier, Gonzaga, Ohio State, Stanford, Marquette and Texas.
Gopher Hole recently caught up with McCabe to learn the latest on his recent Minnesota offer and plans for this summer.
Gopher Hole: You won the state title this past season as the second seed. What was that experience like winning the state title in Wisconsin?
Jordan McCabe: It was a dream come true. It was something that I was dreaming about since I came up all the way through this system. I moved around a little bit, but it has always been an "Orange and Black" thing for me. We've never had a state title here. We had a runner-up in 2012. That was the closest that they ever came to getting accolades throughout the state and with my father going through the system as well, I just wanted to prove a point that Kaukauna could bring home the state title. To do that meant the world to me and the city.
Gopher Hole: Do you return many players for next year?
Jordan McCabe: We return quite a few. We lose two starters through graduation. Marcus Moreau (who averaged 13.9 points per game), who was extremely vital for us down the stretch in the playoffs and all the way through the season. We are just going to look to reload as we go here. We have a couple of soon-to-be seniors who are going to try to step up and fill those holes. That is the plan right now.
Gopher Hole: What are the expectations for the upcoming season? Obviously, you want to get back to that same level.
Jordan McCabe: Yes. We have one expectation and one goal and that is to repeat.
Gopher Hole: You appeared on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" a few years ago and did some stuff at the 2011 NBA All-Star Game. What was that experience like?
Jordan McCabe: I was fairly young at that time. I had just started getting exposure with some of things that I could do with a basketball, but that has just labeled me as just a dribbler. That was more just something when I was young. It was good experience for me to be around obviously, the most elite level athletes and go to the All-Star game. If anything, it was a really good experience for me and outside of that, it wasn't really basketball-related, I wouldn't say. It was more the entertainment piece that I still carry throughout my game, which kind of turns some heads every now and then, but ever since then, I have been focusing on being that true point guard and a winner.
Gopher Hole: I know that you have a lot of You Tube videos. How did the show find out about you?
Jordan McCabe: That was probably when I was in fifth grade, I think. We had moved out to Seattle and the show saw me, because they did a small news story on me. The local KING 5 news had done something on me and they got a glimpse of it and ran with it.
Gopher Hole: This might be way before your time, but Sean Miller, the head coach at Arizona, was on the Tonight Show when he was young. Had you ever seen that video?
Jordan McCabe: I had heard of him doing that stuff back when it was all happening for me and I heard about it a little bit. I had heard that he did the same type of thing.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, he is still around, so it shows that it can lead to something?
Jordan McCabe: Yes.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, you want to be a complete player. Do people ever think that is all you can do and has it ever been a negative at all or not really?
Jordan McCabe: Oh, yes. There is definitely a negative stigma that follows you around with stuff like that, whether it be jealousy or them just doubting the fact that I can be an all-around player. It spurred from that whole thing that happened when I was really young, but I think the past couple years my attention has turned to being the best basketball player all-around that I can possibly be and proving to people that I am more like a (Steve) Nash or (John) Stockton type guy and not just a Jason Williams or something like that. That was really the stigma that I tried to shed here the last couple of years and I feel that I have done good job of starting that, but obviously, there are a lot of things that I need to work on and prove to people.
Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to now?
Jordan McCabe: I have six offers right now.
Gopher Hole: I think that you have Minnesota,Green Bay, DePaul, Milwaukee, Missouri and West Virginia, right?
Jordan McCabe: Yes.
Gopher Hole: What other schools are you hearing from the most besides those six?
Jordan McCabe: Currently, Big Ten-wise, Iowa, Purdue, Michigan State. Ohio State has been a strong interest. Gonzaga as well as Butler have been strong interest in coming to watch me this July. I got a letter from Arizona a little while back, just in terms of starting some interest there. Wisconsin has been a strong interest. I sat down with Young. It still remains whatever comes of that, We'll kind of see in the next year, year and a half.
Gopher Hole: Wisconsin is one of the home state schools. They have not offered you yet. I know that some of the others schools in the state (Green Bay and Milwaukee) have. What would it mean if maybe Wisconsin extended an offer?
Jordan McCabe: It would mean another offer at that point. I've never cast myself as a person who was just going to stay in-state and be that homestate player, but obviously, there are a lot of people around this state, around my community that have supported me all the way through and they lean more towards being a Badger, but I'm not too worried about figuring all that out just yet. If they did extend an offer, at that point, I would look more into it and see what would happen from it, but as of right now, nothing is coming of it and that type of communication, I haven't heard a whole lot from Coach Gard or the other coaches in a little bit, so I don't know exactly what is going on there. I keep my options open, just as I have since Day 1.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned spending time in Washington. How long were you there and how many years have you been in Wisconsin total?
Jordan McCabe: Since fifth through seventh grade. Two and half or three years, I was in Washington, just in a suburb of Seattle, about 15 miles away. I stayed there for about two, three years and I moved back and I have been here for now three years since then.
Gopher Hole: Where did you grow up before fifth grade? Was it the same area of Wisconsin?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. The same type area that I have been pretty much my whole life.
Gopher Hole: Your dad was a player too, right?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. He played in high school. He played in a D3 college around here, when he had me at a younger age. He stayed around close to family and me at that time, so that is where this basketball life comes from.
Gopher Hole: Where did he play?
Jordan McCabe: UW Lacrosse. He graduated from UW Oshkosh.
Gopher Hole: Any other family members play basketball?
Jordan McCabe: My little sister is actually playing right now. She is in seventh grade. She has been playing for quite awhile and has been focusing more on that. She loves it. Just being around it and she knows stuff and having the experiences that she has had alongside of me and my family, she has picked up on it quite a bit, but outside of that, not too much basketball in my family.
Gopher Hole: I know that it is still early, but do you like the recruiting process?
Jordan McCabe: I really do. I love it. I enjoy getting to meet and build relationships with coaching staffs and anywhere in terms of what I have been the last couple of years. Missouri was the first one to offer me and outside of that, I have been starting to travel more and get to see a couple of different campuses and learn what I like in a campus and not only that, but more importantly, the system and the style of play of the coaches. I generally enjoy the recruiting process.
Gopher Hole: What would say is your favorite part?
Jordan McCabe: My favorite part, it sounds cliché, but building relationships with coaches. Being able to really find out who you will really get along with and who is looking out for you the most and how interested they really are. That is the best part of the whole thing. That whole recruiting process really drives a fire and need that makes you want more and more from myself because of the hours that I have been putting in the gym. That is another thing.
Gopher Hole: What is your least favorite part?
Jordan McCabe: Sometimes, it can be travel at times, but like I said, I'm not too worried about distance as far as the school, I will be attending for college. If I had a time machine, it would make things easier, being able to get out to West Coast schools and East Coast schools, wherever it may be.
Gopher Hole: I'm sure that you appreciate all the interest, but does it get a little tiring after awhile with the calls and texting?
Jordan McCabe: Actually, calls and texting hasn't really started yet, because June 15th of this year, will be the first time that schools and universities can actually contact me first, but I'm sure that it will be a fun day. After that, it might wear on me a little bit, but I don't think that it will ever get tiring for me. Interest, letters, schools, calling whatever they need, is the same kind of rush that you get since the first one you got, so it is something that drives me. .
Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about when you might make a college decision?
Jordan McCabe: I've thought a little bit about it. Nothing set in stone, that is for very sure. Trying to get that this summer right now. I look at the list and maybe start thinking about making cuts by junior year, but I only plan on probably waiting it out and deciding at the usual time during the signing period.
Gopher Hole: What are going to be the main factors that will make you School A over School B or C?
Jordan McCabe: A couple of things that go into it. Obviously, the coaching staff and everybody there. The relationship that I build, how strong it gets and how interested they truly are in me and how they prioritize. Another big thing is have they had success with kids my stature and my style of play, because it is not very common? If I was a 6-4, 6-5 build, super athletic, that is a little bit different. That makes your options a lot wider and more broad across the country, because are a lot of those athletes out there, but in terms of what I want to do and where I want to go, my aspirations to play professionally. I definitely think that I need to be at a program that has success with kids like me, so that will play a big role and be a big factor in my decision.
Gopher Hole: You are listed at 5-11. Have you talked to doctors about how much you might grow up to?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. The prediction has been right around 6-foot, 6-1. Right around here, I'll be a small guard all the way through and I am not too worried about it.
Gopher Hole: You visited Minnesota last fall for a football game along with AAU teammate Adam Trapp, where I ran into you. Some of the same schools are recruiting both of you. Have you two talked about playing together at the same schools?
Jordan McCabe: The whole "package deal" comes up every now and then with me and Trapp, me and Tyler (Herro) and some other players on our team. We kind of toss the idea around a little bit. I don't think that any of us are really keen on making that set in stone, because we feel that might cap us a little bit when coaches hear that we are definitely packaging. When schools come up and they see us all play together whether or not that is an option down the road in a year or so. I think that will be more of a conversation to that fact.
Gopher Hole: Minnesota was your most recent offer. What are you hearing from the Gophers?
Jordan McCabe: I actually stopped in for an unofficial visit with them on Friday before the Battle of the Lakes. I got to walk around campus and all that and get a little more affiliated with everyone. I have been there before that, obviously, I visiting when we first meet, but what I have been hearing just from Coach Pitino was really the first time that I got to talk to him and really introduce myself to me was when they offered me. It was a big thing for me to get a feel for what he is like. I have watched a practice that he has run and I like his style of play and just the person that he is. I look a lot into that kind of stuff and I really appreciate everything that he has done for me and my family and now, I think that we are going to continue to build that relationship.
Gopher Hole: Have you had a chance to visit many schools recently?
Jordan McCabe: Not extremely recently. The one before that was Morgantown, West Virginia. I went out there. I've been there twice now and just obviously getting more affiliated with Coach Huggins and the rest of his staff. Coach Huggins, actually, flew in not too long ago for a visit with me, which I got to see his face and talk to him a little bit more and then I have stayed in contact pretty well with them.
Gopher Hole: Are you planning on making any visits after school is over?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. I have a couple of visits, locally. Nothing really definite yet. I'll talk to my AAU coordinator here and see who wants me in and all that stuff, so I don't have any real plans yet.
Gopher Hole: You are compared to several other players. Who do you look up to as a player?
Jordan McCabe: I look up to old videos on Nash, really. That is who I mainly pattern my game as and mold it around, just because of his size and his ability to play so long in the place that I want to play one day. I tried to look up to what he did and how he played. He is my role model.
Gopher Hole: What things are you working on to improve yourself as a player?
Jordan McCabe: I work on maintaining everything that some might say are strengths for me. I don't want to lose those. I want to continue to accelerate those, but when I am my own critic and I am looking at my game as a whole, just being as athletic as I possibly can be and increasing that as much as I can. On the defensive end, laterally, not only that, but sheer athleticism. I try to work on that when I am home.
Q&A: PG Jordan McCabe Talks Gophers Offer, Appearance on Ellen DeGeneres Show and More
By Chris Monter
http://www.gopherhole.com/news_article/show/658162?referrer_id=388419
Jordan McCabe, a 5-11 point guard from Kaukauna (WI) High, is one of the top ballhandlers and outside shooters in the Class of 2018. McCabe helped lead the Galloping Ghosts to the Fox Valley Association title and the Division 2 WIAA State Tournament championship this past season.
McCabe shot 44% from three-point range and averaged 24.8 points and 6.1 assists per game as they finished 26-2 under head coach Mike Schalow. McCabe scored in double figures in 27 of 28 games, including a season-high 42 versus Seymour 27 of 28 games.
He shined in the state tournament as he had scored 31 points to lead the Galloping Ghosts to a 72-45 victory over the LaCrosse Central and Wisconsin commit Kobe King in the WIAA Division 2 state semifinals and 24 points in the 91-62 win over top seed Waunakee in the WIAA Division 2 championship game.
McCabe averaged 14.2 ppg and 4.8 apg as a freshman and earned second-team all-league honors in the Fox Valley Association, while helping Kaukauna to a 20-4 record.
McCabe has already received offers from DePaul, Green Bay, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Missouri and West Virginia and is receiving interest from Xavier, Gonzaga, Ohio State, Stanford, Marquette and Texas.
Gopher Hole recently caught up with McCabe to learn the latest on his recent Minnesota offer and plans for this summer.
Gopher Hole: You won the state title this past season as the second seed. What was that experience like winning the state title in Wisconsin?
Jordan McCabe: It was a dream come true. It was something that I was dreaming about since I came up all the way through this system. I moved around a little bit, but it has always been an "Orange and Black" thing for me. We've never had a state title here. We had a runner-up in 2012. That was the closest that they ever came to getting accolades throughout the state and with my father going through the system as well, I just wanted to prove a point that Kaukauna could bring home the state title. To do that meant the world to me and the city.
Gopher Hole: Do you return many players for next year?
Jordan McCabe: We return quite a few. We lose two starters through graduation. Marcus Moreau (who averaged 13.9 points per game), who was extremely vital for us down the stretch in the playoffs and all the way through the season. We are just going to look to reload as we go here. We have a couple of soon-to-be seniors who are going to try to step up and fill those holes. That is the plan right now.
Gopher Hole: What are the expectations for the upcoming season? Obviously, you want to get back to that same level.
Jordan McCabe: Yes. We have one expectation and one goal and that is to repeat.
Gopher Hole: You appeared on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" a few years ago and did some stuff at the 2011 NBA All-Star Game. What was that experience like?
Jordan McCabe: I was fairly young at that time. I had just started getting exposure with some of things that I could do with a basketball, but that has just labeled me as just a dribbler. That was more just something when I was young. It was good experience for me to be around obviously, the most elite level athletes and go to the All-Star game. If anything, it was a really good experience for me and outside of that, it wasn't really basketball-related, I wouldn't say. It was more the entertainment piece that I still carry throughout my game, which kind of turns some heads every now and then, but ever since then, I have been focusing on being that true point guard and a winner.
Gopher Hole: I know that you have a lot of You Tube videos. How did the show find out about you?
Jordan McCabe: That was probably when I was in fifth grade, I think. We had moved out to Seattle and the show saw me, because they did a small news story on me. The local KING 5 news had done something on me and they got a glimpse of it and ran with it.
Gopher Hole: This might be way before your time, but Sean Miller, the head coach at Arizona, was on the Tonight Show when he was young. Had you ever seen that video?
Jordan McCabe: I had heard of him doing that stuff back when it was all happening for me and I heard about it a little bit. I had heard that he did the same type of thing.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, he is still around, so it shows that it can lead to something?
Jordan McCabe: Yes.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, you want to be a complete player. Do people ever think that is all you can do and has it ever been a negative at all or not really?
Jordan McCabe: Oh, yes. There is definitely a negative stigma that follows you around with stuff like that, whether it be jealousy or them just doubting the fact that I can be an all-around player. It spurred from that whole thing that happened when I was really young, but I think the past couple years my attention has turned to being the best basketball player all-around that I can possibly be and proving to people that I am more like a (Steve) Nash or (John) Stockton type guy and not just a Jason Williams or something like that. That was really the stigma that I tried to shed here the last couple of years and I feel that I have done good job of starting that, but obviously, there are a lot of things that I need to work on and prove to people.
Gopher Hole: How many offers are you up to now?
Jordan McCabe: I have six offers right now.
Gopher Hole: I think that you have Minnesota,Green Bay, DePaul, Milwaukee, Missouri and West Virginia, right?
Jordan McCabe: Yes.
Gopher Hole: What other schools are you hearing from the most besides those six?
Jordan McCabe: Currently, Big Ten-wise, Iowa, Purdue, Michigan State. Ohio State has been a strong interest. Gonzaga as well as Butler have been strong interest in coming to watch me this July. I got a letter from Arizona a little while back, just in terms of starting some interest there. Wisconsin has been a strong interest. I sat down with Young. It still remains whatever comes of that, We'll kind of see in the next year, year and a half.
Gopher Hole: Wisconsin is one of the home state schools. They have not offered you yet. I know that some of the others schools in the state (Green Bay and Milwaukee) have. What would it mean if maybe Wisconsin extended an offer?
Jordan McCabe: It would mean another offer at that point. I've never cast myself as a person who was just going to stay in-state and be that homestate player, but obviously, there are a lot of people around this state, around my community that have supported me all the way through and they lean more towards being a Badger, but I'm not too worried about figuring all that out just yet. If they did extend an offer, at that point, I would look more into it and see what would happen from it, but as of right now, nothing is coming of it and that type of communication, I haven't heard a whole lot from Coach Gard or the other coaches in a little bit, so I don't know exactly what is going on there. I keep my options open, just as I have since Day 1.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned spending time in Washington. How long were you there and how many years have you been in Wisconsin total?
Jordan McCabe: Since fifth through seventh grade. Two and half or three years, I was in Washington, just in a suburb of Seattle, about 15 miles away. I stayed there for about two, three years and I moved back and I have been here for now three years since then.
Gopher Hole: Where did you grow up before fifth grade? Was it the same area of Wisconsin?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. The same type area that I have been pretty much my whole life.
Gopher Hole: Your dad was a player too, right?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. He played in high school. He played in a D3 college around here, when he had me at a younger age. He stayed around close to family and me at that time, so that is where this basketball life comes from.
Gopher Hole: Where did he play?
Jordan McCabe: UW Lacrosse. He graduated from UW Oshkosh.
Gopher Hole: Any other family members play basketball?
Jordan McCabe: My little sister is actually playing right now. She is in seventh grade. She has been playing for quite awhile and has been focusing more on that. She loves it. Just being around it and she knows stuff and having the experiences that she has had alongside of me and my family, she has picked up on it quite a bit, but outside of that, not too much basketball in my family.
Gopher Hole: I know that it is still early, but do you like the recruiting process?
Jordan McCabe: I really do. I love it. I enjoy getting to meet and build relationships with coaching staffs and anywhere in terms of what I have been the last couple of years. Missouri was the first one to offer me and outside of that, I have been starting to travel more and get to see a couple of different campuses and learn what I like in a campus and not only that, but more importantly, the system and the style of play of the coaches. I generally enjoy the recruiting process.
Gopher Hole: What would say is your favorite part?
Jordan McCabe: My favorite part, it sounds cliché, but building relationships with coaches. Being able to really find out who you will really get along with and who is looking out for you the most and how interested they really are. That is the best part of the whole thing. That whole recruiting process really drives a fire and need that makes you want more and more from myself because of the hours that I have been putting in the gym. That is another thing.
Gopher Hole: What is your least favorite part?
Jordan McCabe: Sometimes, it can be travel at times, but like I said, I'm not too worried about distance as far as the school, I will be attending for college. If I had a time machine, it would make things easier, being able to get out to West Coast schools and East Coast schools, wherever it may be.
Gopher Hole: I'm sure that you appreciate all the interest, but does it get a little tiring after awhile with the calls and texting?
Jordan McCabe: Actually, calls and texting hasn't really started yet, because June 15th of this year, will be the first time that schools and universities can actually contact me first, but I'm sure that it will be a fun day. After that, it might wear on me a little bit, but I don't think that it will ever get tiring for me. Interest, letters, schools, calling whatever they need, is the same kind of rush that you get since the first one you got, so it is something that drives me. .
Gopher Hole: Have you even thought about when you might make a college decision?
Jordan McCabe: I've thought a little bit about it. Nothing set in stone, that is for very sure. Trying to get that this summer right now. I look at the list and maybe start thinking about making cuts by junior year, but I only plan on probably waiting it out and deciding at the usual time during the signing period.
Gopher Hole: What are going to be the main factors that will make you School A over School B or C?
Jordan McCabe: A couple of things that go into it. Obviously, the coaching staff and everybody there. The relationship that I build, how strong it gets and how interested they truly are in me and how they prioritize. Another big thing is have they had success with kids my stature and my style of play, because it is not very common? If I was a 6-4, 6-5 build, super athletic, that is a little bit different. That makes your options a lot wider and more broad across the country, because are a lot of those athletes out there, but in terms of what I want to do and where I want to go, my aspirations to play professionally. I definitely think that I need to be at a program that has success with kids like me, so that will play a big role and be a big factor in my decision.
Gopher Hole: You are listed at 5-11. Have you talked to doctors about how much you might grow up to?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. The prediction has been right around 6-foot, 6-1. Right around here, I'll be a small guard all the way through and I am not too worried about it.
Gopher Hole: You visited Minnesota last fall for a football game along with AAU teammate Adam Trapp, where I ran into you. Some of the same schools are recruiting both of you. Have you two talked about playing together at the same schools?
Jordan McCabe: The whole "package deal" comes up every now and then with me and Trapp, me and Tyler (Herro) and some other players on our team. We kind of toss the idea around a little bit. I don't think that any of us are really keen on making that set in stone, because we feel that might cap us a little bit when coaches hear that we are definitely packaging. When schools come up and they see us all play together whether or not that is an option down the road in a year or so. I think that will be more of a conversation to that fact.
Gopher Hole: Minnesota was your most recent offer. What are you hearing from the Gophers?
Jordan McCabe: I actually stopped in for an unofficial visit with them on Friday before the Battle of the Lakes. I got to walk around campus and all that and get a little more affiliated with everyone. I have been there before that, obviously, I visiting when we first meet, but what I have been hearing just from Coach Pitino was really the first time that I got to talk to him and really introduce myself to me was when they offered me. It was a big thing for me to get a feel for what he is like. I have watched a practice that he has run and I like his style of play and just the person that he is. I look a lot into that kind of stuff and I really appreciate everything that he has done for me and my family and now, I think that we are going to continue to build that relationship.
Gopher Hole: Have you had a chance to visit many schools recently?
Jordan McCabe: Not extremely recently. The one before that was Morgantown, West Virginia. I went out there. I've been there twice now and just obviously getting more affiliated with Coach Huggins and the rest of his staff. Coach Huggins, actually, flew in not too long ago for a visit with me, which I got to see his face and talk to him a little bit more and then I have stayed in contact pretty well with them.
Gopher Hole: Are you planning on making any visits after school is over?
Jordan McCabe: Yes. I have a couple of visits, locally. Nothing really definite yet. I'll talk to my AAU coordinator here and see who wants me in and all that stuff, so I don't have any real plans yet.
Gopher Hole: You are compared to several other players. Who do you look up to as a player?
Jordan McCabe: I look up to old videos on Nash, really. That is who I mainly pattern my game as and mold it around, just because of his size and his ability to play so long in the place that I want to play one day. I tried to look up to what he did and how he played. He is my role model.
Gopher Hole: What things are you working on to improve yourself as a player?
Jordan McCabe: I work on maintaining everything that some might say are strengths for me. I don't want to lose those. I want to continue to accelerate those, but when I am my own critic and I am looking at my game as a whole, just being as athletic as I possibly can be and increasing that as much as I can. On the defensive end, laterally, not only that, but sheer athleticism. I try to work on that when I am home.
