A Fall River basketball star is headed to college out west, with the NBA in his sights

FALL RIVER — Joson Sanon may soon be out shopping for a new wardrobe. One of the top prep school basketball players on the planet, the city resident has decided to take his extraordinary hoops talents from northern New England to the Arizona desert.

Sanon on Thursday verbally committed to attend the University of Arizona in Tucson on a basketball scholarship. The 6-foot-5 wing recently finished his third and final basketball season for Vermont Academy in Saxtons River, Vermont.

The former B.M.C. Durfee High School player is a junior at Vermont Academy, but said he will be graduating this summer and is re-classifying to 2024, a year being billed as exceptionally strong for D1 men's basketball prospects.

Sanon said he made his decision on Wednesday. He announced on Thursday. With the decision made, he said life is back to relative calm.

“It was a little hype for a little bit,” he said.

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Joson Sanon's past in Fall River and his future in Arizona

He said he chose Arizona because of its upbeat tempo and “how it fits my game.”

On X, formerly known as Twitter, Sanon posted a short video, narrated by Durfee graduate Chris Herren, announcing his choice of Arizona. Herren (Durfee 1994) was Greater Fall River's last elite college recruit. Sanon, whose family came to Fall River from Haiti in 1990s, said that right up to his announcement, “other schools were still trying to fight to get me.”

Coached by Tommy Lloyd, Arizona is the No. 2 seed in the West in the NCAA tournament and has advanced to the Sweet 16 after a 78-68 win against No. 7 seed Dayton on Saturday.

Like Herren, Sanon said he loves Fall River, is proud to hail from the Spindle City. He lives in the Pulaski Park neighborhood. He said Durfee ballers Davontae Stewart and Jeyden Espinal are among his best buddies. “I keep my circle small,” he said.

He said Fall River is unique with a lot of unique people. Though it's a big city, Sanon said, it feels small, and everybody seems to know everybody else.

Headed for the NBA

Sanon's agent, Derek Malloy of LIFT Sports Management, said he is working on a Sanon collaborative with Fall River's Vanson Leathers. Vanson's jackets have become super popular with sports and hip-hop stars. Lebron James wore a Vanson jacket to work the night he scored his 40,000th career point. Sanon wears a Vanson jacket, on the Battleship Massachusetts, in his announcement video.

With the NIL (name, image, likeness) rules, many top college athletes are now making significant money through their own brands.

Sanon played his freshman year at Durfee High before transferring to Vermont Academy, which has sent players to top NCAA D1 schools, including Louisville, Miami, Marquette, Butler, Missouri and Xavier. Bruce Brown, VA Class of 2016, plays for the NBA champion Denver Nuggets.

By re-classifying to 2024, Sanon will become eligible to enroll in college immediately and it gives him the option to enter the 2025 NBA draft. In a mock draft released by ESPN last month, Sanon was projected as the 2025 NBA draft's No. 28 prospect.

The prospect of being a high NBA draft choice in a little more than a year is pretty heady stuff for a guy who turned 18 last December. But make no mistake about it, the NBA has been on Sanon's radar for quite a while. “Ever since I had a growth spurt in eighth grade, I said, yeah, I'm going to make this my goal,” he said.

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Sanon's strengths, and tips for younger players

n.rivals.com listed 21 school offers Sanon received last fall. Sanon said his only visit was to Kentucky.

The 180-pound, high-flying Sanon said he considers himself physically strong enough for college, and the next step is thinking the game through even better and improving on what he already does. The things he currently does are amazing, as any Jason Sanon online video search will prove. His range is from 3-point land to the rim. Drives, pull-ups, slashes and most recently a dangerous touch from beyond the arc.

Sanon had previously reduced his list of next-step choices down to Arizona, Boston College, Kentucky, UConn, Kansas and the Overtime Elite program in Florida.

Arizona, according to ESPN.com, is likely to to lose its top four scorers in All-Conference standouts Pelle Larsson, Keshad Johnson and Oumar Ballo to graduation, as well as lose Pac-12 Player of the Year Caleb Love.

Vermont Academy won the NEPSAC AAA championship earlier this month.

Known for his passion to improve, Sanon said Vermont Academy was the perfect place for him. “It's in an open area. There's nothing to do,” he said. “Nothing else to do but be in the gym.”

While offense dazzles, Sanon is proud to be known as a lock-down, a super defender. “If you play defense, it translates into offense,” he said.

What advice would Fall River's newest basketball supertsar give to a youngster seeking to improve? “Just do simple drills,” he said. “No crazy stuff. Simple drills. That's what I did when I was young. And just playing. Always play hard.”

With his prep basketball days complete, Sanon is now keeping sharp, and getting even sharper, with the prestigious Boston Amateur Athletic Club, for whom he had previously played.

Local fans will have a chance to finally see Sanon in action at the Herren Shootout, April 5 and 6, at Kuss Middle School. Sanon was slated to play in the Shootout a year ago but did not attend. “This time, I'll actually be there,” he said.

No secret in the world of big-time prep basketball, Sanon, this past season especially, lived under the bright lights. He often was the guy people came to see. The attraction. The guy opponents dreamed of shutting down.

“He's handled it so far,” said his Vermont Academy coach, John Zall. “People expect him to perform. Most of the time, he backs it up.”

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Fall River high school basketball star Joson Sanon signs with Arizona