Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
STILL JIMMERING — We all have heroes.
And whether your hero left college basketball and the NBA for China years ago, hangs out above the rim imitating the Mailman, or is just a good guy trying to make the world a better place, it's OK to look up to them.
For various reasons, these three basketball players have been and are heroes to thousands of adoring fans across the world.
This is why.
As always, click the video above for more Great Clips of the Week.
He still knows how to Jimmer
Jimmer Fredette’s career since moving to the Chinese Basketball Association with the Shanghai Sharks has been hit-and-miss.
He’s come back to the states for a few stints, like playing with his self-organized Team Fredette in The Basketball Tournament over the summer.
News of his exploits in the Far East have occasionally reached stateside, as well.
But one thing is sure: he still knows how to Jimmer.
The former BYU star dropped 75 points in Shanghai’s 137-136 loss to Beikong over the weekend, including 40 points in the fourth quarter.
Fredette scored what looked like the game winner on an acrobatic layup with 7.2 seconds left, but Beikong's Pierre Jackson drained the winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.
"Absolutely sick about the loss tonight," Fredette later wrote on Twitter after shooting 7-of-10 from 3-point range. "But what a game it was! Proud of our guys for fighting back."
In his second season in China, Fredette is averaging 38.3 points per game to go along with a league-high 3.9 steals.
Meanwhile, back in the NBA …
Aaron Gordon may have already won dunk of the year — at least to any old-school Utah Jazz fans.
The Magic star went up and threw down a one-handed jam during a 103-96 loss to Detroit last week.
But wait, what’s his other hand doing?
Oh, he did not … Wait, yes he did.
Gordon made old-school Jazz fans remember a similar dunk by Karl "The Mailman" Malone, one that has been replicated over and over and over again.
But Gordon’s dunk was pretty remarkable, both for the athleticism, the way he thought about the pose, and the execution.
Well played, good man.
How can you not love Donovan?
It’s not a rim-rattling dunk, or 75 points. But how can anyone not love Jazz star Donovan Mitchell?
The latest reason doesn’t even have to do with basketball.
On a night overshadowed by Gordon Hayward’s return to Utah (and the Jazz’s 123-115 win over Boston), Mitchell took some postgame time to hang out and sign autographs with the family of fallen Maj. Brent Taylor, the former mayor of North Ogden who was killed during a tour of duty in Afghanistan last week.
Taylor, 39, died a week ago in an apparent insider attack, a death that rocked the community and sent shockwaves across the Beehive State.
But for one night, Taylor’s widow and his children got to experience a different emotion — excitement, joy and ecstasy over meeting the hometown idol.
"There were days when I was younger that I was going through stuff," Mitchell told reporters of the encounter. "When I met David Wright and talked to him, it was uplifting. It’s a moment that can get you (out) from whatever rock you’re under.
"I take that to heart."
