Clippers sign guard who averaged 2 PPG in high school before inspiring rise

Billy Heyen

Clippers sign guard who averaged 2 PPG in high school before inspiring rise image

The Los Angeles Clippers just signed a guard to a training camp contract who averaged only two points per game in high school.

Seriously.

How's that possible? That's the story of Jason Preston, who Spotrac's Keith Smith reported will join the Clippers for camp.

Preston is from Orlando, Florida, and in two years of high school ball at Boone High School, he was 6-feet tall, 140 pounds and scored a couple points a night.

He planned to go to UCF as a journalism student.

But then he played well enough in his final AAU summer to earn a spot at Believe Prep Academy in Tennessee. He grew four inches and averaged 12 points, nine assists and seven rebounds per game. 

Preston's highlights on social media got the attention of Ohio and Longwood, and he eventually committed to Ohio University.

He made the MAC All-Freshman Team, then was second-team and first-team in the conference the following two seasons. He was also the conference tournament MVP in his final season on campus as he gained national recognition.

The Clippers traded for him during the 2021 NBA Draft as the No. 33 overall pick. 

Preston has starred in the G League, leading it in assists in 2023-24, but he has played just 21 NBA games between the Clippers and Jazz.

The Clippers are a veteran-laden team with not a lot of opportunity for minutes, but worst case, Preston learns some lessons from all those long-tenured stars. And if he keeps proving the doubters wrong, maybe he can stick around.

MORE: Michigan State basketball offers scholarship to son of a franchise legend

Billy Heyen

Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who has written about many sports and fantasy sports for The Sporting News. Sports reporting work has also appeared in a number of newspapers, including the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle