In January, Obi became the ninth Choate basketball player to score 1,000 points in his or her career. Photo by Amitra Hoq/The Choate News
Jordan Obi ’20, a four-year member and current captain of Girls’ Varsity Basketball, joined the acclaimed group of student-athletes who have reached the 1,000 point milestone. Obi accomplished this feat at The Ethel Walker School on January 18, when Choate walked away with a 58-47 win.
“I feel like it’s an incredible accomplishment, and I think it’s a big deal I get to be a part of a group of people that have also reached this goal,” Obi said.
Obi didn’t know she had hit 1,000 points until after the game. Head Coach Mr. Donta Johnson told her at a practice, a few days after the game against Ethel Walker. “No one really knew it would happen at Ethel Walker,” Obi said. “I was never thinking about that, but at the beginning of the season Aliya told me I was 220 points away from 1,000, but I didn’t know if I could reach it or not.” (Until this season, Ms. Aliya Cox was the team’s head coach.)
Usually, most athletes know before they’re going into the game, but Obi says not knowing allowed her to focus more on playing. “It was one of my several team goals heading into the year, which included beating Loomis and winning the Founders League,” Obi added. She was especially driven to the goal after witnessing two of her former teammates, Sam Gallo ’19 and Jocelyn Polansky ’19, reach 1,000 points last year.
In 1976, after a Choate player first reached the 1,000-point mark, Choate decided to put the names of these players on a banner in the gym. Assistant Coach Mr. James Davidson, who has been with the team for more than 35 years, coached the first-ever athlete that reached 1,000 points: Jeanne Hennessy ’76.
“I’ve seen everyone on the list,” Mr. Davidson said. “The first was Jeanne Hennessey, who had a lot more points but played on less talented teams with fewer games — it was a much different day and age.”
There were no three-point shots when Davidson started coaching, and it seems the overall quality of the teams has improved, making it harder in recent years to reach 1,000 points.
All of the girls who reached the historic landmark of 1,000 points were four-year players, and Davidson emphasized that the historical significance of joining others on the list is impressive since less than ten Choate players have ever done it. Obi is also among the top five performers for points in a single game, which Obi marked at 33.
Obi has played basketball competitively since third grade but became serious about the sport in the fifth. Obi mentioned that she moved to Japan for sixth and seventh grade, where she vastly improved her game. She then played for a high-level Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball team in eighth grade before coming to Choate.
Obi is modest but has played a huge role in Choate teams for all four years. She says when she was a freshman, more players on the team had aspirations for playing in college and the team was slightly stronger. She said, “Watching captains from my freshman year compared to being a senior now and not having as many people who want to play in college — it’s different. It’s being a leader in context, and it’s a different approach to being a leader.”
Mr. Davidson has known Obi for five years. They met when Obi was playing intramural basketball during Choate Summer Programs the summer between Obi’s seventh and eighth-grade years. Davidson said, “She’s very private and thoughtful, and she has gradually become more expressive. I don’t think it’s easy for her to be a team captain, as she’s not ‘ra-ra’ and in the face of others.”
Mr. Davidson said she leads others by example and by what’s she’s able to do. After coaching her for four years, Mr. Davidson can confidently say her biggest improvement is how she is much more able to take advantage of her physical tools, like her height and strength, and she’s now much more able to utilize her skill set and not just settle for outside shots. She now attacks the basketball hoop and has improved her passing. He said she is better able to find others on the floor, and she’s also improved her overall fitness and strength.
Obi’s teammates note that she is a dedicated, skilled player who puts in a lot of practice in the off-season. Norah Salujah ’23, a new addition to the team this year, added that Obi is a role model for her and other young players and that she is very excited for her.
Betsy Overstrum ’20, the team’s other co-captain, said, “Jordan has been an amazing co-captain, and it’s so exciting to see her achieve this milestone. I’m really glad I’m able to support her and celebrate her incredible accomplishments.”
After Obi graduates and leaves Choate this spring, she will continue playing basketball for the next four years at the University of Pennsylvania.
