Isaac Fitting In Well At Florida State By Andy Sodergren Naples News February 1, 2017

Jonathan Isaac sometimes marvels how far he’s come in his career.

Four years ago, he was a 6‐foot‐3 guard coming off the bench for a rather average Barron Collier High School squad.

Now, he’s one of the key reasons No. 16 Florida State (18‐4) is a legitimate ACC contender with national title aspirations. The 6‐foot‐10 forward is among the Seminoles leaders in nearly every statistical category, leading FSU in rebounding (8.1 per game), blocked shots (1.6), and free‐throw percentage (.821). He’s also second in the team in scoring (13.1) and steals (1.2). An all‐around threat, Isaac is also fourth on the team in 3‐point percentage (.362).

Isaac and his Seminoles teammates are in Miami on Wednesday night, looking to snap a two‐game skid that’s seen the Seminoles fall out of the Top 10.

“I thank God every day for the position I’m in,” Isaac said. “Looking back, I couldn’t have imagined being in this situation in a million years. I’m just so thankful.”

Isaac said he and his teammates expected to be successful when the Seminoles began preseason drills in August.

“I had no doubt in my mind since I got here in the summer, being around these guys, I had no doubt in my mind we could be a special team,” he said. “The ACC is tough. Every game is a grind. Every game is a battle. In nonconference, you sometimes have those games you can run away with, but in the ACC, it often comes down to the wire and you need to finish the game making plays.”

Sophomore guard Terance Mann, who was on last year’s 20‐14 NIT FSU squad, says Isaac has made an immediate impact on the program.

“He’s brought a lot to the team, especially on the defensive end,” Mann said. “He blocks a shot. He gets a lot of defensive rebounds. As a teammate, he’s a great teammate. He brings a lot of leadership and energy that we need.”

Mann, one of Isaac’s best friends on the team, says he’s been impressed with his teammate off the court as well. “Jonathan is outgoing. He truly cares about every person he meets,” Mann said. “He’s not the type of dude where someone goes up to him and says ‘I’m so and so, I’ve been a fan of yours’ and he just shakes their hand and walk away. He truly cares about all his little fans. He introduces himself and asks everyone their name. He’s just a caring, loving dude.”

Isaac had a bit of a nomadic high school experience, playing at International School of Broward in Fort Lauderdale for two years before spending a year honing his skills at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, a private athletic training institute for youth, high school, collegiate and professional athletes. His time at IMG helped prepare him for the mental grind of college athletics.

“That’s probably been the easiest adjustment, actually,” Isaac said. “At IMG, you go to classes and then you go focus on your sport. They really get you ready for that challenge.”

As a player, Isaac says he’s much better this year than he was last year. For one thing, he feels he’s more mature as a player.

“I just worked on my mentality a lot,” Isaac said. “Obviously, I’m working on my game but as soon as I got to college, I knew I needed to work on my mindset and kind of get comfortable and play carefree without a lot on my mind. That’s probably been the biggest thing.”

Isaac says he still keeps in touch with his friends in Naples. During Christmas break, he got together and played hoops with past and present members of the Golden Gate High School basketball team. He’s good friends with former Golden Gate players Jeffercy Jean, Jeremiah Hopper and Arcaim Lallemand, who are all playing .

“I love all those guys, and they’re always wishing me luck and following what I’m doing (at FSU),” he said. He said his mom Jackie and little brother will be at Wednesday night’s game.

“I don’t like to talk too much about my accomplishments,” he said. “My mom loves to brag, though. She’ll tell everybody so I don’t have to.”

Isaac is already projected to be a lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft. He insists that’s the farthest thing from his mind right now.

“You can’t be one foot in, one foot out the door and help your team,” he said. “Right now, I’m focused on doing everything I can to help us win games.”