She’s got a million-dollar smile and is known for her playful antics, but don’t let that description alone fool you. This girl has game. Meet Ajmanni Jefferson, an eighth grade sensation in every sense. The daughter of Antonious and Faith Jefferson, the 5’9” hoops standout was a big reason why her Long County Middle School team was 12-1 (3-1) heading into Christmas break.
“Ajmanni can play anywhere, but we mostly use her as a post player,” says LCMS head coach Parker Gordon. “We just try to put her where she is going to be most successful and let her do her thing. If the other team is in a 3-2 zone, we’ll place her on the block. If they are in a 2-3, we’ll put her at the top of the free throw line and let her go after the ball. If they are in man to man, we’ll let her bring the ball up and play the perimeter.”
December introduced the latter scenario in a key match-up against conference leader Pierce County. With Pierce in a man defense, Long looked to Jefferson to bring the ball up. She promptly drove to the basket for the crucial points that keyed an overtime victory.
“I knew I wasn’t hitting my free throws in that game, so I had to focus on the basket and take it in,” Jefferson recalls. “I figured they would foul me, which they did, but the referee didn’t call it. So I took the shot.”
Heading into the new year, Jefferson was averaging better than 17 points per game. In 12 of her team’s 13 games to that point, she had scored double-digit figures while twice reaching a high mark of 24 points. She also averaged roughly 9 rebounds per game over the first half of the season.
Basketball has been a major part of Jefferson’s life since she was old enough to dribble. She was born in Fort Polk, Louisiana, where her dad served in the military. He transferred to Fort Stewart when she was just two years old, and the family has since put down roots here. Through the years, Jefferson acquired much of her hoops know-how from her dad, who served as a recreation league coach, as well as her brother and only sibling, Omari, a former Liberty County High standout.
“Omari has always been there for me, and everything I know about basketball, I know from him,” she says. “I go to the gym every weekend and work out with him. He wants to go overseas to play and he says if I push myself, I can do the same thing. My dad is always there, too. He comes to the majority of my games; if he can take off work, he’ll be there. If I have a bad game, my dad helps me out with what I did wrong; you know, just the little simple things.”
Scholastic achievements include maintaining a 4.0 grade point average. Jefferson has never made a “B” on a report card. Her extracurricular activities also include Beta Club and Christians on Campus. Her favorite subject is science, which she hopes will take her into the medical field.
“I want to be a radiologist because when I broke my wrist a few years back, I looked into it and it seemed like a cool job to do,” she says. “ I like science because it involves everything in your life. Walking is science. Talking is science. We just did a project in science class where we had to make a boat float. It had to carry 50 pennies and it could only be made of metal. In my group, all of our boats floated for at least 10 seconds, which is what they were supposed to do.”
Jefferson and her family attend Full Gospel Church of God and Christ in Hinesville. She is active there with the church youth group and choir. She also participates in praise dancing and is a member of the mime team. In her free time, she enjoys socializing with church friends as well as her godsister, Labrea.
“I met Labrea when I was like 5 or 6 and we’ve been best friends since then. She is at the high school. We play softball together and basketball together. We go to the mall, the trampoline park; anything we do, we do together.”
Always active, Jefferson also competes in AAU basketball. She lends her talents to softball as a first baseman in the fall. She also suits up for travel ball as a catcher/third baseman. In the spring, she throws the shotput and discus for the track team.
“The thing I like most about softball is getting the cheers when you go up to hit,” Jefferson says. “The potential of hitting a grand slam is always great, too. With track, it’s not so much of you having to do something the whole time. You get breaks. Then when you go to state, you get to meet new people.”
Nonetheless, to appreciate Jefferson’s passion is to see her at work on the hardwood.
“Mostly I like playing the one or the two (guard),” she says. “The one runs the offense, says what goes down, and finds the open teammate. The two is there to help the one. My favorite NBA player to watch is Derrick Rose. He’s the one and runs the offense, but the fact that he can take it to the hole and get his teammates open – I like that about him.”
Meanwhile, Jefferson’s game and personality remain constants on everyone else’s lists of likes.
“Ajmanni is just a big ball of joy,” says Gordon. “She is hilarious, and is always talking. But she is by far the best eighth grade leader I’ve been around. She always makes sure her teammates are doing what they should be doing. She is just that great player that can lead your team.”
Rising Star /Southeast/January 2017
Ajmanni Jefferson
Long County Middle School
Ludowici, Georgia
By John DuPont
Photography by Charles Smith
Love and Basketball
