Jeter inherits love of game, talent from ex-Rebel father

It’s no coincidence that the 14-year-old power forward plays like basketball runs through his veins. Jeter, a 6-foot-8-inch rising sophomore at Bishop Gorman, is the son of former UNLV post player Chris Jeter.

“Basketball’s on his mind every single day,” Chris Jeter said of his son. “I tell him all the time, as long as he stays healthy and humble and hungry, he’s going to be a heck of a player.”

Because of his mix of size and skill, Chase Jeter has been one of the most intriguing prospects on the undercard of the adidas Super 64 tournament.

Chase Jeter’s Dream Vision 2016/2015 (Calif.) team was eliminated with a 77-60 first-round loss to TNBA Minnesota on Saturday morning at Cimarron-Memorial, but Chase continued his strong play with 11 points.

Chris Jeter was a reserve big man on the Rebels’ 1989-90 national championship team, and he’s kept a watchful eye on his son as he blossoms into a coveted recruit.

“He’s always helping me keep my head up,” Chase Jeter said Friday after a pool-play win at Legacy. “He’s always there for me. He’s at every single one of my games and practices there cheering for me.”

Chase Jeter is listed at 6-8, but Chris said his son might soon be pushing 6-10.

Chase Jeter played on Gorman’s junior varsity team last season but is expected to be in the varsity rotation next year as the Gaels try to replace four Division I signees.

Chase’s recruitment is heating up because he owns a 3.675 GPA to go along with his budding inside-outside game. Asked what his goals were for next year, he said simply: “As a team, obviously state. I’d like to keep my GPA up also.”

July is an evaluation month, and the NCAA limits direct contact between college coaches and players as young as Chase, but his recruitment is already in motion.

“I’ve only heard some (scholarship) offers,” he said. “Two I can remember are UCLA and Missouri, but I’ve heard I have six or seven offers on the table.”

Chris Jeter said coaches from UNLV, Pepperdine, Stanford and Harvard also are showing great interest in his son. And while Chris wants his son to eventually make his own college choice, he wouldn’t mind seeing Chase wear scarlet and gray.

“I’m hoping that he follows in my footsteps and attends UNLV, but in the end it’s really up to him,” Chris Jeter said.

Gorman graduated its starting frontcourt from last year’s third Class 4A state title team in four years. But a rising group of sophomores that includes Jeter, 6-11 center Stephen Zimmerman and high-flying wing Nick Blair gives the Gaels potential for another dynasty.

“It’s real exciting, just thinking about it now,” Chase Jeter said. “A lot of people in Las Vegas think that Gorman’s going to fall because we lost big names like Shabazz (Muhammad), Rosco (Allen) and Ben (Carter). But we can still do great things.”

NOTE — Title games in multiple divisions will be contested Sunday in the adidas Super 64, Las Vegas Fab 48 and Las Vegas Classic. CBS Sports Network (Cable 333) will televise the Super 64 17s championship bracket final from Rancho at 3 p.m.