This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Not exactly a news flash, but BYU's Jimmer Fredette said on the nationally syndicated Jim Rome Show (radio) today that he made the right decision in returning to BYU for his senior season instead of leaving his name in the NBA draft. "I really don't know. I don't where I would have been, or if I even would have been picked up by a team, or drafted, or where I would be right now," Fredette told Rome when he was asked about the NBA. "I have no idea, but what I do know is that this has been the best year of my life. I have had a great time being able to play with my teammates, having a great senior year. "We have gotten so much national exposure. I don't know if I would have gotten this much exposure if I was playing in the NBA right now. I don't know what situation I would be in. So I think it was a great decision on my part, and it was everything that I fully expected in my decision to come back." Fredette was on the show this morning for about eight minutes. After the conversation, Rome said: "Really well done. He showed up in a big way. My thanks to him and BYU. Nicely done."
The whole segment can be found here, courtesy of KFAN radio in SLC.
On losing at The Pit and where it ranks among the "hostile barns' the Cougars have played in: "The Pit is one of my favorite places to play, just because of how passionate the fans are. They always sell out the place and they always know it is going to be a big game when we come into the building and play against them, so it is up there at the top. I really love playing there."On whether it was a trap game: "Maybe a little bit. I would like to think not, because we knew it was going to be a tough game. They are a very talented team. ... But I guess you could call it a little bit of a trap game." On dropping 43 points on SDSU and whether he's been in a zone like that before: "I have been in zones like that, but like you said, it was on a bigger stage. Everybody was watching it. It was great for our conference and great for both teams' programs to be able to be on a national stage like that. Even though it wasn't on a big network like ESPN or anything where people could watch it, they were still following it, following the score and seeing what team was doing well and what players were doing well." On whether he can decide to turn it on at certain times, especially when the stakes are high: "At the beginning of the game, you can say you want to be as aggressive as you possibly can be. But you really don't know how they are going to defend you." On how he felt when Kevin Durant tweeted that he was the greatest scorer in the world: "It makes you feel cool. It makes you feel good, like all that hard work you have put in is finally paying off, that people are seeing what you do on the basketball floor. So it is cool to have people tweet about you like that. Obviously I still think Kevin Durant is the best scorer in the world — let's get that straight, first off — but I appreciate the comment and all the comments that I got. But I think the big thing is to not let it get to your head or stay satisfied. We have a lot of things we still want to accomplish here as a basketball team, and for myself I have a lot I want to accomplish." "So it is something that is great and I will look back on and say, 'that was a cool moment in my life.' But hopefully I will have a lot more of those to come." On being compared to a lot of other white prospects who have gone from college to the NBA: "I have shown at this level that I can play with the best of them, and hopefully I can continue to exceed expectations. That is what I plan to do, that is what I have been trying to do my whole career and hopefully it will be no different going to the NBA. Hopefully I will get my shot, and be able to play well ... I know it is out there, and that's just the way it is." On his brother T.J.'s rap career: "He's very, very talented, especially lyrics-wise. He's very, very good. He's got a good mind for that. Hopefully, he will be able to be more successful than I am."