Boys basketball notebook: Jermaine King returns from dislocated ankle for Floyd

This was just a tennis match in gym class on a court at Floyd. Didn’t matter.

“I’m a competitor, so I was taking it serious,” Jermaine King Jr. said, flashing back to Nov. 11, 2022. “I went to go hit the ball and then I ended up on the ground.

“I looked down and my foot was looking back at me. It was in the wrong direction. Once I got in the ambulance, that’s when it really started to hurt.”

The basketball season was about to start without him. The standout starting point guard underwent surgery to repair his dislocated and fractured right ankle after rolling it on that attempt at a forehand passing shot, according to Colonials coach Will Slinkosky.

King returned as a reserve for the final five games, but he wasn’t quite his old self.

After some more hard offseason rehab work, the 5-9 junior still hasn’t been his old self this season — but in a good way.

“I think I’m a better version of myself, actually,” King said. “ . . . I think I’m more explosive now than I was.”

Slinkosky sees a difference, too.

“The crazy thing is he’s actually better than what he was two years ago as far as, like, mobility, quickness, strength,” Slinkosky said. “ . . . It doesn’t seem like he even had an injury last year.”

King, the self-described “floor general,” had made 24 three-pointers and was averaging 12.6 points and 3.7 assists for a talent-heavy team that took a 9-0 record into the weekend.

Highlights? There were the five threes and 24 points in the opening 10-point win against Mount Sinai and the six threes, 26 points and eight assists in a 10-point win at Longwood.

“Jermaine is an excellent, excellent three-point shooter,” Slinkosky said. “He is phenomenal at controlling the tempo of the game offensively. His speed and his quickness on the defensive end really poses a threat to any of the point guards on the opposing team.”

The D-II and D-III recruit has played with the varsity since eighth grade. He’s shooting for something special.

“We want to win it,” King said, with “it” meaning a Long Island championship. “(We’re) more than capable.”

Jets take flight

East Meadow has championship goals, but coach Tom Rottkamp didn’t know what to expect before the season.

With five juniors as starters, the Jets’ youth was a potential question mark. East Meadow lost its first two non-league games to Syosset and Port Washington, but Rottkamp “saw the potential” in game two.

The Jets were 7-3 and had won seven of their last eight through Friday’s play, including a 4-0 start in Nassau AA-III.

“It’s always a confidence builder to win four in a row when you feel like you’re winning it because your defense is solid,” Rottkamp said.

East Meadow won four straight December conference games by an average of 18.8 points. It went 2-1 at the Holy Trinity Christmas Tournament.

Five Jets had been leading scorers this season, including Brendan Cronin in five games and Will Casseus, who had 30 against Hempstead on Dec. 7.

“I think every coach in the county would agree, we’re all looking for chemistry,” Rottkamp said. “So (it’s) each player growing to maximize his potential by becoming a complete player. And when you get that, that’s when you know you have a special group.”