When Jason Collier was a freshman, he didn’t make Camp Verde’s varsity basketball team at the beginning of the season. He was eventually called up to the varsity roster late in the year but saw little playing time. Things changed over the subsequent three years.
Because of his achievements on the court and what they meant to the success of the Cowboys’ boys basketball team, the Camp Verde Journal is naming Collier the Male Athlete of the Year for Camp Verde High School.
“I was super slow but had a good jump shot,” said Collier, now a senior, remembering his time as a freshman. “But I grew like crazy over the summer. That’s when I started going to the gym. I got a lot stronger in my junior and senior years. My coaches helped me out.”
The improvement was obvious. Collier had a strong junior season, averaging 23 points a game for a Cowboys team that went 26-4 and lost in the state play-in game.
As a senior, he took it to another level, averaging 26.1 points per game. That total was the sixth highest total in all of Arizona and easily the highest among 2A players, with the next highest averaging a full five points per game less. Collier also won the 2A Central Region Player of the Year and was selected All-Conference First Team for all of 2A.
Collier’s achievements helped Camp Verde reach an overall record of 24-6. The Cowboys went 12-1 in the 2A Conference play, won the 2A Central Region title with an 11-1 mark and reached the 2A state quarterfinals. Throughout the season, Camp Verde coach Dan Wall noted that this particular team had a unique connection with no drama and a group of kids that loved playing together. That was an opinion shared by Collier.
“We had a good time playing with each other,” Collier said. “It was a fun atmosphere the entire time. In practice, we’d compete hard. Nobody would hardly ever argue, and if we would, it would be about the right things, like basketball. It was a great group. All very selfless.
“I loved being with the team — being with coach Wall and coach [Jeff] Luera,” he added. “All the coaches, but those two, learning from them about basketball, life and working hard. That was my favorite thing. Working hard and forming a relationship with them and playing basketball. It made the whole experience great.”
Collier added that while his scoring numbers were up, his shooting percentages fell short of his preseason goals of shooting 50% on field goals, 40% on three-point shots and 90% on free throws. Looking back, though, he saw that as a good thing, as it helped keep his mental game strong when the shots weren’t falling at the desired rates.
As far as specific games, Collier recalled wins over Parker and Scottsdale Prep as a junior. As a senior, he fondly remembered a win in the Round Valley Tournament over Alchesay, a team that ended the regular season seeded No. 1 in the 2A Conference and reached the state semifinals. In addition to the win, Collier noted that the Round Valley Tournament was a great experience for himself and his teammates.
“Being with the team during Round Valley and staying with everyone in a nice house,” Collier recalled. “It was a great memory.”
While Collier’s time playing basketball for the Cowboys is complete, he has more basketball in his future. Collier is presently weighing the options of a handful of schools to play at and hopes to decide in a matter of weeks.
Collier gave special thanks to coach Reyes Herrera for helping make colleges more aware of him by sending letters and tapes, even noting that “he’s the reason I’m going to be playing college basketball.”
Additionally, Collier credited coaches Wall, Luera and Austin Hudson, as well as his mother, Susan Collier, his grandparents, friends and teammates — especially Markell Chatlin — for helping him get as far as he has.
“They’ve been with me through the whole journey and helped me,” Collier said. “They were there for me and helped me get better.”
