Vaughn hopes to keep his Spurs on
Muir grad happy with NBA champs
By Sean Moses Staff Writer
For the last few years, July 1 has been more than just another day on the calendar for Jacque Vaughn.
As the first day NBA teams can negotiate with free agents, it's a day he knows quite well. After all, he's been an unrestricted free agent for five of the past six off-seasons.
It's been a far cry for Vaughn, an all-world point guard during his days at Muir High School in the early '90s, and later a highly touted player and Sports Illustrated cover boy for college powerhouse Kansas and first-round draft pick by the Utah Jazz.
But coming off his first world championship as a member of the San Antonio Spurs, Vaughn is undaunted and hopeful that his first year with the Spurs won't be his last.
"I definitely love this organization," Vaughn said from his San Antonio home. "I wish every guy could get a chance to play here. I feel like my talents are appreciated here. The character guys that are in the locker room, that's why we won it this year.
"I love this team and organization and I hope the feelings are mutual. My whole goal is to win. This is a franchise where I want to be, where I can compete for a championship."
Considering he was playing in the 1998 Finals during his rookie
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season, it's hard to believe it took so long for him to get back.
The nine-year pro's career began so promisingly, being taken as the 28th pick in the 1997 draft by the Jazz as the heir apparent to Hall of Fame guard John Stockton.
It was exactly what was supposed to happen for Vaughn, who was a star for the Mustangs and the 1994 Star-News boys basketball Player of the Year.
"We noticed his ability in the process while I was recruiting him," said North Carolina coach Roy Williams, the former Kansas coach who was a mentor to Vaughn throughout his collegiate career. "There was the air about him. And he's so sincere about everything. It started when I was recruiting him and I think with each year our relationship got stronger."
From Muir, Vaughn moved on to play four years for the Jayhawks, where he was named a second-team AP All-American. He finished his Kansas career as the all-time leader in assists (804), was third in career starts (125) and eighth in total minutes played (3,807).
He was named Big Eight (now Big 12) Conference Newcomer of the Year following his freshman year and Conference Player of the Year after his 1996 campaign. At the beginning of that season, he'd been featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated's College Basketball Preview edition as the face of Kansas, which was the top-ranked team in the nation for most of the 1995-96 season.
In 1997, he was chosen the GTE Academic All-American of the Year with a 3.72 cumulative GPA and was named to GTE's first team All-Academic team two different times.
"I think he's one of the most amazing youngsters I've coached, and it's a very small class," Williams said. "I could make a list of all the best qualities and Jacque Vaughn would be there.
"Any parent would want their daughter to date Jacque Vaughn. He's the best athlete I've ever coached. When someone mentions Jacque, it still hurts me cause I still feel like I didn't help him get to the Final Four. It leaves a hole in my career, that I was not able to get that (1997) team to the Final Four ... Every time someone mentions that team, I feel like I failed Jacque Vaughn and nobody should fail Jacque Vaughn."
It was set up so perfectly. But playing behind a legend like Stockton wasn't all it was cracked up to be for Vaughn who, for the first time in his life, had to play a secondary role to another player. It taught him how to be a role player, something in which he now thrives.
"I think that was part of the process," said Vaughn, 32. "At the beginning of your career, you want to make a name for yourself, you want to make people respect you. Winning in an organization takes roles.
"I played behind John Stockton. He would come out and I'd be playing well and they'd bring him back in and I'd wonder why. I'd see him do things and I wanted to do them myself. I wanted the OK to do the wraparound pass, too."
Vaughn played as a reserve for Utah for four seasons, and with Stockton still around and Vaughn's rookie contract expired, he became a free agent.
So began his career as an NBA nomad.
From the Jazz, he signed a one-year contract with the Atlanta Hawks for the 2001-02 season, in which he started 16 games after not having started any in Utah. He averaged just over 22 minutes per game and a career-high 4.3 assists per game.
The next season, he was in Orlando, where he started 48 games for the Magic but was not re-signed. In 2003, he signed again with the Hawks, this time in a reserve role.
His next team was the New Jersey Nets, with whom he played for consecutive seasons from 2004-2006, but after having drafted Marcus Williams, the Nets decided not to re-sign Vaughn.
So in 2006, he signed with the Spurs, who needed a backup veteran point guard behind all-star Tony Parker.
As a reserve for San Antonio, Vaughn played just under 12 minutes per game and started four, but the crowning achievement came weeks ago in winning his first title.
"It's an amazing feeling," he said. "I think as a professional athlete you want to be the best in your craft. And to go through an NBA season as the best is a great feeling."
But Vaughn is defined by much more than his basketball prowess. An avid fan of reading and writing poetry, the married father of two puts a high priority on family and education.
His parents wouldn't have it any other way.
"I think my parents, my upbringing, my brothers, have given me that kind of direction in life," he said. "I've always been taught to treat people in a respectful way. I'm mindful of other peoples' feelings and because of that a lot of good has come my way."
Like his wife of five years, Laura, and his two children, 16-month-old Jeremiah and Jalen, who turns 3 in September. They are who Jacque comes home to and it keeps him from going out at night and/or getting caught up in questionable behavior while on the road.
"I was very blessed to have met her in college," he said of his wife. "She's been on this journey with me and she'll be with me as I'm tailing away from my career."
Relying on his family has kept Vaughn focused on being a professional, even with all the hardships.
Through it all, Vaughn has no regrets and is simply thankful for the profession that's given him so much.
"I really am thankful for where I'm at and all that I've been able to do," he said. "I've been to other countries, I have a wife, two beautiful kids. I'm able to monetarily put my kids in a good situation in life.
"If I look back, I'd be a little greedy. A lot of people come up to me and ask me how I'm doing and it wouldn't be right if I complained, it really wouldn't be."
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