A Bit Off-Center

The clock is ticking like some irritating casino clatter and Jamal Sampson wants it to stop.

He starts at center for Santa Ana Mater Dei, among the nation’s top high school boys’ basketball teams, and he has a scholarship to California, but he still has plenty to prove as his high school career nears its end.

He knows there are critics who would label him an underachiever rather than one of the best post players on the West Coast.

Sure, there have been plenty of times the 6-foot-11, 240-pound senior has played spectacularly, dunking over almost every player who comes his way.

It’s just that too often he hasn’t had the opportunity. An assortment of injuries and illnesses has severely limited his playing time the last three seasons, considerably reducing his star wattage.

“I’d like people to see how good I really am instead of seeing me at like 50% or 60%,” Sampson said.

That has been the story of his high school career.

As a sophomore, Sampson sat out long stretches of games because of a stress fracture in a foot and a broken bone in his left hand. He broke a finger in the second quarter of Mater Dei’s state championship loss to Oakland Fremont and was limited to eight minutes in the second half.

As a junior, Sampson contracted hepatitis A from contaminated drinking water during a tournament in Florida and was sidelined for 13 games. He returned to action after losing 25 pounds and didn’t regain his playing weight or shape the rest of the season.

This season, Sampson badly sprained his right ankle in practice after the opener and had to sit out three games. He has since played hurt.

Last week, Sampson tested himself against high competition at the Las Vegas Holiday Prep Classic.

He helped Mater Dei, then 9-0 and ranked No. 4 in the nation by USA Today, reach the final against top-ranked Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy, then 12-0. But his eight points and 14 rebounds weren’t enough for the Monarchs, who lost, 66-55.

The only year he was injury-free, his freshman season at Westchester, Sampson barely played. The mellow 17-year-old can only laugh when he ponders his misfortune.

“It’s frustrating,” Sampson said. “I don’t really think I’ve been able to show what I can do.”

The good news for Sampson is the effects of the ankle injury aren’t expected to linger much longer, though he gingerly treaded up and down the court at the Holiday Prep Classic.

Said Mater Dei guard Cedric Bozeman: “When he’s healthy, he’s probably one of the best big men in the country. He can do so many things.”

Sampson was averaging 15 points and 9.8 rebounds a game and had blocked 21 shots in five games through Tuesday--solid numbers, but not the kind of eye-popping statistics expected of star high school players. His stats were even less impressive last season.

Sampson has shown his aptitude at the club level because he has been injury-free during his summers. He has also displayed flashes of greatness, scoring 17 points to go with 18 rebounds and eight blocked shots last season while still recovering from hepatitis in the Monarchs’ Southern Section Division I-A championship victory over Simi Valley.

To be fair, Sampson’s production this season has been hindered not only by his injuries, but also because he plays on a team that Coach Gary McKnight said might be his best.

With so many weapons, including the UCLA-bound Bozeman, Sampson isn’t always the Monarchs’ go-to guy.

Before he leaves for Cal, Sampson is intent on leading the Monarchs to their first state title since 1995 while showing that center Tyson Chandler of Compton Dominguez isn’t the only big man worth watching in Southern California.

“Jamal wants to have his day in the sun and maybe play in the McDonald’s game [for senior All-Americans] and some of those big things,” McKnight said. “I think he really wants to have that kind of year to show people that maybe he’s the best center on the West Coast.”