Starting his freshman year, Jackson Mitchell (10) started making videos on his social media called Road to D1 (Division I), posting videos daily to track his progress, show his growth and keep himself accountable. A year later, Mitchell, now a basketball, cross country and track athlete, still posts frequently.

Many children dream of being professional athletes, but somewhere down the line, they give the dream up. Though Mitchell did not have a natural physical advantage, standing at 5 ’11 and 155 lb, he never used it as a reason to give up.

“I was in about the seventh grade — I didn’t make my middle school team in the seventh grade, and so I worked hard … came into high school my freshman year, and wasn’t that developed, I wasn’t polished, I wasn’t talented, I’m not physically gifted,” Mitchell said.

Mitchel dedicated a part of his account to tracking his work progress. A year later, Mitchell has found new accomplishments in all of his sports.

“We won the city championship for cross-country again this year, and I dropped my time down below 20 minutes in the 5K,” Mitchell said. “Originally, I wasn’t on varsity at the beginning of the season, but I ended up [there] just because of the fact that I worked hard every day and showed up when I didn’t need to show up, and even just support my teammates.”

In any field, it is common for people to be discreet about their dreams, out of fear that they will not reach them. Only about 4% of high school basketball players get to play at any college level, and only 1% make it to the Division I level. The odds of making it to the NBA (National Basketball League) are even lower. These odds can be staggering, especially for a young, undeveloped player. However, Mitchell maintains the confidence to spell his plans out clearly on his account: the road to Division I.

“It’s really just important to me because it’s something that I want to prove to myself.” Mitchell said. “I’m very outspoken about it because I really have belief in myself that if I work hard enough, it’ll pay off.”

Headed into the summer of his sophomore year, something shifted. Mitchell knew that to make it to varsity, he would have to work harder.

“The summer before my tenth grade year is when I really started to take a real serious leap in my training, because I knew if I worked hard enough, and worked harder than everyone else, that I could make a leap,” Mitchell said.

Despite making it to varsity, Mitchell still has room to grow. While his shooting has improved significantly, and is a skill he often practices and posts to his account, there are other skills he needs to develop going into the college recruitment process.

“I want to work on becoming a better defender, and learn how to handle the ball.” Mitchell said. “To make it to the next level, I have to learn how to handle the ball against pressure, and defend on and off the ball.”

For Mitchell, the roadmap for closing these gaps, just like his goals, is clear.

“[The most important thing is] just showing up every day. If there was one thing I could say, just showing up every day and working to my utmost, and even working when nobody else is working.”