Jordan Dill (holding the basketball), standing beside previous record holder, Jonathan Haynes, his parents, Juwan and Judith Dill, and his brother who plays alongside him, Isaiah Dill. (Photo by Pryce Jamison)
With 24.7 seconds left in the second quarter, the crowd erupted into excitement as referees blew their whistles and paused the game for a historic moment at Germantown Friends School. The champion of that moment was junior guard Jordan Dill, draining a shot from beyond the three-point line to become the all-time scoring leader in Germantown Friends history.
“It feels unreal; I feel like I’m in a dream right now,” Dill, who put his scoring total at 2,023 with that shot, expressed about the moment.
“The beginning of the season was hard for me, and [my team] stuck by my side and kept encouraging me to keep going [and] my family. Where I’m at, it really took a lot of people to help me get here.”
Prior to this game, which was held on Wednesday, January 22, against The Shipley School, Dill was 11 points away from breaking the record that former GFS and Villanova standout Jonathan Haynes set.
With Haynes’ record of 2,022 points cemented for 35 years, the anticipation coming into the night was at an all-time high for the team, the school, Dill’s family, and the GFS basketball program as a whole.
“It’s a great feeling; Jordan seems like a great kid. I’m happy to be home, happy to see him being successful and happy for him and his family,” Haynes said. “I wish him continuous success, and in any way I can help him, I told him he can give me a call.”
As the crowd’s energy was high since the opening tip-off, the GFS Tigers got off to a strong 18-6 start in the first quarter to set the tone. The team captured a 71-59 win over Shipley, as Dill finished with a 24-point performance to help snap a six-game losing streak for the GFS Tigers.
During halftime, Dill could be seen on the court holding a basketball labeled with the details of the memorable game while standing beside his family and Haynes. They all showed much emotion, soaking in the moment.
“He definitely loves it, and that’s the key to being a great player. You have to actually love it,” said his father, Juwan Dill. “Because when it ain’t fun, and it gets hard, you got to keep pushing through, and he does that. And without basketball, he’s a great person.”
“I don’t want anyone thinking it came easy to him. He puts in the work seven days a week… seven days a week he’s doing something to better his craft,” said his mother, Judith Dill. “And this has been an amazing year for him academically; he’s the true definition of a student-athlete.
He’s been a difference-maker on the court for GFS since playing varsity in his 8th-grade year. Dill, alongside current Los Angeles Laker and former Westtown Prep player Cam Reddish, are the only boys’ basketball players to ever earn honorable mention in the Friends League as eighth graders.
Even though he’s been a scoring threat since then, the 6-1 guard emphasized the humility and work ethic that has steadily grown within him during his role as a leader.
“The main thing is that the little things are the most important things: diving on the floor, getting loose balls, cutting with a purpose, showing up to practice every day,” said Dill. “Don’t take nothing for granted because the game could be gone tomorrow.”
From his eighth grade to sophomore year, he averaged 21.3 points per game on 44% shooting in 78 games.
“Going into ninth grade, I really just wanted to win. Everybody would say, “He can score and do this, but can he win?” Dill said. “I just wanted to win with my guys; I wasn’t really worried about scoring.”
Head coach of the team, Jamil Pines, who has watched Dill grow over the years, understands his character and approach to the game that spectators may not always see from the outside looking in.
“His maturity has increased year after year as he has been asked to do more and more,” said Pines. “He has that mindset of ‘its team over me,’ and whatever he has to do for the team to win, he’ll do it, and he’s been asked to do so much, but all he cares about is winning.”
Getting Dill ready to play at the next level as an all-around player has been another area of focus for Pines. “As good as a scorer he is, he’s an exceptional passer and facilitator and is somebody who’s going to make plays for everybody,” he said.
“It’s something you saw tonight. Even though he was trying to break the all-time record, [Dill is] still out there collapsing the defense when getting doubled teamed and is making all the right basketball plays.”
Continue to follow Dill’s scoring surge as the Tigers will host George School in a 5:30 pm matchup on Tuesday, January 28.