The town of Ashdown, Ark., is roughly 20 minutes to the Texas border and home to approximately 4,500 people. In a small town like Ashdown, social gatherings often revolve around sports, but star athletes are rare.
Jaden Hill hopes to fill that void.
Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 235 pounds, Hill caught the eyes of recruiters as a starting point guard, quarterback and pitcher at Ashdown High School. But his high school career ended early after he underwent surgery in May 2019 to remove a screw from a plate in his collarbone from a football injury.
Health issues followed Hill to Louisiana State, where injuries plagued his college career.