By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University men's basketball player Jonathan Watts (Grad., W, San Diego, CA/Rancho Bernardo HS) has written the first draft of a book, recorded podcasts with highly-successful people, and served as the head coach of a boys' basketball summer travel team -- all since the beginning of 2022. In addition, Watts has battled injuries throughout his career with the Bearcats, spending much of his time recovering from each setback. He returned after each injury, but another injury soon sidelined his efforts.
He also made it through the difficult time faced by all Bearcats during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Watts battled through each of those challenges, choosing not to give up, but instead finding the motivation and determination to return to playing basketball and facing new opportunities off the court. The result has led him to focus on Chasing Greatness, which is the name of both the book he's writing and the podcasts he's recorded.
Recovering from Injuries
Watts arrived at Willamette for the fall semester in 2018, ready to start college and looking forward to preseason practices for basketball. He was ready to go when the regular season began, but he suffered an injury in the eighth game.
"I took a charge (drew a foul) against Corban University and fell on my wrists. Initially, it felt like I broke one. I could barely move it but taped it up and finished the game. The following day, I went to the doctor's office to get an MRI which showed that there was no break, and I was good to play and finish the year," Watts explained. He dealt with the pain.
As a sophomore, "I got a second MRI that revealed a partial fracture of my scaphoid bone," Watts recalled. "The break couldn't get any worse, so I decided to forgo surgery."
Watts also was experiencing pain in his right knee and was diagnosed with patella tendinopathy. "I played through the pain in the early weeks of the season, but it became unbearable. I couldn't move, cut, or jump."
He received some therapy, and prepared for the second half of the season, but the pain persisted. "With my broken wrist and my injured knee, I was half myself on the court," Watts added. "I underwent wrist surgery and went through two more bouts of physical therapy for my knee."
His wrist healed and his knee improved, and he "was finally near 100% healthy and ready to get back on the court," Watts said. "Knee pain returned and an MRI showed a partial tear of the patella tendon. Another surgery was required and another season of the game I loved was missed."
"The time away from the game sucked. Anyone who is a competitor knows the feeling and it hurt me that I couldn't be out there helping my teammates," Watts commented. "But the situation didn't destroy me. Throughout my life, I've tried to keep a positive outlook. I spent more time reading, learning, and reflecting. I never wanted an athlete to go through what I did and that led me down the path of becoming a performance coach.
Following several months in a brace, Watts received help with physical therapy from Mike Hmura of PT Northwest and Willamette Assistant Athletic Trainer Kayla Smith. "I can't thank them enough for their help, encouragement, and commitment," Watts said.
"When he came back this past year he was a better player and teammate than before," Willamette Head Men's Basketball Coach Kip Ioane noted.
"The injuries taught me that nothing in life is bad, but rather good because it makes you who you are," Watts concluded. "Everything in your life, whether easy, hard, fun, or boring has value and plays a role in who you become. It taught me that an obstacle doesn't stop the journey, it just becomes a part of that journey."
Time for Self-Discovery during COVID-19
While dealing with his injuries and with the isolation that nearly everyone experienced as part of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, Watts was introspective and looked for answers to key questions regarding his life. The level of self-discovery and self-awareness seemed huge for a young adult, but it was a transformative experience for Watts.
"I had a lot of free time and started to self-reflect," Watts noted. "As bad as the times were, I viewed it as an opportunity to improve myself in all aspects of my life, my health, relationships, and career. I started reading and listening to podcasts and fell in love with learning. I became obsessed with the question, 'How can I maximize my human potential?'"
This was the beginning of Chasing Greatness as a focus in his life.
"I began self-experimenting with myself," Watts explained. "How many hours of sleep did I need to perform at my best? What foods should I be putting in my body? What time of the day am I most productive? How can I maximize my mental and physical health? How do I balance all the different roles in my life ... work, family, personal health, friends, and basketball? I read, listened, and asked questions daily to learn, apply, and change."
Finding answers to his questions moved Watts forward with writing, recording, and living his own story.
"Along that journey, I started to understand the power of storytelling," he commented. "Stories have been around forever, and they transmit ideas and lessons in life: what is and isn't fair, what should and shouldn't be valued, and how we should behave if we want to fit in with society. Stories are everywhere ... in movies, plays, books, shows, business, and most importantly, in your life." Watts decided, "Why don't I write a book and create a podcast where I can tell stories to help others on their journey toward greatness?"
For Watts, stories allow people to express themselves, relate to each other, and find ways to improve their lives through the knowledge and experiences in the stories. Along the way, the accumulation of stories from family, friends, acquaintances, and others can help us develop our own self-image while forming a path through life.
"Every day, you have an opportunity to write your own story. To be the best version of yourself. To bring value to other people. To leave a positive impact on this world," Watts confirmed. "And you are the driver of your story. You have the opportunity to change, impact, and live how you want to live, but for many, it's a hard concept to grasp. I believe change in someone's life is just a story away. When we meet a character dealing with a similar problem or circumstance, change in them can spark change in us."
Writing a Book about Chasing Greatness
According to Watts, "Chasing Greatness is a belief that no one achieves greatness but is on a continual journey towards it. That journey is completely up to you because you get to choose your own path, but it should be one that challenges your limits, makes you uncomfortable, and is unique to you.
"As a society, I think we're so concentrated on the end goal, whether it's graduating college, getting a promotion, having a family, or retiring by a certain age, that we lose sight of the bigger picture," Watts said. "We should celebrate the accomplishments along the way, but there is no end. Every success, failure, and obstacle doesn't define the journey, it becomes the journey."
Watts was guided in his pursuit of Chasing Greatness by a quote from philosopher Marcus Aurelius: "The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way." And so, all of the obstacles that were preventing Watts from reaching his top potential as a basketball player, are part of the process of Chasing Greatness.
Inspired by his own self-awareness and by Marcus Aurelius, Watts began writing "Chasing Greatness". It was a chance to share his own story. He encourages others to evaluate their values, beliefs, and desires to find their own route toward greatness. He hopes they will see challenges and opportunities as part of the process as they work to meet their potential, both in their personal life and in their profession. It is a constant battle that requires reflection and evaluation. Change is necessary. And yet, a person should be pleased with what they have already accomplished ... the journey is a good thing.
"I began the book in January, and I've written the first draft," Watts said. "The first couple of months were dedicated solely to research. Reading books, articles, and stories. Watching speeches, short stories, and videos. Once the research was done, I began putting pen to paper (finger to keyboard in my case). I quickly fell in love with the process. I would wake up and look forward to writing, even when I'd hit writer's block and just stare at the screen for half an hour. For the last couple of months, it's just been writing and editing. It's a daily battle of highs and lows, but that's all a part of the journey."
Watts hopes to "touch the lives of as many people as possible and the book is a means to do that. I've built a routine of writing an hour every morning to ensure that I'm making daily progress. For anyone who's written a book, they know how difficult it can be. There are days when it's flowing and there are days when you can't get a word down, but that's what makes the process so fulfilling.
"My hope is that the book challenges you," Watts said. "It will include stories from well-known and unknown individuals to show that Chasing Greatness is within everyone. It will have thoughts and ideas that will test your previous behaviors, thoughts, and preconceived notions. What the book isn't is a roadmap. It's not a step-by-step guide to improving your life. It won't give you the answers to life, that is something that you will have to find. It's up to the individual, to you, to figure out the ending, to find the answers. Some things will resonate and work for you, some things won't. My goal is not to change you, but to challenge you to grow, to be better, and to write your own story."
Creating the Chasing Greatness Podcast
Writing a book was just one part of Watts' commitment to Chasing Greatness. He also started the Creating Greatness podcast in which he interviews well-known and not-so-well-known people with interesting stories of success and developing their own searches for greatness.
"I've built connections with a lot of high-performing people through sports, coaching, school, and work, and those connections have allowed me to get people that I look up to on the podcast," Watts said. "It's been an honor to get individuals like basketball performance coach Tyler Clark, Willamette Head Coach Kip Ioane, NBA Head Coach Greg Popovich, professional basketball player Tanner Omlid, and more on the podcast who are striving towards excellence."
The idea for the podcasts was pretty simple, but the focus was to involve highly-successful people, including some who were already famous.
"I believe everyone has a story to tell and talking to these extraordinary people has allowed me to dive into the habits, practices, rituals, routines, failures, successes, obstacles, and setbacks that have helped them along their journey," Watts commented. "It challenges me to be better, and hopefully, the listeners to be the best versions of themselves."
Watts has a nearly never-ending list of possible guests. "I hope to do the podcast for a very long time," he said. "I'm striving for greatness, and talking with others who are doing the same helps me along my journey. But more importantly, it can bring value to other people."
Chasing Greatness is a key focus for Watts, but he's also interested in helping basketball players.
"Outside of the podcast and the brand, I hope to continue down the path as a basketball performance specialist," Watts affirmed. "I've had the honor of working with basketball athletes on the court and in the weight room to improve technical, tactical, and physical abilities. I currently work with Jacob Begin through Jacob Begin Basketball, where we train basketball athletes across Oregon, including Salem, Eugene, and Portland. It's allowed me to work with athletes from the middle school to the professional level, but more importantly, build relationships and leave a lasting impact."
Coaching a Boys' Basketball Summer Travel Team
With his desire to coach basketball players and help improve their performance, it's not a surprise that Watts was the head coach for a boys' basketball travel team this summer.
"Coaching has been an honor and a great experience," Watts said. "We started an AAU program called ONE Basketball this spring and created two teams, an under-15 and an under-17 team. I had the privilege of coaching the 15U team and the best part has just been being around basketball and the athletes. Any time you get to be on the court is a blessing. The athletes are a great group of players, but even better people and have made my job easy."
His team competed in several tournaments during the summer, including those in Portland and Centralia (Wash.), and concluded the season in Seattle and Las Vegas. "We finished up in Las Vegas and both teams put in a solid performance," Watts recalled. "The 17s lost in the championship semifinals, going 5-1 on the weekend, and the 15s lost in the championship quarterfinals, going 3-2."
Watts has gained a lot from coaching. "It has given me a different perspective and I believe it's helped me grow as a player," he said. "You start to see things differently and have to think in a whole new manner. And it's a lot different than high school or college basketball as you don't have a scout or understanding of most teams before you play them. You're going into each game having to make quick in-game adjustments based on what the other team is throwing at you."
Preparing for the Basketball Season
Watts is ready for the Bearcats' 2022-23 season. Since 2018-19, he has played in 48 games with 42 starts. He played in and started 18 games in 2021-22. During his career he has scored 610 points, while averaging 13.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He has shot 46.8% from 3-point range and 82.6% at the free throw line.
"As a player, he has always been able to shoot a high percentage from deep, but he has expanded his game to be able to create going to the rim and he's added finishing in a variety of ways to his repertoire," Ioane said. "His work ethic and consistency are something young guys strive to emulate."
"I'm someone who doesn't like to look too far in advance. Goals can only be achieved by action, and action happens in the present," Watts said. "Obviously, we want to compete for an NWC title and put ourselves in a position to be in the playoffs when the season comes to an end. But none of that is possible if we don't prepare individually and as a team today. It's about getting better every day."
For Watts, it's great to have another opportunity to practice and play with many of the student-athletes and coaches who have been with him over the past few years.
"I think we have a special group of guys," Watts said. "Last year was the closest team I've ever been around. The first-year players came in and clicked right away and all the upperclassmen did a great job of keeping the guys together. I think if all the guys have improved this summer and we come in competing every day, we'll like where we're at when it's all said and done."
Willamette has Impacted Watts in Positive Ways
His experiences as a student-athlete for the Bearcats have meant a great deal to Watts.
"My time at Willamette has been great, learning from teachers, teammates, and coaches about what it takes to be great," Watts said. "Before I came to college, I believed I worked hard, but I soon realized I worked hard in the areas I wanted to, specifically basketball and academics. I realized that to be the best version of myself, I had to go the extra mile. I started reading more books, taking continuing education courses, and prioritizing other aspects of my life such as relationships, career, and work."
Some of the situations that have helped Watts pursue Chasing Greatness were on the court. Others were during classes, and still others during his free time.
"I was most proud of his basketball capstone #TeamsOfMen presentation where he presented 'Viewing Masculinity Through a New Lens' to the WU chapter of Sigma Chi (student-athlete honorary society)," Ioane noted. "In that arena, he was able to amplify working towards a healthy manhood to a group of peers and directly impact his immediate community. It does not surprise me that he has taken off with his book and podcast. He has approached them with a professional mindset, has learned best practices on both writing and producing, and he dove head first into both."
"The four years at Willamette afforded me the time to fail forward on the court, in the classroom, and in my personal endeavors," Watts commented. "As a player and captain, I was challenged to lead and get outside of my comfort zone, something I'm still working on to this day. The early struggles in the classroom guided future changes in my work habits, rituals, and routines. The failures have helped shape who I am and the path I'm going down with coaching, becoming a writer, and a storyteller."
