He is one of the players who marked the 2010 decade in Pro A. Seven seasons spent in the elite, where even the only one ended in relegation, with Vichy in 2010/11, remains marked by an unforgettable feat: a midfield buzzer shot that sent Limoges CSP to Pro B. Almost a year after his last game, an anonymous performance against Lavrio (0 point in 10 minutes on February 6, 2021) like his discreet move to Aris Salonika (5.8 points at 32% in 13 games), Jamal Shuler announced his retirement at the age of 36.
“I had fun all this time! “, he wrote on Instagram. “Teammates have become brothers, opponents have become brothers, supporters have become members of my family. Even though I can still score baskets, it’s time to kiss basketball and say goodbye. I loved everything, especially the bad times, because I always used defiance, criticism or my personal failures to raise my game. […] I will always love this game. Now it’s time to teach it to the next generation. »
Trained at Virginia Commonwealth University, passed through Germany during his first two professional seasons, Jamal Shuler therefore landed in Allier in 2010 for his first French experience. Irreproachable despite the descent of the JAV (16 points at 45%, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists), he was acclaimed for ten years by Vichy supporters as the best foreign rear in the history of the club and was especially in able to sign a EuroLeague contract with reigning French champion Nancy. The beginning of the prosperous years between the SLUC, Nanterre and Monaco where his prize list will expand at a speed proportional to his reputation.
Jamal Shuler played one EuroLeague season: 11.2 points on average in 2011/12 with Nancy
(photo: Olivier Fusy)
At the top of his game between 2014 and 2016
In six years, the Jacksonville native has twice won the Match of Champions (2011 and 2017), the EuroChallenge 2015 and another double in the Leaders Cup (2016 and 2017). A racy, elegant attacker, Jamal “Shooter” was above all unplayable in sequences. If TJ Campbell will forever remain the hero of JSF Nanterre’s first continental crown with his lay-up at the buzzer, it was indeed the former full-back of Khimik Youzhne who won the Final Four MVP trophy, thanks in particular to a half -very high-flying final against Frankfurt (18 points and 7 assists). A few months later, he was AS Monaco’s first marquee recruit in Pro A, assuming his status and the resulting new expectations with a 2015/16 season worthy of an MVP (15.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.9 assists), magnified by his status as the best player in the Leaders Cup (31 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in the final against Chalon!).
MVP of the EuroChallenge 2015, a line that shines brightly on a CV
(photo : FIBA)
“I wanted to become one of the most respected players in Pro A”
What followed was less brilliant: his second season on the Rock, where his missed shot in the playoffs against ASVEL will haunt him for a long time, then his return to Nanterre will not leave the same flavor. Jamal Shuler will then continue to satisfy his love of the game between Israel and Greece, sometimes with great brilliance (13.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 2019/20). But a single successful season in ESAKE will not be enough to leave the same impact as in France where he will remain in the category of real good players in this championship, and a good guy, affable and available to spoil nothing.
“I am happy with my progress in Pro A”, he told us in 2017. “I think that at Vichy, I took time to adapt to the style of play in the French championship but I finished strong and I improved a lot thanks to good coaches. It was my goal to become one of the most respected players in Pro A. I wanted to show that I could be cited among the best players in Pro A, on and off the pitch. I respect everyone, presidents, coaches, players and supporters of all teams, regardless of their attitude towards me. I think people are aware of that. »
“Respect the shooter”, was his credo. It succeeded…
The shooter has especially made the good days of AS Monaco and Nanterre
(photo: Sebastien Grasset)
His journey :
- 2008/10: Trier (Germany)
- 2010/11: JA Vichy
- 2011/13: SLUC Nancy
- 2013/14 : Khimik Youzhne (Ukraine)
- 2014/15: JSF Nanterre
- 2015/17 : AS Monaco
- 2017/18 : Nanterre 92
- 2018/19: Hapoel Tel Aviv (Israel)
- 2019/20: Iraklis (Greece)
- 2020/21: Aris Thessaloniki (Greece)
