Stewart Jr. Continues Delta Dawg Legacy
November 27, 2019 | Men's Basketball
Written by Josie Hutton, Student Assistant/Communications
From the great city of Yazoo up to Memphis, travelling west of I-55 to the powerful Mississippi River makes up the Mississippi Delta. People from the Delta represent everything that is great about the Magnolia State. They are hospitable, hardworking individuals that take every opportunity to create something bigger for themselves.
D.J. Stewart Jr., a redshirt freshman guard on the Mississippi State men's basketball team, is a product of the Delta, hailing from the small town of Grace. Stewart Jr.'s story embodies exactly what the people of the Mississippi Delta represent.
Rated as Mississippi's No. 2 player in the 2018 recruiting class, Stewart Jr. averaged 25.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game as a senior at Riverside High School. He was eager to make an instant impact at MSU. The plan was not to redshirt, but he took advantage of the opportunity last season.
"In my redshirt year, I learned a lot, not just physically but mentally," said Stewart Jr. "When you're playing on the court, you don't see the things that the person watching sees. I learned a lot from the players and learned from their mistakes."
While many may hang their heads at the thought of waiting another year to step foot on the hardwood, Stewart Jr.'s approach to his redshirt season was indicative of how he was raised because of the work ethic he learned from a young age.
"I come from a hardworking family," said Stewart Jr. "Even when I was a little kid, my dad never let us lay around the house. When he was up, we had to be up. When I get up after watching how my parents work, nobody is going to outwork me. With the work I put in, I feel like no one is doing what I'm doing. To hit those shots, I do it every morning, every day at 6:30. I just follow the mechanics and perfect my form."
So far this season, those early morning workouts are paying off for Stewart Jr. who is averaging 10.0 points per game, shooting 58 percent from the floor and scored 70 of Mississippi State's 121 bench points.
Those early morning workouts also have paid dividends for Stewart Jr. in pressure situations. With the Bulldogs up 61-58 and 35 seconds left on the clock against Sam Houston State, he was put to the test in a 1-and-1 situation at the free throw line.
Derrick Zimmerman, a graduate assistant, could be heard on the bench shouting at Stewart Jr., "6:30 in the morning, D.J.! 6:30 in the morning!" He nailed both of his free throws with ease, and the Bulldogs went on to win the game by nine points.
Stewart Jr. has pushed himself in as many ways as possible to excel in his skill level, but the help in his development from people like strength and conditioning coach Collin Crane has also played a role.
"D.J. embodies everything we want from a student athlete here at Mississippi State," said Crane. "The desire to get better, the commitment, the grit, the determination, the toughness – he embodies all these things. I knew he was going to excel at whatever type of program that we put him on."
Stewart Jr. knows that he has a lot of people that want to see him succeed especially those from back home in the Delta.
"The whole Delta supports me," Stewart Jr. said. "They always let me know how proud they are of me. I feel like that's what I'm doing it for. It's hard to come out of the Delta, so I'm trying to pave a way for others and show them that there's a way out. Where I'm from and the people back home, I want to represent them the right way and represent Mississippi State the right way."
With Stewart Jr.'s hard work ethic and caring personality for others, it's easy to see why he is someone that people love. He will always work the hardest and be the best that he can be to represent the Delta and Mississippi State to the best of his ability.
From the great city of Yazoo up to Memphis, travelling west of I-55 to the powerful Mississippi River makes up the Mississippi Delta. People from the Delta represent everything that is great about the Magnolia State. They are hospitable, hardworking individuals that take every opportunity to create something bigger for themselves.
D.J. Stewart Jr., a redshirt freshman guard on the Mississippi State men's basketball team, is a product of the Delta, hailing from the small town of Grace. Stewart Jr.'s story embodies exactly what the people of the Mississippi Delta represent.
Rated as Mississippi's No. 2 player in the 2018 recruiting class, Stewart Jr. averaged 25.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game as a senior at Riverside High School. He was eager to make an instant impact at MSU. The plan was not to redshirt, but he took advantage of the opportunity last season.
"In my redshirt year, I learned a lot, not just physically but mentally," said Stewart Jr. "When you're playing on the court, you don't see the things that the person watching sees. I learned a lot from the players and learned from their mistakes."
While many may hang their heads at the thought of waiting another year to step foot on the hardwood, Stewart Jr.'s approach to his redshirt season was indicative of how he was raised because of the work ethic he learned from a young age.
"I come from a hardworking family," said Stewart Jr. "Even when I was a little kid, my dad never let us lay around the house. When he was up, we had to be up. When I get up after watching how my parents work, nobody is going to outwork me. With the work I put in, I feel like no one is doing what I'm doing. To hit those shots, I do it every morning, every day at 6:30. I just follow the mechanics and perfect my form."
So far this season, those early morning workouts are paying off for Stewart Jr. who is averaging 10.0 points per game, shooting 58 percent from the floor and scored 70 of Mississippi State's 121 bench points.
Those early morning workouts also have paid dividends for Stewart Jr. in pressure situations. With the Bulldogs up 61-58 and 35 seconds left on the clock against Sam Houston State, he was put to the test in a 1-and-1 situation at the free throw line.
Derrick Zimmerman, a graduate assistant, could be heard on the bench shouting at Stewart Jr., "6:30 in the morning, D.J.! 6:30 in the morning!" He nailed both of his free throws with ease, and the Bulldogs went on to win the game by nine points.
Stewart Jr. has pushed himself in as many ways as possible to excel in his skill level, but the help in his development from people like strength and conditioning coach Collin Crane has also played a role.
"D.J. embodies everything we want from a student athlete here at Mississippi State," said Crane. "The desire to get better, the commitment, the grit, the determination, the toughness – he embodies all these things. I knew he was going to excel at whatever type of program that we put him on."
Stewart Jr. knows that he has a lot of people that want to see him succeed especially those from back home in the Delta.
"The whole Delta supports me," Stewart Jr. said. "They always let me know how proud they are of me. I feel like that's what I'm doing it for. It's hard to come out of the Delta, so I'm trying to pave a way for others and show them that there's a way out. Where I'm from and the people back home, I want to represent them the right way and represent Mississippi State the right way."
With Stewart Jr.'s hard work ethic and caring personality for others, it's easy to see why he is someone that people love. He will always work the hardest and be the best that he can be to represent the Delta and Mississippi State to the best of his ability.
Players Mentioned
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