The Story of Jason Preston: From Basketball Blogger to NBA Player

Over the decades we've seen a lot of unique paths to the NBA, with each player having a different story as to how they made it to the top professional basketball league in the world, but it's unlikely we've ever seen a path quite like Jason Preston's. A rising star on the Los Angeles Clippers, Preston has had a unique journey; at one point not too long ago, the young athlete was a Detroit Piston's writer for PistonPowered. From our research, this could very well make him the first and only former writer to ever be in the NBA.

Before getting drafted 33rd overall by the Orlando Magic and traded to the Clippers in the 2021 draft, Preston spent three years playing in college at Ohio University, where in his final year he put on a career-high performance that consisted of 31 points, eight assists and six rebounds leading to national coverage, and a stellar showing at the 2021 MAC Tournament—which earned him the honor of MVP.

Fast forward two years later, Preston has managed to overcome a tough season-ending injury suffered during his rookie season, and is enjoying all of the fun, excitement, and emotions that come with your very first playoff run. Despite being very busy, Preston was kind enough to chat with us so that way we could learn more about his life and career. Check out the full interview below.

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ONE37pm: Thanks for chatting with us Jason! Let’s first start by talking about your new AT&T commercial. How was it working on that?

Preston: It was an awesome experience! I've never really done anything like that before. I talk to my fiancée a lot about the behind the scenes stuff that makes movies, television shows, and commercials pop, and it was crazy to see how it long it takes to film a commercial and what it takes to get every single detail correct. Overall it was a really great experience! Watching it for the first time on television was amazing.

ONE37pm: You had four “little Jasons” that represented you in this commercial. What was it like to work with them? You also treated them to a Clippers game right?

Preston: It was great working with them! King is the youngest one, and Devin, Blake, and Ethan are all brothers. King flew out from Texas just for the game, and I got to meet his parents who are great people. Devin, Blake, and Ethan are local to the area. It was really nice! I got to talk with them, grabbed all of their numbers, and they were able to come on to the court before the game, which was the battle of LA (Lakers versus Clippers). They got to see a good game which was cool. I'm very thankful to have connected with them.

ONE37pm: Okay, so let’s talk more about your journey to being a basketball player. In your own words, what has that been like? It’s not easy to get to where you are right now.

Preston: My agent is always telling me to keep going and pushing, and that has always been a theme of my journey regardless of whatever obstacles have been thrown my way. It's not going to be easy. There's always going to be trials and tribulations, it's just about how you respond to them. I think that is something that really builds you and makes you who you are.

ONE37pm: And how about your career as a writer? That’s definitely not something that we hear everyday! What led you to that decision and what did you learn from that experience?

Preston: When I was in high school, I didn't have any offers and I wasn't playing a lot with my team. I knew I had to get a back-up plan in case playing basketball didn't work out, and that if I wasn't going to be able to play, then I still wanted to do something where I could be a part of the game. My favorite team at the time was the Detroit Pistons, and I would see guys on social media giving their opinions on the game, which was something I wanted to do. I DM'ed this guy named Duncan Smith for a website called PistonPowered, and he was able to get me an internship. It was a blessing and really fun being able to express your own opinions. I learned a lot.

ONE37pm: Do you think that's something you might do again one day down the line?

Preston: You know I'm not too sure if I'll go that route again, but I do want to continue to have a voice in basketball whether that's teaching/coaching kids, or more of a vocal position as opposed to writing.

ONE37pm: We’re catching you in what is at the time of this interview the beginning of the playoffs. What is the atmosphere of the Clippers organization like during the playoff season?

Preston: It's crazy because this is my first year in the playoffs. Last year we lost both of the play-in games so I didn't get the full experience. It's been great seeing the attention to detail in practices, the scouting report getting much bigger, and the film breakdown being much more extensive. Watching these first couple of games you can really see the level of intensity both on and off the court, and as a team we're really bonding together.

ONE37pm: It's important for people to know who athletes are outside of the respective sport that they play. So who is Jason Preston, and what are your interests off the court?

Preston: I actually have a TikTok account where I breakdown the game. I want to inspire the next generation of hoopers and those kids who don't really have money to pay for a trainer. I want to get as much information out there for them as possible as I didn't necessarily have a lot of connections that I could go to. I want to help young basketball players.

I like board games also and enjoy playing chess. There's a lot of time spent around basketball and playing basketball, so sometimes I'll watch a TV show and things like that.

ONE37pm: You said board games, right? That's so funny because it feels like for some reason the younger generations aren't playing board games as much!

Preston: That's sad! I love board games, game nights, card games and all of that. I like Catan, this newer game called Codenames, and I play a lot of spades and chess.

ONE37pm: Anything else you want the world to know about you? Is there anything exciting coming up that you can share at the moment?

Preston: For sure! This is an exciting time for the Clippers, and I'm looking forward to continuing this playoff run and working during the summer. And yeah you are definitely right about TikTok! I want to get more basketball content up on there as well.

You can continue to keep up with Jason both on Instagram and Twitter.