HOME SWEET HOME: Karl Knighten Jr. chooses Matanzas for final basketball season

PALM COAST — Local basketball player Karl Knighten Jr.’s heart has always been at Matanzas.

His older brother, Jairockeis Jones who played football, basketball and ran track for the Pirates, was a legend.

Matanzas was the first high school at which Knighten Jr. consistently dribbled a basketball after his family moved from Polk County in 2008. He grew up in the school's gym, idolizing his brother's face in the rafters. Most friends from his middle school, Indian Trails, went to Matanzas after junior high, too.

Now Knighten Jr., who has now played for three different schools during his high school career, is a Pirate. After attending Calvary Christian Academy for two years and Flagler Palm Coast last year as a junior, he finally landed at Matanzas.

“I love it here,” Knighten Jr. said. “I love being a part of the journey and being where my brother was.

"Why not end my senior year at home?

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Knighten Jr., a two-time, Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns All-Area player, dramatically shifts the trajectory of a Matanzas team that went 3-23 last year. It's already 4-4 to start the season, notching big wins over University (3-3) and Father Lopez (3-3).

Knighten is averaging 29 points, 5.8 rebounds, five assists and 4.8 steals per game. He scored 38 points against University, 41 against Trinity Christian Academy, 25 against Father Lopez and 40 against Menendez.

“Having a kid like Karl in our program is major, man,” Matanzas coach Henry L. Robinson said. “He brings that mental and physical toughness. He gets his guys and makes his guys compete.”

Robinson described Knighen Jr. as a “high motor kid” who only knows, “go, go, go; attack, attack, attack.”

That’s Knighten’s game. He's an elite finisher around the rim, an exceptional ballhandler, staunch defender and, when he's on, a deadly shooter.

Robinson would like his star player to improve his change of pace and decision making, though — which won’t be a problem for Knighten Jr., who is always looking for ways to improve, Robinson said.

“I don’t want to slow him down,” Robinson said. “But he has got to learn when and when not.”

Robinson is trying to prepare Knighten Jr. for college, where he likely won’t be able to run, press all the time or try to finish against three defenders. On the next level, athletes will be bigger, stronger, faster and smarter.

He may also have a coach that doesn’t run an up-tempo offense, but rather deliberate sets. Robinson said he has to prepare Knighten Jr. for that possiblility.

If any player can adapt to change, though, it’s Knighten Jr. — who has been a Lion, Bulldog and now a Pirate during his high school career.

“I’m able to adapt to any atmosphere,” Knighten Jr. said. “Go 1-0 every night. That’s the main idea, main goal.”

Although he has played for three different coaches, they all hammered in him the importance of being a staunch defender, on which he predicates his game.

Jones used to have to tell Knighten Jr.  to improve his defensive game. Now, he has to tell him to tone down the defensive pressure. He already fouled out one game this season.

The most notable evolution Jones has seen is his younger brother, though, is his ability not to force the game and get others involved. He has improved on both ends, he said. Now, the next step is to understand how he controls the game based on personnel — something Jones and Robinson saw. As the team’s point guard, he has to understand his teammates’ strengths and help strengthen their weaknesses, Jones said.

Most importantly, Knighten Jr. has to continue enjoying playing the game, savoring every moment of his senior year at his brother’s alma mater while competing at the highest level the way he and his brother always used to growing up — racing up and down the stairs and seeing who was faster. The court is his stage and coaches at the next level are watching.

“Every day is an interview,” Jones said, recalling what he constantly tells Knighten Jr. “You never know who’s watching, who's around, who’s in the gym at that time to see you do some spectacular thing. It starts from there. Every time you step on that court you’re trying to be the best.”

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: High school basketball: Karl Knighten Jr. playing final season at Matanzas