Readers’ pick: James Bishop
Current sophomore guard James Bishop sunk his first points with the men’s basketball team less than three minutes into his inaugural game with the Colonials, and the buckets didn’t stop falling all season for the newcomer.
A transfer from LSU who nabbed a waiver allowing him immediate eligibility to play in this season, Bishop was both the floor general and leading scorer for the Colonials. His ability to find the hoop in traffic or flip a dime to a teammate is why Bishop is our pick for this year’s best male athlete.
After the squad lost starting point guard and redshirt senior Armel Potter to graduation, Bishop was handed the reins to bring the ball up the floor. He played primarily off the bench for the Tigers, but as a Colonial, Bishop started all 17 games. He barely took a breather, staying on the floor for 36.3 minutes a game.
Bishop showed his scoring ability on left-handed drives to the rim, sinking mid-range jumpers or ringing a triple through the netting. He hit one of his biggest shots against Duquesne. His go-ahead triple put the Colonials ahead by two, ultimately giving them the boost they needed to avenge an earlier loss to the Dukes.
He topped the team with 19.1 points on the season, which was good for second in the Atlantic 10. He scored 20 or more points in 11 games this season. Bishop averaged the most points of any Colonial since 2003-graduate and GW Athletics Hall-of-Fame guard Chris Monroe notched 20.3 points a contest during his senior campaign.
Bishop notched a career-high 29 points in his final game of the season, a loss to George Mason in the second round of the A-10 tournament.
Despite missing 10 total conference games amid a team-wide COVID-19 quarantine and as a result of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol Building, he passed a team-leading 87 assists, earning him a No. 5 finish in the league. His 1.5 assist-to-turnover ratio ranked him No. 12 in the conference.
With three years of potential eligibility left at GW, Bishop has set the bar high for himself. His numbers speak for themselves, and he has the chance to help the men’s program enter and stay in the win column.
