Jachai Taylor: Sixth Man of the Year Makes Canada His Basketball Home

London Lightning

6'7"

Guard

From Waukegan, Illinois

Jachai Taylor has established himself as a key offensive threat on the Canadian basketball scene, his ability to come off the bench and change a game paying him big dividends in the 2023-24 season, the most decorated of his pro career yet.

He began the Super League season - his third in Canada - with a team-high 22 points off the bench for London against the Sudbury Five. He went on to eighteen more double-digit performances, including two double-doubles and a season best 30 points again off the bench, again against Sudbury, on May 8th.

The season culminated with a Finals run, at the end of which Taylor was able to lift the trophy with his team, but there was another prize awaiting the Lightning's biggest spark. His impact off the London bench and his contribution to the team throughout the season in limited minutes earned him his first league honor - Sixth Man of the Year.

This a continuation of the last few years of Taylor's career, which began with him being drafted by the Capital City Go-Go in the NBA G League and a brief stint with the Delaware Blue Coats before arriving in Canada in February 2022.

Signing with the Windsor Express in the NBLC, Taylor hit the ground running, scoring in double digits in his first four games, including a double-double in his second appearance for the Express. That season's remainder included a run of three games with thirty-plus points and finished with him having averaged 15.7 points and 5.1 rebounds.

He followed this up with a second season in Windsor, where he achieved a career-high 38 points in an April 20th game against the Sudbury Five. He finished the season having averaged 9.6 points per game en route to reaching the finals for the first time, ultimately losing to the next team he would sign for.

His rise in Canada came quickly after joining the professional ranks altogether. Taylor graduated from Waukegan High School in 2015, where he was two-time MVP of their basketball team. He impressed enough to earn a place in the NCAA D1 with the Murray State Racers and appeared in the NCAA Tournament his sophomore year.

After seeing only limited time with Murray State, after two seasons Taylor made the jump to the Queen's Royals in New York. His first year there he reached the last eight of the NCAA D2 Tournament, eventually falling to the Point Loma Sea Lions. He then made 21 starts for Queen's in his senior year, which was cut short due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, which saw him end his tenure with 4.9 points per game on 56.3% career field shooting.

Having achieved so much at only 27 years of age, Jachai Taylor still has a long way to go in his basketball career and, whether that will continue in Canada, he has already contributed a lot to the Canadian teams he has played for and his performance in 2023-24 will leave a lasting legacy for the London Lightning.