Cedric Jackson

High school and college career

As a high school freshman living in Medical Lake, Washington, Jackson attended Medical Lake High School in 2000–01, where he steered the Cardinals to within a point of a trip to the state tournament. He was enrolled as a sophomore at Ferris High before his Air Force-obligated family moved east. Jackson subsequently enrolled at Northern Burlington County Regional High School in Columbus, New Jersey. He was a first-team all-state selection his senior year among other selections and averaged 26 points per game.

Jackson began his collegiate career at St. John's University in Queens, New York. On April 4, 2006, it was announced that Jackson was transferring from St. John's to Cleveland State. His decision was based in part on a desire for more playing time. After sitting out the 2006–07 season due to NCAA transfer regulations, Jackson starred at Cleveland State, helping them make two straight postseason appearances in 2008 and 2009. In 71 games for the Vikings over two seasons, Jackson averaged 12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 5.2 assists an 2.8 steals per game.

2009–10 season

In November 2009, Jackson was acquired by the Erie BayHawks of the NBA Development League. On January 23, 2010, he signed a 10-day contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Jackson went on to make his NBA debut later that day against the Oklahoma City Thunder, playing a little over two minutes. On February 2, 2010, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Cavaliers. After his second 10-day contract expired, Jackson returned the BayHawks.

On March 10, 2010, Jackson signed a 10-day contract with the San Antonio Spurs. After his 10-day contract expired, he again returned to the Erie BayHawks.

On March 31, 2010, Jackson was called up to the NBA for a third time in a season, as he signed a 10-day contract with the Washington Wizards. On April 10, 2010, he signed with the Wizards for the rest of the 2009–10 season. Four days later, he had a season-best game in the NBA, recording 8 points and 4 assists in the Wizards' season finale, helping the team defeat the Indiana Pacers 98–97.

In 12 career NBA games, Jackson averaged 1.7 points and 1.2 assists per game. He also averaged 16.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 2.1 steals in 34 games for the BayHawks during the 2009–10 season.

2010–11 season

On September 25, 2010, Jackson re-joined the Cleveland Cavaliers, signing with the team for training camp. He was later waived by the Cavaliers on October 13 after appearing in two preseason games.

On October 30, 2010, Jackson was reacquired by the BayHawks and joined the team for the 2010–11 season. On December 29, 2010, he was traded to the Idaho Stampede in exchange for a 2011 first-round draft pick. In 50 games for both the BayHawks and Stampede during the 2010–11 D-League season, Jackson averaged 13.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 7.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

Italy

On April 18, 2011, Jackson signed with Enel Brindisi of Italy for the rest of the 2010–11 season. He managed just two games for Brindisi, totalling 20 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

2011–12 season

On August 12, 2011, Jackson signed with the New Zealand Breakers for the 2011–12 NBL season. In his first season for the Breakers, Jackson finished fourth in MVP voting and was selected to the All-NBL first team. Jackson also led the league in both assists (6.4) and steals (2.5) per game during the regular season, and he helped the Breakers win back-to-back championships with a 2–1 Grand Final series win over the Perth Wildcats.

2012–13 season

In July 2012, Jackson joined the San Antonio Spurs for the 2012 NBA Summer League. He managed just two games for the Spurs, totalling eight points, three rebounds, four assists and seven steals.

On August 3, 2012, Jackson re-signed with the New Zealand Breakers for the 2012–13 NBL season. On November 30, 2012, Jackson recorded his first career triple-double, finishing the game against the Melbourne Tigers with 28 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. It was only the second triple-double recorded since the NBL went to 40-minute games at the start of the 2009–10 season.

On February 5, 2013, Jackson was named Player of the Week for Round 17, picking up his fourth NBL weekly award of the season. On March 24, Jackson was awarded the Andrew Gaze Trophy after being named the league's Most Valuable Player for the 2012–13 season. He also earned All-NBL first team honors for a second straight year, and led the league in assists (7.1) and steals (2.8) for a second straight year.

Jackson and the Breakers went on to win the 2013 NBL championship, sweeping the Perth Wildcats 2–0 in the Grand Final series to claim just the second three-peat in league history. Jackson subsequently earned Grand Final MVP honors.

Slovenia

In July 2013, Jackson joined the Miami Heat for the Orlando Summer League and the Portland Trail Blazers for the Las Vegas Summer League. In 10 total Summer League games, he averaged 4.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.0 steals per game.

On August 3, 2013, Jackson signed a one-year deal with Union Olimpija of the Slovenian Basketball League. After coming off back-to-back championships with the Breakers, Jackson felt the need for a step up from the NBL, but unfortunately had a dismal season in Slovenia. Jackson had a lot of problems with injuries and often played below expectations, subsequently leading to the club terminating his contract on March 6, 2014. He averaged just 4.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 14 Adriatic League games, and 5.9 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists in 13 Eurocup games.

2014–15 season

On July 17, 2014, Jackson signed a two-year deal with the New Zealand Breakers, returning to the club for a second stint. Jackson's absence in 2013–14 was notable, with the Breakers struggling all season and missing the playoffs with a disappointing 11–17 win/loss record. In addition, their arch rivals, the Perth Wildcats, made it back to the Grand Final and defeated the Adelaide 36ers to claim their sixth NBL championship. Jackson was therefore determined to bring the Breakers back into playoff contention.

On December 17, 2014, Jackson was named Player of the Week for Round 10 after scoring 15 points against Perth on December 11, and 18 points against Melbourne on December 14. On January 18, 2015, Jackson recorded his second career triple-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in an 88–75 win over Melbourne United. His third career triple-double came on February 12 in a loss to the Adelaide 36ers as he recorded 11 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists. On February 18, he was named Player of the Week for Round 19 after claiming 54 per cent of the overall votes for his triple-double against Adelaide, and his 22 points and game-winner against Perth. On February 26, he was named the Player of the Month for February. For the third time in three seasons, Jackson earned All-NBL first team honors and led the league in assists (6.0) per game.

In what was a great comeback season for Jackson, he led the Breakers to a clean sweep of the Finals, defeating the Adelaide 36ers in the semi-finals 2–0, and the Cairns Taipans in the Grand Final 2–0 as well, thus claiming his third NBL championship and the Breakers' fourth in five years. He subsequently earned his second career NBL Grand Final MVP award after scoring 22 points in Game 1 and 15 points in Game 2. He became the first player in NBL history to win three NBL championships from his first three seasons. In 97 games for the Breakers over three seasons, Jackson averaged 14.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 2.4 steals per game.

On May 11, 2015, Jackson signed with Mets de Guaynabo of the Puerto Rican Baloncesto Superior Nacional. On June 18, 2015, he parted ways with Mets de Guaynabo after appearing in 13 games. In those 13 games, he averaged 10.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 8.8 assists and 2.1 steals per game.

2015–16 season

On October 11, 2015, in his 99th NBL game, Jackson recorded his fourth career triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high 14 assists in the Breakers' 89–81 win over the Townsville Crocodiles. Jackson garnered 77 wins over his first 99 games in the NBL (77.7%), a mark that ranks first in NBL history. In his 100th game played just three days later against the Illawarra Hawks at the WIN Entertainment Centre, Jackson had a career-worst performance. In 28 minutes of action, he failed to make a field goal, going 0-of-7 from the field, 0-of-3 from three-point range, and 1-of-5 from the free throw line. While he did manage six assists and five rebounds, the Breakers were completely outclassed by the Hawks, going down 96–75. On November 8, he recorded his fifth career triple-double with 16 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in a loss to Melbourne United.

After starting the season 1–3, the Breakers won nine of their next 11 games to breeze back into the championship mix with a 10–5 record after Round 10. However, following Round 16, the Breakers had fallen to 11–12 and out of the playoff race. To make matters worse, Jackson played most of January with a toe and Achilles heel injuries. He responded to his poor form of late in the team's first game of February, recording a season-high 31 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists in a 106–84 win over the Adelaide 36ers, keeping the Breakers' playoff chances alive. With seven three-pointers, 10 rebounds and 6 assists, he became the first NBL player to record such stats since John Rille did so in 1998. The Breakers finished the regular season in fourth place with a 16–12 win/loss record and defeated first-seeded Melbourne United 2–0 in the semi-finals to return to the Grand Final. There they faced the Perth Wildcats where they were defeated 2–1, earning runners-up honors for the first time in club history. Jackson played well throughout the playoffs, but stumbled in Game 3 of the grand final series where he went scoreless and fouled out early in the fourth quarter. He appeared in all 33 games for the Breakers in 2015–16, averaging 12.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

On March 31, 2016, Jackson signed with Atléticos de San Germán for the rest of the 2016 BSN season. He parted ways with the team in mid-April after struggling to make an impact over six games.

After not being able to match several offers from other NBL clubs, the Breakers were forced to part ways with Jackson during the 2016 off-season.

Melbourne United

On May 10, 2016, Jackson signed a two-year deal with Melbourne United. He made his debut for United in their season opener on October 7, recording 14 points, 13 rebounds and six assists in a 76–71 loss to the Breakers in Auckland. On November 9, 2016, United made the decision to release Jackson for strategic reasons, after they started the season 3–6. In nine games for United, he averaged 10.0 points, 4.9 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Despite being released so early in the season, Jackson's 5.56 assists per game was the statistical leader for that category at the end of the season.