By Dannielle Lowe
He looks like an athlete. He pumps iron and downs protein shakes like an athlete. But Jasonn Hannibal is not your typical jock. He's a renaissance man, a seeker of truth, wisdom and continuous growth. A self-professed gamer and music lover, the basketball star is redefining what it means to be a student-athlete and changing lives as he does so.
"Some people are like, 'You know Jasonn, you're really unique' and I'm like, what are you trying to say," Hannibal said. "Everyone's unique so it doesn't really mean anything but then they're like your unique because you're a basketball player, and instead of doing something easy, you're doing something you love."
Hannibal loves music almost as much as he loves basketball.
"I just play the bass and basketball," Hannibal said, pointing to a humongous instrument case almost as big as he is on his floor. "It's really heavy, but I'm just strong enough I can carry it on my back."
The multi-talented athlete became interested in music in middle school and has been playing the bass for seven years. He jokingly tells the story about back in the day having to pick between visual arts, drama and music at his art school. He chose music because he knew it was something he was good at it, but was forced to make another decision: band or strings.
"I didn't have the strongest set of lungs, and I didn't really feel like blowing into an instrument, so I picked strings," Hannibal said. "Then they asked violin, cello, bass and viola. I was like I'm a big guy, and it's the biggest instrument. Also, my mom always talked about bass players and how awesome they were. So I picked the bass."
Eight years later, Hannibal is still doing "his thing" and playing the bass. He currently plays in the UP orchestra. After college, the freshman center hopes to play the bass professionally.
But make no mistake, Hannibal is all about basketball right now; it's how he ended up at UP. The Canada native had plenty of options to choose from, but he admired the recruiting efforts put forth by the basketball coaching staff.
"(Assistant basketball coach Joel) Sobotka came to my house and he said, 'Jasonn, you're a good player, and we'd really like it if you'd come to our school to play basketball,'" Hannibal said. "And I was like that's a really great offer; I'll have to think about it. No other coach did that."
The extra effort put forth by Sobotka sold the 6'10" freshman on UP. He really appreciated that they believed in him, but also he wanted the opportunity to be part of the growing program.
"The fact that they were rebuilding here, and that they thought I was really good was the main factor," Hannibal said. "It also helped that he showed the devotion to coming to meet me and my circle of people in my home."
At first, the young star hated life at the University of Portland, but he stuck the course and in his own words, "had heart in the struggle."
The philosophical student carries around a small yellow tab of paper he refers to the as the "book of wisdom." The pages are filled with pieces of advice, quotes and proverbs.
"I'm big into proverbs," Hannibal said. "I always try to use proverbs because they make me look witty and clever."
He collects the quotes and writes them down as they come to him. The book has become infamous, and students come to Hannibal for advice.
In addition to seeking wisdom, the athlete enjoys story telling. Even if you don't want hear a story, he's going to tell you one. It's how he answers questions.
Hannibal struggled to lose weight over this past year. The freshman entered college at abound 295 pounds and was the slowest member on his team. He's been eating healthier, though, and now tips the scale at 265, a much healthier weight for the athlete, who now can run sprints without wheezing.
"You begin thinking if you're an athlete you can eat whatever you want, but that's not true," Hannibal said. "I learned the hard way: I got super fat and super slow. Conditioning was really hard for me last year, but now I can handle it."
The shedding of pounds earned him the honor of most improved player, which Hannibal considers a bit embarrassing.
"It's kind of like you used to suck, but now you're okay." Hannibal said with a laugh.
When it comes to next year's basketball season, Hannibal is ready to do whatever it takes.
"If I have to sit on the bench all year and if me sitting on the bench helps my team win, then I'll do it," Hannibal said. "I doubt me sitting is going to help the team win, but, who knows, maybe me staying off the court will."
