Watson Chapel senior basketball player Joseph Dockett bugged his coaches so often about opening the gym so he could practice, one of them told him he better go play college basketball so it would all be worth it.
Dockett made that a reality on Wednesday when he signed with Hendrix College.
“Just feels good that all the hard work finally paying off,” Dockett said. “Somebody taking a chance on me, it feels really good.”
During his signing ceremony in the WCHS library, each of the Wildcat coaches spoke briefly about Dockett, with two of them telling stories of Dockett pestering them to go to the school and unlock the gym so he could practice.
Head coach Jevon Barnes said Dockett has set a great example for the younger players on campus.
“Had a couple kids, my junior high kids like, ‘This gonna be me a couple of years from now,'” Barnes said. “The most valuable example he has been is just how he conducts himself as far as off the court as well as on the court. Having a great GPA, making a 24 on the ACT, graduated with honors. He’s a great role model, and we always talk about, you never know who’s watching.”
Dockett was a three-year starter for the Wildcats, and Barnes said he stepped up as the team’s leader this past season despite missing time with an injury.
Many of the younger players were present for his signing ceremony, and some of them wanted a picture with him after he signed. During his brief remarks before signing, he told them they could be in his position signing with a college in a few years if they put in the effort.
“(Barnes) made me grow up early and lead the younger guys,” Dockett said. “Just been stepping into that role ever since I got here.”
He now heads to Conway to play for Hendrix, an NCAA Division III school in the Southern Athletic Association. Dockett said he plans to major in business and economics, and chose Hendrix because he believes it will prepare him for life after basketball.
Barnes emphasized Hendrix’s academics during his remarks, telling the other players Dockett had to succeed academically to go to school there, regardless of his basketball talents.
The coach, who said this is the third consecutive year a Wildcat basketball player has signed with a college program, said Hendrix will be a good fit for Dockett, both athletically and academically.
“The school itself is really academic based,” Dockett said. “So, I think that’ll help him with his career as far as what he wants to do outside of basketball. From a basketball standpoint, I think it’s going to help him as well, because the transfer portal hurts a lot of kids, anyway. So, this will be a school to help him grow, work on some of his weaknesses, and then eventually, he can become the player that we all know that he can be.”
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