Before Michael Jordan was making Bryon Russell fall with a killer crossover and draining the go ahead jumper to win his sixth NBA title with the Chicago Bulls, Jordan was a skinny, determined athlete dominating the competition at Laney High (Wilmington, N.C.).

Before Adrian Peterson was trucking opposing defenses and racking up 2,097 yards in a single season for the Minnesota Vikings he was shining bright under the Friday night lights at Palestine High (Palestine, Texas), averaging 12 yards a carry and scoring 32 touchdowns.

Before any athlete can become legendary they have to lay their foundation in the high school ranks.

Each week I’ll chat with a high-profile athlete’s former coach, mentor, family member, etc., and reminisce about their high school playing days; everything from the greatest moment to the wackiest story.

This week I caught up with New Orleans Pelicans guard Austin Rivers’ AAU coach at E1T1 (Fla.) Edward Francis.

Jason Jordan: What’s your best memory of Austin on the court?

Edward Francis: It’d have to be the summer after his junior when we played against Michael Kidd-Gilchrist at the Boo Williams. They were going back and forth between No. 1 and No. 2 in the rankings and everyone was wanting to see them play against each other. They had a bunch of ranked kids on their team and we just had Austin for the most part; but he put on a show. He really solidified his spot after that one. I think he came out and missed his first five shots and people were yelling, “Overrated!” That really drove him and he hit the next shot and looked over there at stared at them. They didn’t score again until he’d scored 16 straight points. We ended up winning by around 20 points and we shut Gilchrist down. Austin just had that killer in him and he went to work. He had 30-plus in that game.

JJ: What’s your best memory of Austin off the court?

EF: We were in Arkansas and we were walking in the gym to play and a bunch of kids ran over to him saying, “Oh you’re Doc Rivers’ son! You’re Austin Rivers! Can we have your autograph?” And he just kept telling them that he wasn’t and that he hadn’t really done anything for them to want his autograph yet. He would still sign them because he’s just a nice kid, but he always wanted his own legacy. He never wanted to live off of his father’s name. He never felt entitled; ever. I loved that about him. He had everything and every resource, but he always approached the game like he had nothing.

JJ: What personality was he on the team?

EF: He was just a cool kid. Everybody was always asking if he was stuck-up, but you had to know him. I think people just assumed that, but he was just a jokester and always wanting to laugh and have fun. Always been that way too.

JJ: What was his hidden talent?

EF: Austin used to try and rap a little bit! He’d mess around a little bit; he had a few lines too! You know all the athletes tried to be that rapper at once, but he was more jokey with it. He was pretty good.

JJ: Did you always know he’d be a pro from a young age?

EF: Well, I remember Austin from when he was coming up in rec league and he really wasn’t as good as the rest of them. I came on with him for the last three years and he’d gotten so much better and that’s just a credit to his work ethic. He worked himself in to being a pro. It’s crazy. He definitely wasn’t born a pro. He made himself a pro.

JJ: He had so much hype in high school and college and the NBA has been a learning process for him so far; are you surprised by that?

EF: In a way yes and no. Everyone thought he was just going to come in and star from day one and he’s had to earn everything so far in the NBA. I talked to him a couple of months ago and he really likes the fact that he can say that he’s 100 percent earning everything he’s getting. He likes it like this, and I have no doubt that he’ll be successful; he’s just got that mentality.

JJ: How good can Austin be?

EF: With his work ethic and his drive I feel like he can be one of the best players in the league and eventually become an All Star. He works to be the best every day. The last 20 games last season is where he really showed what type of player that he can be. The last couple of games he was averaging around 15 points a game and that’s something that he’s capable of, and more, every night to go along with seven assists or so. I always tell people that this is really like his junior year in college and a lot of kids are getting a little set back with that one-and-done rule, but his drive and ability are gonna get him past that. I think he’ll be one of the best in the league.

Check out Rivers in high school:

Follow Jason Jordan on Twitter: @JayJayUSATODAY