In Jalen Suggs’ mind, the ideal collegiate prequel to a lengthy, fortuitous NBA career would go a little something like this: Lead his team to the College Football Playoff or a New Year’s Six bowl game. Trade in the cleats for a pair of sneakers and commandeer a run to the Final Four. Declare for the NBA Draft.



A fairytale script for most, but Suggs is not like most. He’s a four-star quarterback recruit who claimed offers from luminaries such as Ohio State and Georgia. He’s also a five-star point guard headed to Gonzaga this fall as the best recruit in program history. There’s just one problem: Gonzaga doesn’t have a football team.



But Suggs, who starred at Minnehaha Academy in Minneapolis, is content to scrap his dream scenario and embrace the path that prioritizes his basketball journey. The football chapter of his sports novel concluded earlier than he’d prefer, but it’s a choice he has long understood would come. His...