Isom a new man — healthy and confident
Mareik Isom spent a year rebuilding himself — his body and his shot. Now, he’s 100% healthy, mechanically sound, and excited to show Lightning fans his new self.
(Photo: Rob Patterson / London Lightning).
Mareik Isom didn’t only become a new man in college, he also ended up playing a completely different game.
When the Austin, Texas, native graduated high school, he stood 6-foot-5-inches tall and weighed 165 pounds. After red shirting his first year at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock, he returned to the court at 6-foot-7-inches – only to keep growing over the next year to top out at 6-foot-9-inches and 217 pounds.
Suddenly, the player recruited to campus as a shooting guard or small forward was a weapon whose skills translated across four positions.
“I grew so much that I ended up being one of the tallest guys on my team,” Isom laughed. “They still valued my shooting, but if I was going to play, I was going to have to play the 4 (power forward). I wasn’t a big fan of it at the time, screening and having to turn around after a pick-and-pop to get my shot. The bigs have to help more. But I noticed that if I set a good screen to get somebody else open, my shot came a lot easier. Coach could play me at the 4 and, if we wanted to go small ball, sometimes at the 5 (centre).”
That versatility became a hallmark of Isom’s identity as a player – a talented playmaker deadly from any spot on the court. So, it’s no wonder that when injuries and irritations started mounting, and his patented shot started failing him, frustration set in.
“I’ve never been the most athletic guy. But understanding the game, how to play it, being able to shoot the ball at a high level – that has helped me since I was a kid,” Isom said. “Losing that was the toughest to overcome.”
Now, after a year spent rebuilding himself, while also building up others in his community, Mareik Isom cannot wait to re-debut his game in the Forest City.
“The fans will see I am a lot different.”
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It has been a long time since Mareik Isom felt 100%.
Playing two years in Arkansas before transferring to the University of Texas, his college career featured three surgeries – a sports hernia and torn groin in 2015, an ankle in 2016. As a pro, his wrists and shoulders have nagged him just enough to impact his game, but not enough to require additional surgeries.
Not knowing the cause of the discomfort was frustrating: Why did some days feel so good? Why did others feel so bad? At times, he struggled to get the ball out of his hand. Other times, the shot worked but still felt “weird.”
Overcompensating for pain in one part of the body stressed other parts. It was a never-ending cycle. Nothing was comfortable. But he played through it – and played at a high level.
In 2017-18, Isom made his NBL Canada debut as a member of the Saint John Riptide, averaging 12.3 points and 4 rebounds per game. That was a springboard into the NBA G League, where he averaged 2.2 points and 2.2 rebounds in 14 games with the Utah Jazz-affiliated Salt Lake City Stars, and then played six games with the Milwaukee Bucks-affiliated Wisconsin Herd in 2018-19.
In 2019-20, Isom returned to the NBL Canada as a member of the Lightning where he averaged 10.8 points and 5.3 rebounds in 20 injury-nagged games while still shooting 54% from the field (sixth best in the league). After taking a year off, Isom became the Lightning’s first signee for the 2022 season – and both player and team are thrilled with the reunion.
“The last go around, Mo didn’t get to show what he is fully capable of as he was hampered by a wrist injury that kept him out of action for extended periods,” said Bolts head coach Doug Plumb. “He’s healthy and eager to prove that he’s a next-level type of player and mind. Mo’s a team-first player who will do anything and everything to win and is the type of person we will build our culture around.”
Isom echoed his coach’s excitement. “Last time I was up there, I was banged up when I was playing. I have that taken care of that. I’m back to shooting the ball the way I want to shoot the ball.”
(Photo: Bill Boswell / London Lightning).
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Strangely enough, it was a global pandemic that gave Isom the chance to get healthy again.
As the on-again, off-again nature of leagues around the globe made landing a gig more difficult, he opted to sit out competition for 2021. Instead, he spent the year rehabbing the body and rediscovering his game.
“For a long time there, I was struggling every day. But I had the right people around me. I just kept doing the rehab – chipping away a little bit every day, every day, every day. Now, I’m back to a point where I’m feeling comfortable with everything. It’s definitely been a physical and mental journey, to say the least, but I’m grateful for it,” Isom said.
He started working with former Riptide assistant coach Zach Urbanus, also a former high school classmate who co-founded the Texas Pro Academy (TPA), a player development program in Austin. The two clicked – the workouts were exactly what Isom needed.
“I almost started from scratch. I was building it back piece by piece by piece by piece, making sure I had the proper mechanics. There were a lot of ups and downs. But I could feel myself making subtle changes, trying to get a little bit better every time, not being satisfied. I was making sure the fundamentals and mechanics were good, so that when it is time to play, I don’t have to think about that, it’s just something I can trust because I have repped it out over and over and over again.”
While working on himself, Isom also started working more closely with TPA, connecting with players from middle school students to the NBA/WNBA. The academy’s program includes on-the-court instruction with strength and conditioning, along with off-the-court life skills.
“My struggle allowed me to get back to doing something I’ve been pretty good at for most of my life. Retooling and reteaching myself how to shoot has made it easier for me to help others when I come back in the offseason, to help kids with any problems they’re having relatively quickly because I’ve been through everything, seen most of the stuff when trying to fix myself,” Isom said.
“I try and make a difference around here. All the players in middle school, we try and make a positive impact. We make sure they have fun. But we also want to put the kids in a position where they can do well. That means being on top of what you’re doing, how you present yourself, how your workouts are structured, your attitude, your energy. The kids can see that, and they feed off that. If you’re negative, if you're coming there like you don’t really want to be there, the kids sense that. That’s why I go in there and show just as much effort as I do playing as I do in my workouts.”
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Isom knew things were coming together in November and December. The body felt good. Everything was in sync. Mechanically, he looked sound. Now, as the Lightning begin practice this week for the 2022 season, he is ready to tune up and try out the new body.
“When everything is looking and feeling good, it’s a lot easier to make small adjustments. You know how the shot should feel out of your hand, how your legs and arms work together, how all that stuff feels,” he said. “It has been in the last 60 to 90 days when I have felt like the shot is something I can master and rep out over and over and over again and not have to make too many changes.
“I’m excited to see what everything looks like now that I am healthy for the first time in some time.”
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