Ever since he was a kid, Admiral Schofield dreamt of playing basketball at the highest level. Born and raised in the Westminster area of London, England, Admiral remembers quickly discovering his unique passion for the game shortly after moving back to the States. Growing up in Waukegan, Illinois, the deep sports history that spread throughout the state along with Chicago's strong basketball culture initially peaked his interest in the sport. But, it was in watching Michael Jordan play on the court and learning about his story on documentaries such as "Air Time" and "Come Fly With Me" that Admiral fostered a deep love for the game. It was only up from there. Committed to competing at the highest level, winning championships, and playing against some of the most talented players in the world, he became determined to one day play in the NBA. More focused than ever, Admiral trained daily and began playing additional sports—including track and football—to improve his agility, speed, toughness, and physicality on the basketball court. He was on a mission. Throughout his time in high school, Admiral worked to strengthen his skills and expand his basketball IQ further. He was unstoppable. As he embarked on his collegiate career at the University of Tennessee, he continued to step outside of his comfort zone and work towards becoming the best version of himself both on and off the court. For him, it was all about the journey. The journey towards turning his dreams into reality. The journey that, through hard work and perseverance, would lead him to play the game he had loved since a young age on the biggest stage.
Sure enough, shortly after graduating from Tennessee, the opportunity he had dreamt about for years was here. With the 42nd pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers selected Admiral. He had done it. He had achieved his dreams of playing in the league. The rest is history. Over the past three years, Admiral has immersed himself in this new chapter of his basketball journey. Currently in his fourth season, he is excited to showcase different aspects of his game this year and in the ones to come. Along with his commitment to building his legacy on the court, Admiral has also pursued a series of ventures off the court focused on mentoring the next generation of athletes and giving back to communities; and is thrilled to tap further into these areas throughout his professional career. With all these goals in mind, for Admiral, one thing remains at the forefront of everything: it’s all about the process. The process of staying ready for your opportunity, so that when it’s showtime, you own the moment!
Take us back to your journey at the University of Tennessee! Could you share more with us about your time there?
Yeah! You know, my freshman year, I wasn't recruited by Rick Barnes. I was recruited by Donnie Tyndall—who was fired when I was coming in—, and Rick Barnes replaced him. So I always had a little bit in the back of my mind like playing for a coach that didn't recruit me, some of the things I would have to endure to earn his respect, earn his trust to be out on the floor, (etc). I was recruited to be a shooting guard, a small forward; and the only way I could get on the floor at Tennessee my freshman year was to play the five. I had to learn how to be more physical, how to do the little things, play team defense, and understand positioning. I really think it made me more like a Swiss Army Knife on the court and be more versatile in a lot of different positions. My second year, he made me work my way up back to my position. I started playing the four a little bit more—which was a little different positioning on offense. It took me some time to learn it, but towards the end of the year, I started to get it.
Going into my junior year, I got back to my natural position which was on the wing. It kind of all just started to tie in for me. My versatility on the floor, especially on the defensive end and offensively as well—being able to score at all three levels—, I really just took advantage of (that) my junior year. We ended up making the tournament and I ended up getting the opportunity to go test the waters which I did a really good job of raising my stock. Which, (in turn), really helped me going into my senior year. I ended up wanting to come back to get my degree in my senior year. So I came back and was really locked in on my routine every day—putting up 1,000 shots a day—, really just pushing myself to be a perfectionist in that year, and taking my leadership to another level as well. We ended up being the No. 1 team in the country. Also playing beside Grant Williams—two-time Player of the Year—, we just had an amazing run towards the end of my career at Tennessee. I really hate that we didn't get a chance to make it to the Final Four and that kind of thing, but I thought we had a really special group. From that, I feel like we really established a culture for Tennessee Basketball that is going to be built upon. I think that it’s really gonna shine light on just the talent that comes through Tennessee. The recruiting job that they do there. They’re recruiting guys that want to come in and work hard. You know, we were a bunch of three-stars and two-stars, and we did something very special.
Along with that, you expanded your game and continued to foster your legacy year after year at Tennessee. You had an incredible career there—scoring over 1,500 career points, leading the team to the Sweet Sixteen, and fostering that Tennessee Basketball culture like you mentioned. What did earning those accolades and achieving those milestones mean to you?
It was always special. But it was all, for me personally, always about the process. I enjoyed the process of everything that came with leading up to the point of the accolades. I've never been a big award guy, you know? I’ve won awards, had my accolades, but my focus was always just winning and the process of winning. Just enjoying that process. I mean, even now we talk about so many memories that we had in the past. That team, we still have the same group chat that we had in college. We basically talk everyday, every other day. So just to have that special connection and everything that we went through, I feel like those are the things that I value more than just the accolades. Being First Team All-SEC and Second All Team…all that stuff, that's great; but I think the biggest thing too was just being rewarded with that SEC Championship—with all our hard work. Getting picked second to last that year, and finishing first, was just testament to how special that group was.
Reflecting back on your time there, how do you think your game elevated to prepare you for the next level?