By Matt Norlander

FOXSports.com continues to track the month in the life of Jakarr Sampson.

This week, we wanted to get a different perspective, so we went to different sources: his coaches.

The primary guy is Dru Joyce, the head coach of the King James Shooting Stars. He coached LeBron James way back when, and seems to be one of the most level-headed AAU coaches out there. Joyce has seen great improvement, naturally, since he first coached Sampson two years ago, “when he was really, really skinny.”

And Sampson’s more of a system-oriented player, Joyce added.

"He’s got good talent, but once he got into our system, he started playing much, much better," he said. “Once he learned how to play the game, everything else started falling into place.”

What’s refreshing is Joyce’s candid takes on his players. Sampson is a bit of a goofball still, as I posted on earlier this week, and Joyce is trying to nurture him into the spotlight that’s being shined brighter and brighter on Sampson.

“Every now and then you have to get on him because he has to understand the maturation process that comes with success,” Joyce said. “The maturation part comes from him understanding that the more attention you get and receive, the more responsible you'll be held accountable for. The trivial things people can find themselves getting into, it can be magnified when he does it, opposed to anyone else.” 

Take for example Sampson learning No. 66-ranked Scout.com recruit Zach Price committing to Louisville. Sampson was talking with Price, casually joking about how he’s going to join him in red, and that caused a minor stir. Joyce said it was all in jest, but Sampson hasn’t quite yet learned all the nuances to the recruiting game—and how dangerous one innocent, fleeting sentence can be.

But Joyce wasn’t dogging on Sampson. He’s just a coach talking as a coach, and no 16-year-old athlete is perfect. Far from it.

“But he's not a troubled kid” Joyce said. “He likes to have fun. I’m always critiquing him, and reward him when he does something well — but I won't pump it into him or inflate his confidence.”

One of the things Joyce has tried to teach since he began this process many years ago—coaching his son and a few other Division I players—is emphasizing to the real talents how critical it is to handle success properly.

“LeBron was an outgoing guy,” Joyce said. “Jakarr is a shy personality, and once he knows you he'll warm up to you and will trust you. But LeBron was the ultimate showman on the floor and off and liked having fun. Jakarr, when you meet him, he's people-friendly and has an infectious smile, but he takes awhile to get to know you.”

Basketball-wise, Sampson’s — a long, 6-8, 193-pound wing player — primary strength is his attack-to-the-basket mentality. Only issue, Joyce said, is his inability to be an elite finisher at the highest level.

“It takes his one or two steps to get from point A to B, while the average guy would take three or four steps,” Joyce said. “He has a superior first step.”

And as for the recent LeBron circus, I couldn’t avoid asking the megastar’s former AAU coach what he thought of last week’s Decision. His director answer to that question:

“LeBron is a big supporter of our program and he's been doing an excellent job. He loves youth basketball, and him and Jakarr have grown to like each other, coming from the same high school. But as for last week, LeBron is doing what is doing what he believes is going to be best for him. Ever since he was young he believed in things [his coaches] instilled in him. He's going to get everything together, I’m sure. And the most influential person in his life is still his mom.”

Joyce, who speaks with LeBron on occasion, has not heard from him since the Miami move. Joyce also said an assistant coach from the King James Shooting Stars will be traveling down to Miami this weekend to meet up with No. 6.