Former Ponte Vedra High School guard Jackson Johnson has accepted the job as the next head boys basketball coach at independent powerhouse IMG Academy, the Times-Union has learned, where he will lead the staff of one of the premier athletic programs in the United States.
Johnson has coached for the past four years at the Newman School in Boston. In 2025-26, Newman won the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) AAA championship, then defeated Blair Academy of New Jersey 92-72 to win the National Prep Championship Series in March. The team finished with 38 wins on the season.
At IMG, he replaces Sean McAloon, who was not retained following the Ascenders’ 2025-26 season. McAloon had coached IMG for nine years.
IMG has consistently fielded some of the nation’s highest-rated basketball prospects, with Memphis Grizzlies center Zach Edey and Phoenix Suns center Mark Williams among several active NBA players from the school.
The Jackson Johnson file
A two-sport star at Ponte Vedra, Johnson helped the Sharks to a Florida High School Athletic Association state baseball championship in 2013 and earned the St. Augustine Record boys basketball player of the year award in 2014. Johnson’s 1,339 points all-time at Ponte Vedra ranked him second in school history behind Beau Beech, and he also set school records in assists and steals.
Johnson signed with Tulane for baseball, not basketball, playing 28 games in his freshman year as a pitcher and outfielder. But after an elbow injury, he returned to the basketball court and saw part-time duty with Green Wave hoops team, at that time under former NBA coach Mike Dunleavy Sr.
Following his Tulane career, Johnson served as an assistant at Northfield Mount Hermon in Massachusetts for two seasons before moving to the head coaching post at Newman in 2026.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Northeast Florida native hired as IMG Academy head basketball coach
Reporting by Clayton Freeman, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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