Former BYU and Utah legend Jimmer Fredette accomplishes life long dream

Jimmer Fredette is one step closer to his dream.

Had things gone a bit differently last season, the Utah Jazz may have had Utah’s most popular basketball player on their roster. The Utah Jazz were interested in the former BYU icon, but opted to pass, something he doesn’t hold against the franchise. Due to the Jazz passing on Fredette, he was able to chase a new dream;

The Olympics.

Speaking to Olympics.com in January, Fredette revealed that beyond the NBA, beyond being rich, the one thing he wanted more than anything was to play in the Olympics, telling the outlet;

"I have been obsessed with the Olympics ever since I was three, four years old. I mean, I watch every Olympics and I watch every event. I’m locked in when the Olympics are on. From day until night, it’s always on at least one TV. So, to have an opportunity to be a part of that would be a dream come true for me literally."

And now, thanks to some tireless effort and some key teammates, the state of Utah legend was able to do just that as he and his 3×3 squad have qualified for the Olympic games. The Jazz were able to qualify thanks to their second-place ranking in the FIBA World rankings. They would’ve been the top seed, but the Serbian national team, who are currently first in the rankings, defeated the Americans for gold in the 3×3 World Cup.

For Fredette, who has always wanted to compete in the Olympics, he’ll finally be able to next Summer as the games come to Paris, France. Fredette, who will turn 35 in February, is likely in the twilight of his professional career, and will likely retire in the not-too-distant future.

And while it’d be great to see Fredette play some minutes for the Jazz before he hangs up his sneakers, seeing Fredette close out a career of championships and MVPs with an Olympic Gold Medal would be pretty sweet.