Jeffrey Liu (12)  sprints up the court as he calls a play. He gazes at the opposing team’s defense searching for the precise moment to make his move. When he sees the opening, he immediately darts to the basket, receives the ball on the way and elegantly lays it into the hoop off the backboard while absorbing two defenders’ attempts to block his shot. 

“On the court, I’m not the fastest or the strongest and I don’t jump the highest. I think what makes me actually good is just how I think about the game,” he said. “By knowing where and when to cut or pass or shoot, I can achieve the same results as someone who is more physically gifted or spends more time practicing simply because I do things with a purpose in mind.”

For Jeffrey, this drive to do tasks in the fastest and most efficient manner has led to his interest in economics — a subject he sees as connected to all other aspects of life.  

“Efficiency is just pretty important to everything. That’s why I love economics; it’s just about finding the most efficient way to do something, so it’s always applicable,” he said. “No matter what problem you have; to really solve it you have to look at your available resources and you have to find the best allocation of those resources to solve your issue.”

His friends have found that in pursuit of this best way to do things, he is always aware of his use of time. However, his omnipresent problem-solving attitude is balanced by one of independence and nonconformity. 

“The way he composes himself is extremely rationally based; whenever we do something fun like play football together, he’s the one that sets up the exact time frame that he can stay for,” friend Jeffrey Yang (12) said. “That being said, because he has such strong logical grounding, he’s very strongly opinionated. He knows what he believes in.”

While Jeffrey keeps a close relationship with his friends, he values his confidence and resolve in his own beliefs. 

“I want to be remembered for not changing under the pressure of other people. A lot of times, I think that people can fall into the trap of caring too much about what other people do or say,” he said. “In class when there are activities which split the class up into sides of the room based on what they believe in, I am usually the only one on the other side.”

Close friend Rakesh Nori (12) has found that Jeffrey’s self-confidence inspires others to more willingly speak and profoundly influences his interactions with his friends. 

“Whenever we’re talking about something, he’s not afraid to say what he thinks even if it’s not the popular opinion,” Rakesh said. “He’ll tell you how he feels without reserve, and I think it inspires others to do the same. I think this confidence really comes from his confidence in the fact that he knows that he has the reasoning behind his unpopular opinions.”

Jeffrey’s nonconformist attitude manifests itself on the basketball court through his ability to play anywhere on the court and still thrive. 

“He can really play any position on the court. He’s never been limited to just being a guard or a big, and he has the skills to do it all whether it be shooting a midrange jumper or driving to the basket and bodying a defender,” teammate and friend Naveen Mirapuri (12) said. 

 However, Jeffrey’s cogent side is not lost when he plays. As a captain of the basketball team, Jeffrey still treats the court and its endeavors as a problem waiting for his solution. 

“What’s amazing about basketball is that it is just a bunch of strangers that are put together. On the team, there might be people that don’t spend time with each other and every day we spend 2 hours bettering each other,” Jeffrey said. “As the season progresses, we learn to compromise and be a unit despite our lack of prior friendships because, in the end, it’s about finding a way to win.”