By J.P. Pelzman<\/p>\n
Shavar Reynolds Jr. was over 6,000 miles away from home when he had an experience that shaped his athletic future and the way he saw the world.<\/p>\n
His family lived in Japan for three years when his father, Shavar Sr., a master-at-arms in the U.S. Navy, was stationed there, and it\u2019s where he attended fifth through seventh grade.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt changed my outlook on life,\u201d recalls Reynolds Jr., now a Seton Hall point guard, \u201cbecause it showed me no matter where you go, people are people. I always thought it would be a whole different world, but it\u2019s really not. We\u2019re all just people.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s one reason he felt the need to speak out about social injustice on a podcast last year, in the wake of several racially charged incidents in the country.<\/p>\n
The years in Japan \u201cshowed me we can live equally and peacefully but we have to want to. \u2026 I think that\u2019s the big thing. \u2026 I\u2019m always going to advocate for it and speak out because it\u2019s possible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reynolds\u2019 time overseas also changed his athletic direction, which had been oriented around the gridiron. But only flag football was available on the base, while basketball courts were plentiful.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe passion for football went away,\u201d he says. \u201cI started falling in love with basketball because I started playing it so much.\u201d<\/p>\n
He played it well enough to be a three-year starter and 1,000-point career scorer back home in New Jersey at Manchester Township High School. But that didn\u2019t earn him any Division I scholarship offers.<\/p>\n
So why didn\u2019t he give up?<\/p>\n
\u201cBelief,\u201d Reynolds says. \u201cI just knew I could. Even if I wasn\u2019t good enough [at first], I would work hard enough to be good enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
He attended Covenant College Prep in nearby Belmar, and his coach, Ian Turnbull, set up an open-gym workout at Seton Hall. Reynolds showed his stuff, playing with notable Seton Hall seniors such as Angel Delgado and Khadeen Carrington.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey really liked the way he played,\u201d coach Kevin Willard recalls. \u201cIt was really about those guys saying they wanted him to be on the team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reynolds was a walk-on at first. But that changed when he and Willard spoke after his freshman season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought he\u2019d be a really good role player,\u201d Willard says, explaining his reasoning for granting Reynolds a scholarship. \u201cYou have to give him a tremendous amount of credit for his work ethic. He has an edge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI went into this with the idea that I was going to earn a scholarship,\u201d Reynolds says, \u201cbut it doesn\u2019t compare to the actual moment that it happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thrust into a starting point guard role this past season, Reynolds was outstanding for the Pirates, finishing in the top-10 in the BIG EAST Conference in assists (4.2 per game), assist\/turnover ratio (1.9) and steals (1.8 per game).<\/p>\n
Willard \u201cbelieved in me when nobody else wanted to,\u201d Reynolds says. \u201cTechnically I shouldn\u2019t be here. \u2026 I\u2019m not going to let that opportunity slip nor am I going to let him fall for taking that leap of faith on me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shavar\u2019s father recently retired and now can be there physically for his son, even though he always was there in spirit. Equally instrumental in his upbringing has been his mother, Teekemia, a social worker.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s my rock. She\u2019s always been there for me,\u201d he says. \u201cShe has whatever I need. I love her a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reynolds is about to graduate with a degree in social and behavioral sciences with a minor in criminal justice but isn\u2019t ready to think about his future.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just try to live in the moment,\u201d he says, although he wants to play basketball professionally if he can. \u201cWhat I do know is I\u2019m going to be the same guy that works hard and try to be the hardest worker in the room.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for his four years at Seton Hall, he says, \u201cI\u2019m just thankful for the culture here. \u2026 All of our fans, all of our donors, I love them. \u2026 I\u2019m glad I was able to be surrounded by such good people. For the four years I\u2019ve been here, I appreciate every bit of it and I\u2019ll never forget it.\u201d<\/p>\n
J.P. Pelzman is a freelance writer who covered Seton Hall basketball for 14 seasons for<\/em> The Record of Hackensack, N.J.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Shavar Reynolds Jr.’s time abroad helped shape his athletic future and the way he sees the world.<\/p>\n