Reynolds makes progress in Italy

J.R. Reynolds made some nice money, learned a little Italian and developed a better feel for the point-guard position.
That would be the Cliff Notes’ version of the former Virginia star’s first season as a professional basketball player in Italy.
“I went in there not knowing what to expect — going into a different country and stuff,” Reynolds said. “But it turned out to be great.”
Now Reynolds is back at Virginia. Well, sort of. The former Roanoke Catholic star has decided to make Charlottesville his home base this summer as he prepares for another shot at the NBA.
Reynolds’ plan is to train at Virginia, play NBA summer league in July, then hopefully earn an invitation to a team’s training camp in October.
The 6-foot-2 guard, who was not selected in last year’s NBA Draft, isn’t sure what he’ll do if he doesn’t make an NBA roster. His options would be returning to Europe or possibly playing in the NBA’s Developmental League.
“The D-League is good because you get call-ups every once in a while,” said Reynolds, who was an All-ACC second-team choice his senior year in 2007, “but what happens if you don’t get a call-up?”
What happens is you don’t make nearly as much money as you do in Europe. You don’t have nearly as cushy of a lifestyle. And you play in half-empty arenas in places like Albuquerque and Reno.
That’s a far cry from Italy, where Reynolds often performed in front of packed houses.
Reynolds averaged about 18 points and three assists for Vanoli Soresina and hit one of the biggest shots of his team’s season. Playing on the road, he drained an incredible shot — which can be seen on YouTube — from beyond half-court to beat rival Edimes Pavia at the buzzer.
“The [fans] thought they had won,” Reynolds said, “but then when the shot went in, everybody was just silent. If you look at the video, you can see them throwing stuff on the court. A guy came out on the court and started cussing me out in Italian.”
That incident withstanding, Reynolds really enjoyed his time in Italy.
“At first, not knowing the language was a big thing,” Reynolds said, “but then when I got used to it and had an open mind about things, it was beautiful.”
Reynolds, who only signed a one-year contract with Vanoli, is by no means fluent in Italian. He says he learned just enough to “get by.”
When pressed about what that meant exactly, he admitted it entailed being able to talk a little trash on the court and having the requisite skills to introduce himself to young ladies at various social events.
Reynolds, who turned 24 in May, said the caliber of play in Italy surprised him. It was a lot more competitive than he expected. He joked that his assist total would have been much higher if he had been playing in the states.
“Over there, the assists are a lot different,” he said, laughing. “You’ve got to like drive to the hole and damn near hand the ball off to a person shooting a layup to get an assist. If you drive and kick to a guy shooting a 3-pointer, you’re not getting an assist. It’s different.”
Reynolds, who was pretty much a shooting guard during his college career, played predominantly point guard for Vanoli — a transition that will undoubtedly make him more attractive to potential NBA teams.
Reynolds says he improved a lot as a floor general.
“It was good because I saw the game more and became more patient and learned how to control a team,” he said. “I had a great big man to work with and got better at the screen-and-roll game.
“I’m always going to be a shooter. That’s not going to change, but I’ve just got to transition myself over to the point a little bit.”
Reynolds tried to keep tabs on his alma mater as much as he could.
“It was a disappointing season, man, very dissapointing,” said Reynolds, alluding to Virginia’s 17-16 campaign. “They’ll be young next year, so you never can tell — but if they mature and follow [coach Dave] Leitao then I think they can be good.”
Reynolds says he recently got together with former teammate Sean Singletary and gave him some advice on what to expect from a career overseas. The recently graduated Singletary, who is not projected to be drafted, is currently working out for a number of NBA teams.
“We talked a little bit about everything,” Reynolds said. “I think everything will work out for him if he just keeps working hard.”
It’s the same approach Reynolds hopes will work for him — regardless of what continent he’s playing on.
“I’m just going to be patient about everything,” Reynolds said, “and let everything fall into place.”