James, Reynolds haunt OU fans for final time
Published: 3/17/2010 1:53 AM
Last Modified: 3/17/2010 1:53 AM
Want to see an Oklahoma basketball fan's face turn red? Mention to him that instead of freshmen Tommy Mason-Griffin and Tiny Gallon at point guard and power forward last season, with their lapses in judgment off the court and lapses in effort on it, the Sooners could have started seniors Scottie Reynolds and Damion James.
Want to see that face turn purple? Show them the Sports Illustrated piece recently written by Kelli Anderson. In it, Reynolds says he and James are like "real brothers," dating back to the 2005 ABCD Camp where they roomed together.
"Actually, they've always had a lot in common," Anderson writes. "Both were born to unwed teenage moms and raised in unconventional families. Both are guileless, almost to a fault, yet stingy with their trust. Both have remained tight with their high school coaches, and both felt a similar bond with Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson. They took their visit to Norman on the same weekend and committed as high school juniors in the spring of 2005 before rooming together at ABCD.
"'It was a connection you don't find with too many people,' Reynolds says of James. 'I felt I could trust this dude and that we could be a real force together.'"
Well, yes, they could have been. But as the purple-faced fan can tell you (if he can un-clench his teeth), Sampson bolted for Indiana, then Reynolds and James bolted for Villanova and Texas.
And while the Sooners watch the NCAA tournament this week after their 13-18 season, James, the Big 12's all-time leading rebounder, leads Texas into its East Regional opener against Wake Forest, while Reynolds, 50 points from becoming Nova's all-time leading scorer, leads the Wildcats into their South Regional opener against Robert Morris.
The only thing the Reynolds-James story lacks is a fairy tale ending. March Madness typically affords players that opportunity.
Wonder how many OU backers, however, will be rooting for Sampson's two former signees to blow it.
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
