CATCHING UP WITH AARON HAYNES

Former Fresno High (class of 1999) basketball standout Aaron Haynes is Sacramento City College’s all-time leading scorer, and a member of the 2003-2004 All WAC First Team while at Boise State. He was the first pick in the second round by the Florence Flyers of the 2004 USBL draft. VSP’s Chris Haynes caught up with Aaron to find out what he’s been up to.

CHRIS HAYNES: What have you been up to this summer?
AARON HAYNES: Just working out and getting ready for my upcoming season.

C.H. How many years have you been playing overseas now?
A.H. This season coming up will be my 6th year playing overseas.

C.H. Is it true that you were 5’9 as a junior in high school and you’re now 6’8?
A.H. Lol, no I was 5’11″ my junior year and I grew to be 6’8″ by the end of my senior year.

C.H. What was it like to go through that growth spurt in a short time frame?
A.H. It felt good. I was always a smaller guard and then I became one of the bigger guys on the court in one year.

C.H. Were you recruited by anybody out of high school?
A.H. There were a couple of small colleges that showed interest, but no major programs. I knew I wasn’t ready to play D-1 out of high school, so I chose to go to juco and hone my skills.

C.H. Coach Andrew Jones of Sacramento City College said you had a knack for scoring. Where did that come from?
A.H. I think just by being a small guard my whole life, up until my senior year when I sprouted to 6’8″. I kept my guard skills and worked on my post moves and that helped me become an inside outside type of player that can score from anywhere on the court.

C.H. What schools showed interest out of Sacramento City College?
A.H. It was a lot; Washington State, USF, UC Irvine, Southern Utah, Utah State, Pacific, Boise, Idaho State. Basically a lot of small D-1 schools.

C.H. Were you disappointed Fresno State didn’t show any interest?
A.H. Actually, I was. I wanted to go there so my family could see me play for two years. However, it all worked out for the best because after I signed with Boise, Fresno State was ineligible for any postseason play. Therefore, it worked out for the best and I’m happy with the decision I made.

C.H. What was the experience like in Boise?
A.H. Ah man, it was a great experience. If I could start all over and do it again, I would. I heard a whole lot of things about Boise, which none of it were true. They treated me well and it’s a great college town. I loved it.

C.H. What was it like to comeback home and face the ‘Dogs each year?
A.H. It was great. My family got to see me play, I got a home cooked meal from my mom, and to see my family and friends, it was a very good experience for me.

C.H. You earned first team All WAC your senior season. Do you feel like you proved to the ‘Dogs that they missed out on one?
A.H. Yeah, I had a good junior and senior year. I felt I showed many schools that they should have noticed me and that I was able to play at a high level.

C.H. You led Boise to two consecutive NIT victories against UNLV and Marquette, averaging 20.0 ppg and 8.5 rpg, also putting up 21 points with 8 boards against Marquette in a loss. Did you think that was your chance to show the NBA you can play with anybody?
A.H. Actually I did. That Marquette game had many NBA scouts there because Marquette plays in the same arena has the Milwaukee Bucks. I played well but it hurt that we lost. I wanted to keep showing that I could continue to produce against bigger opponents.

C.H. You’ve now had a successful professional career, but do you ever wonder how you would fare in the NBA?
A.H. Every summer I do. I live in Sacramento now and I work out with some of the Kings players like Jason Thompson, Kevin Martin, and Donte Greene. I always play well against them so I always think about if I had that chance. At the same time I’m still blessed. I don’t want to knock my blessing by saying ‘what if.’ I’m blessed to be doing what I love.

C.H. Are there any plans to make a run at the NBA?
A.H. If the opportunity presented itself, I would like to. I know I could play there but it’s so political. I’m not so hung up on making the NBA. If I had a chance, I would take it and be grateful, but it’s very political to get in the NBA. I’m making a great living for myself overseas so I can’t complain.

C.H. Who are you playing for this season?
A.H. I just signed with Mobis Phoebus, which is in South Korea. I played last season with their rival Samsung of South Korea. I scored 42 points in a playoff game against Mobis Phoebus, now I’m one of them.

C.H. What coach was very inspirational in the path you took to play professional basketball?
A.H. I would have to name two coaches. Greg Graham at Boise and, most importantly, my coach from Sac City Andrew Jones. He’s a really good coach and I had a good off the court relationship with him. In fact, I still talk to him every summer and work out with him. He had a lot to do with honing my game and giving me the freedom to play my game. Most coaches try to put restraints on you, he didn’t do that. I owe a lot of my success to coach Jones.

THIS AND THAT: Career: Fresno High School: Averaged 17 points and six rebounds per game
2000-2001: Sacramento City College: averaged 17.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game
2001-2002: Sacramento City College: 20.4ppg: Finished as Sacramento City’s all-time leading scorer with 1,188 career points
2002-2003: Boise St. (NCAA): 29 games: 14.7ppg, 5.7rpg, 1.1apg
2003-2004: Boise St. (NCAA): 33 games: 14.8ppg, 6.1rpg, 1.7apg
2004: Drafted by Florence Flyers (USBL, 2nd round)
2004: At the beginning of June signed at Florence Flyers (USBL, starting five): 8 games: 13.4ppg, 7.4rpg, 2.1apg
2004-2005: Pyrbasket Tampere (FIN-League): got injured in Nov.’04 and was sidelined for few weeks: 28 games: 18.1ppg, 8.8rpg, 2.1apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 55.8%, 3Pts: 47.4%
2005-2006: Sundsvall Dragons (Sweden-Basketligan): only pre-season,
in Nov.’05 signed at Forssan Koripojat (FIN-1st Division, starting five): 17 games: 23.8ppg, 12.6rpg, 2.5apg, 2.0spg, 2FGP: 56.4%, 3PT: 31.8%, FT: 69.8%
2006-2007: Al Ahli (UAE-D1, starting five): 17.0ppg, 10.0rpg
2007-2008: Sporting Feytroun (Lebanon-Div.A, starting five): 15 games: Score-4(23.3ppg), Reb-1(15.4rpg), Assists-5(5.6apg), 1.7spg, Blocks-2(2.1bpg), 2FGP: 50.6%, 3PT: 15.4%, FT: 82%: 24.0ppg, Reb-1(17.0rpg), Assists-5(5.0apg), Blocks-1(2.5bpg), FT-1: 85.0%
2008-09: [Korea} Seoul Samsung Thunders (08-09) 15.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 82.2% FT, 58.2 FG%
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Awards/Achievements:
2002 California Community College All-State Team
All-WAC 1st Team -04
Boise State team MVP -03, 04
Finnish 1st Division Runner-Up -06
Lebanese Cup Semifinals -08
Asia-Basket.com All-Lebanese League Honorable Mention -08

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