JayVaughn Pinkston gets another shot

VILLANOVA, Pa. -- The game will be played in Paris, not Philadelphia. The opponent will be a to be determined European team, not a Big East rival.

JayVaughn Pinkston doesn’t care.

On Tuesday, he will slide into his Villanova basketball uniform for the first time, a year late and a lifetime wiser.

In December, Pinkston was suspended by the university after he was charged with two counts of simple assault and harassment following a fight at an off-campus apartment. Expected to be a critical piece in the Wildcats’ puzzle, the McDonald’s All-American instead could only watch from the stands as his team rode a rollercoaster year to a late-season plummet.

Now it is time for his second chance.

On Sunday, Villanova departs for a nine-day trip to Paris and Amsterdam. Pinkston, who retained his eligibility because his was a university and not NCAA suspension, will join them as a redshirt freshman.

“I’m nervous and excited,’’ Pinkston said about the trip. “It just feels so good to be back, playing with my teammates again.’’

Because the case against him is still pending, Pinkston couldn’t talk specifically about the incident, but there is little doubt the legal run-in has left an impression.

But this is more than just the run of the mill learning-from-mistakes lesson. Pinkston has learned the value of loyalty as well.

Under the suspension, he wasn’t allowed on campus nor could he have any official contact with his teammates. Yet he said he never felt ostracized.

“My teammates still made me a part of everything they could,’’ Pinkston said. “We’d meet up at local spots off campus or wherever. They went out of their way to make sure I was included.’’

Pinkston returned the loyalty in kind.

Plenty of people -- especially Nova fans who saw how desperately the Wildcats needed Pinkston as the season fell apart -- thought the punishment harsh when compared to how other schools handled similar disciplinary actions.

The university, however, said Pinkston’s punishment was no different than any Villanova student would receive under similar circumstances. And Pinkston never argued.

He could have asked for a release from his letter of intent and transferred, but he didn’t.

“I was upset when I first heard the outcome, but I brought it upon myself,’’ he said. “The Villanova family helped me get through everything and I wasn’t going to not be a man of my word. I had the option to leave, but it never really crossed my mind.’’

Officially back in the fold since June -- he enrolled in the school’s two summer sessions -- Pinkston is ready to get his basketball life back on track.

The Wildcats will no doubt welcome him with open arms. The New York product was considered a big cog in Jay Wright’s 2010 recruiting class, rated 62nd in the ESPNU 100.

A power player in the paint who can also score from the perimeter, Pinkston’s offense would have been a much-needed shot in the arm last season as the Cats went 5-11 after a 16-1 start and finished a once-promising season with a opening-round NCAA tourney loss to George Mason.

Now with Corey Stokes, Corey Fisher and Antonio Pena gone, the young Wildcats need Pinkston even more.

“It was really hard sitting out and watching my teammates play, not being able to help them when they might have needed it,’’ Pinkston said. “Now it’s just so great to be back with them, playing.’’

And for Pinkston, that’s all that matters -- not the place, not the opponent. Just the opportunity to play college basketball.

Source: http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/33777/jayvaughn-pinkston-gets-another-shot

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