THIS COULD BE A PRICELESS SEASON FOR AJ

by Zach Smart


For UConn Husky loyalists, it’s about as easy to forget as the night you lost your virginity.

Standing behind the podium following an 82-49 drubbing of lowly Quinnipiac, Jim Calhoun pointed out a clear trend to the sea of media people. In the journalists’ eyes, there had been as eye-opening experience.

When the Price is right, UConn has a perfect storm. Calhoun said there's a direct correlation between UConn victories/marquee matchups and Price's exceptional showings. "Look it up in the notes," said Calhoun, the loquacious, longtime Husky coach.

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It was December. A chain of blistering snowstorms hit Hartford that week and not even half the 16,294 seats at the XL Center were spoken for.

The joint was so empty and quiet, you could be sitting two sections behind the basket and still hear A.J. Price running the team, spitting instructions and calling out plays before UConn blew the game open with a flurry of alley-oops and fast break bangers.

Price was in the press room, checking the messages on his cell phone while his coach was behind the podium, singing him praises and pegging him as the key that could eventually drive the big Husky bus into familiar, championship territory and a favorite in the March Madness Betting frenzy that follows.

Moments later, a flock of reporters cornered Price. They summarized what his coach had just told them and asked Price for his reaction.

"That's everything I could have dreamed of," said Price, he of the propensity for wetting pull-up jumpers.

“It’s an honor…"He (Calhoun) has been trying to get me to do that (step into a leadership role) for a long time," said Price. "Now, things are coming along. Sunday was the first day where we were clicking on all cylinders. I think (Sunday) was the beginning of something real special with this team."

The moment was significant for Price. Underneath the surface, it injected the new, revitalized confidence in him and led to Price’s emergence as a top Big East guard last year. It’s when he first officially recognized his role, understanding he had some management of the team.

After a second-rate sophomore campaign in 2006-07—a rust-smeared season in which Price was mired in a shooting slump—A.J. Price came into his own last season. The then-junior averaged 14.5 points and 5.8 assists, helping lead UConn to the NCAA tournament after a rare one-year hiatus from the gargantuan sporting event.

Against several critical Big East opponents, Pittsburgh and West Virginia to name a few, Price hit the winning shot,had the final say, or turned in an eye-opening performance. More often than not, he was a lead guard and gave an efficient account of himself.

UConn hit their pinnacle in late January, reeling off five straight victories—three coming against nationally ranked opponents. It occurred, oddly enough, following the suspension of high-octane guard Jerome Dyson.

For Price and UConn, however, it wasn’t supposed to end in the fashion that it did.

Joe Alexander slammed UConn out of the Big East tournament, hitting them up for 34 points as West Virginia stamped a 78-72 victory.

Then, in college basketball’s biggest stage, dreams were shattered. The Huskies faced San Diego in the first round. On paper, it looked like a cakewalk to the second round.Then, the fourth setback in his four-year Husky career materialized. Price injured his left knee, landing awkwardly on it following a drive to the cup. He was forced to leave the game and did not return. Without him, the high-horsepower Huskies fell 70-69 in overtime. He’s been rehabbing the knee all summer and is back in full throttle.The curious case of A.J. Price has been explored time and time again. The saga continues for the kid who’s handled a mountain of adversity. Now it’s the last-hurrah, the final countdown for what’s been a wild, unpredictable collegiate career for Price.

For Price, the road to success was about as smooth as a trip up I-95 in snow-blanketed roads. Price would be sidelined his first two years due to health and legal issues before streamlining his career in 2006. In 2004, Price suffered a life-threatening condition. Instead of dishing out pin-point passes to then-Husky teammates Charlie Villanueva, Rudy Gay, and Josh Boone (all of whom now play in the NBA), Price was in a hospital bed having a thin cocktail of medications dished to him. What Price had was a brain hemorrhage, caused by an Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM), a birth defect in his brain. For ten grueling days, the Amityville community and Husky fans were caught in a complete standstill. Price was in critical condition.

Two weeks later, Price's loved ones and supporters breathed a sigh of relief as he was released from the hospital. Price told reporters he was "happy to be alive" and was told by his doctor that he couldn't do any strenuous activity. In other words, kiss basketball goodbye. Radiation treatment was the next step on the road to recovery for Price, who was forced to spend hours walking on a treadmill just to get his leg mobility back. In the fall of 2005, before a season that Price still wasn't cleared to play in, the then-19-year-old was suspended and arrested for his role in the theft of laptops which he and then-teammate Marcus Williams attempted to sell. Two of the stolen computers were found hidden in Price's dorm room and he was slapped with three counts of felony larceny and lying to the police, a misdemeanor.

He was sanctioned by the University, suspended for the 2005-2006 academic year. Instead of spending his first two years at UConn operating offense, Price spent his first two years fading into obscurity and tarnishing the lasting legacy he left on the New York high school and AAU circuit, significantly. The pundits and skeptics surfaced, collectively, all saying that A.J. Price was done. He was done not only at UConn but done for good. No legit program would take a gamble on him. He would probably walk into a YMCA gym somewhere, a parole beeper strapped around his ankle, forever squandering talent.

Most kids would have packed their bags and went home. But most kids aren't A.J. Price. Most kids can't say they recovered from a life-threatening illness that derailed them to the point where walking became a challenge. Most kids can't say they put together a storied stay like the one Price did at Amityville High, blitzing teams to the tune of 29 points per game his senior year, collecting two state championships and three Long Island championships in three years. Price jumped into the fold last year, but was clearly slowed down by the two-year layoff. The Huskies floundered, and Price was rustier than a bad hardware store, averaging a meager 9.4 points in 23 starts. Frustrated with the way both he and his team was underachieving, he told the New Haven Register he was never asked to lead the team. It was a copout, some would opine.

He jumped into the 2007-2008 campaign a different player. Playing with a dish-before-swish mentality, Price handed out nine dimes in the first win of the season, a squeaker over a gritty Morgan State team in the opening round of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic, benefitting Coaches vs. Cancer. Price dialed in from a different area code in the regional round against Buffalo, hitting two long-range treys that jump-started a 17-0 spurt. Price would finish with a game-high 24 points as the Huskies routed Buffalo, 82-57. Price was named MVP of the Storrs regional. Later, in hotly-contested games against No. 2 Memphis and No. 20 Gonzaga, Price averaged 22.5 points and 3.5 assists.

Then, one snow-stormy night in December, following a dump-off of Quinnipiac, Price rediscovered his basketball identity. He’s been bleeding confidence ever since. Still, a tough road lies ahead. Price has overcome another detrimental pothole on the road to success.

Every player of Price’s caliber longs for greatness. In his fifth and final season, Price has the chance to erase the past and make history.