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After NBA chance, Darryl Reynolds links up with Villanova greats

The former Wildcat played sparingly for the Sixers' summer team and then competed in The Basketball Tournament.

Villanova’s Darryl playing against Seton Hall last season.
Villanova’s Darryl playing against Seton Hall last season.Read moreTOM GRALISH / Staff Photographer

It was Friday evening. After three games in Salt Lake City, the Sixers had officially announced their roster changes for the Las Vegas portion of NBA Summer League.

Villanova product Darryl Reynolds, having logged just three minutes in Utah, was not part of the Vegas roster. So the 6-foot-9, 23-year-old forward caught a Friday flight from Salt Lake City and played Saturday night in Philadelphia for SuperNova, a Villanova alumni team chasing $2 million in The Basketball Tournament.

That was after Dubai, however. Reynolds was in the United Arab Emirates for a basketball camp with Mason Plumlee before getting the call for summer league. Except the Sixers called before the camp in Dubai had even begun.

"I got in late and my legs are still kind of catching up to me," Reynolds said. "It's been a bunch of jumping around, but I'm used to that at this point. The day before the camp started, my agent was like, 'you gotta come back.' I came back, worked out for the Sixers and their summer league team, and now I'm here."

"Not even 48 hours," Reynolds said of his time in Dubai. "The damn flights were like 14. I think I spent more time in the air than I did in Dubai. It was crazy."

Reynolds' three minutes with the Sixers all came against  the San Antonio Spurs in the team's third game, registering a steal in the 94-86 win.

"It was great," Reynolds said of the experience. "I think I made a great impression. Everyone liked me, but it's a business at that point and they had their certain guys. It was what it was, at nothing else it was an experience."

Alongside a team comprised of mainstays Scottie Reynolds, Corey Fisher and Reggie Redding, Darryl Reynolds scored four points and grabbed six rebounds in 15 minutes during Supernova's 97-72 first-round victory in The Basketball Tournament.

"I told them, if I can get here, I'll play," Reynolds said. "It's a great experience with great players, there's probably dudes that I'll be playing against the next couple years. Plus, it's Nova. It's our guys. It was a no-brainer."

Reynolds couldn't help but marvel at playing with Villanova stars that played before the school won its first national championship since 1985. During his four years at Villanova, the Lower Merion product said he trained with the likes of Fisher and Scottie Reynolds — but not in an organized game setting.

"It's crazy, it's a bit surreal," Reynolds said. "Growing up and being from Philly, knowing their names. I was like, oh man, I'm on the court with them for real."

And that national championship Darryl Reynolds won in 2016? He laughed at the notion of bringing it up to Villanova's forefathers — who are among the school's all-time leading scorers.

"[With] these dudes' resumes? he said. "So I've got a national championship, well [Scottie Reynolds is] the second-leading scorer in the school. They laid the foundation. There's no doubt, we say that all the time. Obviously the ripples were set as far back as Brook Sales. We would not be who we are without those guys."

SuperNova was defeated in The Basketball Tournament's second round on Sunday, allowing Reynolds to unwind from a hectic few weeks. An overseas contract likely awaits him, and fortunately, he has plenty of options for advice. Former Wildcat James Bell, who has played in the top leagues of Italy and France, gave Reynolds advice on the phone in Salt Lake City.

"I don't come from a basketball background, Reynolds said. "I'm figuring this out on my own, and that's okay, because I have these dudes to lean on in figuring out how does this whole process work, where are you looking to go, what should you be looking for, what should you look out for in terms of a bad situation. That's what this family is about."