Former Sacramento State men’s basketball guard Haron Hargrave was drafted by the Albany Patroons 59th overall in this year’s Continental Basketball Association draft last week.

Hargrave is the second Sac State player to be drafted by the CBA and is the 12th player under current Hornet coach Jerome Jenkins to be given a professional contract. Hargrave has come a long way on a journey that has taken him across the country.

“I loved it, but it was so wild,” Hargrave said about growing up in Queens, N.Y.

He picked up a basketball early in his life and by the time he was 7, he was playing in the city basketball leagues, making him known as a point guard on the rise. By the time he was a senior at Campus Magnet High School in Cambria Heights, he was the team’s star point guard and was named to the all-league and city teams. Other coaches at his school were begging him to play other sports.

“I remember all the time I was at school, the football coach was on me to get out there and play,” Hargrave said.

Hargrave was talented in basketball, football and baseball, even playing for his high school baseball team briefly before deciding basketball would be his main focus.

“Basketball was always my first love,” Hargrave said.

After graduating high school, Hargrave attended Sullivan County Community College in Loch Sheldrake, N.Y. Quickly named starting guard, he led his team to a perfect 14-0 record, winning the Mid-Hudson Conference Championship. Just a freshman, he was also named first team-all region, all conference and freshman of the year.

After all the instant success, Hargrave expected to win many more titles at Sullivan, but plans changed quick right before his sophomore year.

“My coach all of a sudden quit and I just didn’t feel like that was the place for me,” he said.

Hargrave dreamed of playing in the NBA, but his life turned upside down after the death of his mother.

“My mom died and everything was overwhelming me,” he said. “I found myself thinking what was I going to do next.”

Family and basketball brought him to California, where playing at a tournament caught the attention of Chaffey Junior College in Rancho Cucamonga.

Though different from New York, Hargrave quickly adapted to the West Coast.

“I love the weather. It’s a peaceful place that really made me focus on what I needed to do,” he said.

Hargrave played one year at Chaffey, but that was all he needed to catch the eye of Sac State coach Jerome Jenkins.

“Haron is a example of how this program is growing and going in the right direction,” Jenkins said.

Hargrave adjusted easily to Sac State.

“I loved (Sac) State. The campus and people were cool,” he said.

Even before playing a quarter for the Hornets, Hargrave felt this was his best chance for “getting to the next level.”

Hargrave moved into a house in Natomas with Sacramento Kings guard and high school friend Quincy Douby.

Douby, like Hargrave, was raised in New York City, hailing from Brooklyn.

“I know a lot of NBA players, but Quincy has really helped me,” Hargrave said.

“I think coming from the same lifestyle and making it to the NBA shows him he can make it to the NBA,” Douby said.

With a stable home, school and team situation, Hargrave was ready to make his NBA dreams a reality.

During his two seasons with the Hornets, his game continued to improve. In his first season, he averaged nine points and two assists a game, but his final season saw him average a team-leading 13 points and two steals, which was good enough for fourth in the Big Sky Conference.

“He was a clutch player and he could really score,” Jenkins said.

Even though he still had a semester of school left, Hargrave was chosen by the Albany Patroons, one of the CBA’s most popular franchises where Hall of Fame coach Phil Jackson got his coaching start.

“Even though I’m going to miss Sac and the weather, I’m excited about heading back East, back close to home,” Hargrave said. “It’s another journey in my life. I’m getting closer to the NBA.”

It’s been a long road for Hargrave and the CBA is another big new stop, but those who know him have confidence he’ll succeed.

“Haron’s a survivor who has went through rough times in his life, but he can go as far as he wants to go,” Jenkins said.

Hargrave has plans for going far, but before he goes to the NBA or even getting established in the CBA, he wants to get his degree and make his mother proud.

“She had two masters degrees and she was always on me about school. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be in school, much less playing ball. She made such an impact in my life,” Hargrave said.

Hargrave’s life has taken him from the East to the West coast and back, but he doesn’t worry about failure. He knows what it takes and how to get to where he wants to be.

“I take everything in stride. Life’s a journey and my journey’s just begun,” he said.

Contact Lamont Weaver at [email protected]