As Jaquan Lynch prepared to sign his National Letter of Intent to Florida International on Wednesday, memories began flooding back, all the way to his middle school days, a wilder time in his life.
One particular day stood out – the day he was shot, one day after his 15th birthday.
“I just noticed everything is real, that could’ve been my last day on earth,” the Brooklyn native from Thomas Jefferson recalled of the incident four years ago. “God gave me a chance and I took advantage of it.”
Lynch, a dynamic 5-foot-11 combo guard who goes by the nickname “Son Son,” turned his life around that day after getting out of the hospital, using his close call as a wakeup call. He began taking basketball seriously and working just as hard in the classroom.
“Before I signed the paper, I was like, wow my dream really came true, now I have to live up to it,” he said. “I told [FIU coach Richard Pitino] I feel good, in my James Brown voice.”
A B average student, Lynch led Jefferson to the PSAL Class AA finals last year at Madison Square Garden, averaging just over 20 points per game. One of just two PSAL players to sign Wednesday – forward Hassan Martin of Curtis was the other – Lynch plans to remain as committed to his studies as he is to basketball. He paid attention last year, as the PSAL had just one player – Wings Academy’s Justin Jenkins – qualify to play Division I basketball.
“I still have a year ahead of me, but I’m not going to be one of those kids,” he said.
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Hassan Martin figured his dreams of playing Division I basketball were over. The Curtis standout suffered a season-ending injury early in his junior year, leaving him with just one season to prove his worth.
Little did the 6-foot-7 forward know what the summer had in store. He latched on with local AAU giant New Heights and drew interest from scores of top programs. Wednesday, he signed with Rhode Island and first-year coach Dan Hurley.
“It’s a lot of kids’ dream, and I got the opportunity to become a Division I basketball player,” he said. “It’s just exciting for me and my family. … I was thinking I finally did it all, all this hard work actually paid off. Now I have to just focus on school.”
Martin picked Rhode Island because of the relationship he developed with the coaching staff, primarily Hurley and assistant Jimmy Carr, and his comfort level on the Rhode Island campus. He joins talented Detroit guard E.G. Matthews in the Rams’ 2013 recruiting class.
“I felt like I was at home,” Martin said, recalling his official visit in October. “They look out for you a lot. I knew I’d become a way better player if I go there.”
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Gill St. Bernard’s in New Jersey had three players sign: Point guard Jaren Sina (Northwestern), combo guard Chris Jenkins (Florida Atlantic) and forward Austin Colbert (Illinois).
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Hudson Catholic wing Reggie Cameron signed with Georgetown while teammate Kavon Stewart opted for Robert Morris.
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Shooting guard Josh James of Archbishop Stepinac signed with Monmouth.
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St. Anthony of Jersey City guard duo Josh Brown and Hallice Cooke inked with Temple and Oregon State, respectively.
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St. Benedict’s Prep point guard Tyler Ennis signed with Syracuse and teammate Mike Young signed with Pittsburgh.
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Fordham received NLIs from forwards and AAU teammates Manny Suarez and Denzel Gregg; Hofstra picked up paperwork from 6-foot-4 wing Gervelle Kidd of Hargrave Military Academy (Va.); Wagner landed Long Island product Greg Senat, a 6-foot-8 power forward who attends Marianapolis Prep (Conn.); and LIU inked forward Nura Zanna of Coral Springs Christian.
zbraziller@nypost.com