Keith Thomas’ journey to St. John’s included more stops than starts.
From academic problems in high school to run-ins with the law, personal loss and injuries in junior college, the strapping 6-foot-8, 230-pound forward from Yorktown used the word “depressing” to describe several points in his frustrating young life.
By far, the most depressing?
“I didn’t think I was going to play basketball [again],” said Thomas, the 23-year-old St. John’s recruit and Westchester Community College star who was the national junior college leader in rebounding this past season.
He is talking about a long period in the prime of his life, stretching from summer 2009 through fall 2013, making the numbers he put up this past season that much more impressive.
Thomas led all Division I junior college players in rebounding at 15.7 rebounds a game, along with averaging 15.3 points per game. He guided Westchester to the JUCO national tournament in Kansas and the Region XV title.
One Division I assistant coach familiar with Thomas compared him to former Pittsburgh forward DeJuan Blair, because of his thick frame and similar size. Thomas, the coach said, should contribute immediately at St. John’s.
“The kid is a beast on the court,” said Harcum College coach Drew Kelly, whose team included forwards who signed with George Mason, Miami and New Mexico. “Keith Thomas destroyed us every time we played them, and we had one of the best, if not the best, front lines in the country.”
Prior to last season, Thomas played one impactful season of organized basketball, for Yorktown High School back in 2008-09, drawing Division I interest. There were high hopes for his senior year, hopes that were dashed by legal trouble he ran into that summer, an experience he would only say he has put in his past and was “blown up more than it was.”
Yorktown principal Joe DeGennaro declined to offer details, only to say Thomas didn’t come back because of a “combination of a bunch of things.” DeGennaro, however, said he never had any problems with Thomas. He found him to be respectful, thoughtful and bright, a student others looked up to.
The next year Thomas took classes at an alternative school, and eventually got his GED.
A few months after suffering a broken right hand two games into his freshman year at Westchester in November 2011, Thomas lost his grandfather, William Brunson, the patriarch of the family and a father figure. It led him to a “dark place,” his uncle, Randy Brunson said. Basketball was out of the picture again, just as it was his senior year of high school.
“I didn’t want to do anything,” Thomas said.
He forgot about the sport, looking to move on with his life. He worked numerous jobs, spending time as a bouncer at a Brooklyn bar, working as a catering waiter, a cook at a bar and cashier at Staples.
Still, he never completely withdrew from Westchester, going to school part-time. He never forgot basketball, either. He still played pickup in his spare time, still talked to his uncle, a star in Mount Vernon in his day, about the sport.
Last summer, Thomas decided he wants to give it another chance, tired of watching guys he grew up with at Mount Vernon thriving and being asked what he was doing with his life. He wasn’t happy juggling multiple jobs, sleeping three hours a night.
“I don’t like, ‘what-ifs,’ ” Thomas said. “I got tired of the immature nonsense, got tired of wasting my life.”
He walked into the athletic office, asked Westchester coach Tyrone Mushatt what he had to do to rejoin the team. Mushatt told him he had to go to summer school to prove his dedication, even though Thomas didn’t need the credits to be eligible.
“I’m saying, ‘he’s not coming back,’ ” Mushatt said.
Thomas followed through, surprising the coach. He earned an A in an English class, a B-plus in another subject. His focus has remained.
He would follow a night shift at his job at St. Vincent’s Hospital as a psychiatric technician with early-morning workouts with Mushatt, classes, then practices or games. He was an improved teammate from the first time around, a leader, Westchester’s hardest worker. Thomas paid his own way this year, balancing his job, classes and Westchester’s basketball schedule.
“He was tired of being on the other side,” Mushatt said. “He said, ‘I want to be positive.’ He’s just a different guy because he believes now.”
The “dark place” Thomas’ uncle described has been left behind, and Thomas’ outlook now is full of promise, a future at St. John’s, games at Madison Square Garden, perhaps an NCAA Tournament berth or two. A free education awaits, beginning with summer classes in June at St. John’s.
Thomas said he is getting used to this new life. He said it is stressful, but its positive stress. The challenge is to continue on this path. His mantra of “expect the worst, hope for the best” is changing. He told Mushatt he pinches himself every morning, to make sure he’s not dreaming.
“Everything happens for a reason,” said Thomas, looking back at far how he has come. “I played this year and I did a lot of outstanding things I didn’t think I could do. I never thought I would be in this position. I’m here now and I’m thankful.
“My dream is coming true.”