At this time last year, D’Angelo Harrison was in what he described as a dark place, suspended for the rest of the season by coach Steve Lavin for behavioral issues.
Now, he is a favorite for the Haggerty Award — given to the top metropolitan area college basketball player — and a likely All-Big East first-team selection hoping to lead St. John’s to the NCAA Tournament.
The 180-degree turn began with the suspension, but the biggest step took place over the summer, spent at the John Lucas Center and Wellness Program in Houston. One of the key figures in Harrison’s transformation was none other than Mike Rice, the former Rutgers basketball coach who was fired after video surfaced of him being physically and verbally abusive toward players during practice last April.
“We just bonded from the get-go,” Harrison said Wednesday, talking in-depth publicly about the relationship for the first time. “It’s kind of weird, actually.”
The junior guard from Texas admittedly didn’t like Rice when they were adversaries, but they quickly developed a relationship. Rice joked about Harrison missing key free throws, Harrison responded by recalling his win over Rutgers at the RAC. The joking has continued, evolving into what Harrison describes as a “great” friendship, the once-exiled St. John’s star and the former Rutgers coach using each other as a crutch to make a needed change.
Harrison credits Lavin for sticking with him after the suspension, and Lucas, the former NBA No. 1 overall pick and anger management counselor at the clinic with whom he still stays in touch. Rice also is at the top of the list of those who have helped him.
“Once you get to know him, you would never think what you saw [at Rutgers],” Harrison said.
“We were both going through some life issues and both have a real passion for the game of basketball,” Rice told The Post in a phone interview. “We both took time to talk to each other, and understand who we are.”
They traveled to anger management classes together, shared sessions once a week and ate lunch side by side daily. They speak on the phone and text each other a few times a week. Rice has attended three St. John’s games.
“It would be kind of like the odd couple,” Rice joked. “We would be arguing about everything.”
Harrison has enjoyed a stellar season, leading St. John’s in scoring at 17.5 points a game while raising his 3-point shooting percentage.
Harrison says he has changed and is willing to accept advice more and act out of impulse less. His actions this season speak to that maturity. When the Red Storm got off to an 0-5 start in the Big East, Harrison didn’t try to shoot them out of the slump — as he would have in the past, he said — but instead trusted his teammates even more. St. John’s has climbed out of that hole, and, with a strong finish, is within reach of a trip to NCAA Tournament.
“I give that kid a lot of credit,” said Rice, who is now working with The Hoop Group, a New Jersey-based grass-roots basketball academy. “He had every reason to transfer, to run away from New York, to blame Lavin, blame the situation, blame everybody, and he didn’t.”
Lavin and his teammates have said Harrison has been a model citizen on and off the court. Harrison has been able to turn the other cheek when possible confrontations with opponents loom, and he has realized complaining to officials, which he has cut back on, doesn’t do any good.
Harrison said he abides by Lucas’ mantra, not to let anything jeopardize himself, his family or his team. He takes personal time now to think, taking long walks and eating dinner on his own twice a week.
“It clears my mind,” he said.
Most importantly, he is making the most out of his day.
“Honestly I can say I haven’t done that before this year,” Harrison said. “I love working out, I love being able to play basketball, being able to get tattoos. … I just enjoy every day. That’s been big for me.”