“So I ended up pleading guilty and I actually came home that same day. His twin brother received a 10-year sentence for previous arrests. I was critical and kept thinking, ‘Wow, I’m really spending my 18th birthday at Rikers.’ The stuff that I saw there, knowing that I didn’t belong in it and knowing what’s on the outside for me, was very depressing.”ĭaniels was charged as a youthful offender and accepted a plea deal that gave him five years of felony probation along with stipulations to finish high school and pay a fine for his release. “I’m actually one of the ones that hold a lot emotionally and bottle them up,” he said. Nearly six years later, he’s still processing his incarceration. Daniels has mostly suppressed the memories of his three months in prison. Rikers Island jail went into lockdown on his birthday. As his court case continued, he realized his wish wouldn’t come true. In the weeks leading up to his 18th birthday, Daniels hoped he wouldn’t have to celebrate the day behind bars. I basically just got picked up and that’s why I was charged with conspiracy.” I still don’t even know what really happened. “Even though I was playing basketball, my crowd really wasn’t the best, so they basically charged me. “Really the wrong place at the wrong time, around the wrong people,” Daniels said. On June 29, 2016, the summer before Daniels’ senior year at Teaneck High School in New Jersey, New York State Police raided his family’s apartment in Harlem shortly after midnight and arrested him and his twin brother Jalen.ĭaniels was charged with a class B felony for gang assault in the first degree in relation to an incident in 2015. A lot of people get portrayed a certain way, but if you met Waun and sat down with him had a conversation, you could tell probably off the first two minutes that he’s a great kid.” One of the biggest things I probably learned from him is just being aware of your surroundings all the time. Every time I see him, I tell him keep going. “I’m just glad to see him doing really well, coming from where you come from, not a lot of people make it out and I know that sounds really cliché, but it’s, like, it’s really the truth. He has a great energy about him that’s very contagious,” said Alabama guard Jahvon Quinerly, who befriended Daniels while in high school in New Jersey. Wauny’s leadership speaks volumes on and off the court. “It’s been really good to see how things have panned out for him these last four years. Watching Daniels, affectionately called “Wauny,” experience success over the last few years makes them proud. His friends will vouch that he isn’t the same 16-year-old he was growing up in Harlem, New York. He doesn’t shy away from the not-so-perfect parts of his life and is very open with his friends about his mistakes, hoping they won’t make the same ones. So I’m definitely proud and understand that these accomplishments something that I got to soak in and actually enjoy that I even got the opportunity to do this.” I don’t want to look back and regret anything. I just felt like this is what I was supposed to do. “They kind of remind me of how far I’ve came. “The only time it really hits me is when I’m around my friends,” Daniels said. Yet, after completing his final season at Prairie View as a fifth-year senior in 2021-22, the NBA draft concluded without an HBCU player selected for the 10th consecutive year, leaving Daniels looking for another way to enter the league.ĭaniels’ next opportunity will be in Las Vegas ahead of the NBA summer league when he participates in the HBCU Showcase with players scrimmaging and doing drills in front of all 30 NBA teams.įor Daniels, the potential for a professional basketball career felt like a distant dream six years ago as he sat in a prison cell on Rikers Island. Then I’ll let him know my story the next time I see him.”Īfter graduating from Prairie View A&M in 2021, Daniels worked out and interviewed with NBA teams. So that’s gonna be one of the ones where I double back and I let him know, like, I was at the HBCU All-Star Game in the press box. I introduced myself and just basically told him who I was, and it was a fun experience,” Daniels said. “I made sure I looked at him in his face, gave him eye contact … it was really brief. If he gets a chance to meet Johnson again, Daniels wants to share how he ended up at that moment. In the press box, he also shook hands with NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. He helped actor Jamie Foxx’s youngest daughter, Annalise Bishop, with her college search, explaining why he chose a historically Black college and university (HBCU). Daniels easily connected with them, something he learned from playing with his 3-year-old daughter, Rylee. He spent time with local elementary kids, playing catch and coaching basketball drills. NEW ORLEANS - Jawaun Daniels didn’t waste his experience at the first HBCU All-Star basketball game in April.
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