Dajuan Wagner chases hoop dreams, 8 years after last NBA game
BURLINGTON, N.J. — For the first time in seven years, Dajuan Wagner played in a professional game last month, suiting up for the Philadelphia Spirit of the American Basketball Association.
Hundreds of fans packed the small gym at Life Center Academy, 30 miles from Wagner's hometown of Camden, N.J., where he's been called "Messiah" since childhood. Posters were taped on the glass windows outside declaring "Dajuan Is Back!"
Wagner didn't disappoint. Facing admittedly inferior players who weren't too interested in defense, he scored 36 points and made 13 of 17 field goals in the Spirit's 154-150 loss. The 6-foot-2 guard showed he still has the offensive skills that were apparent early in his rookie season with the Cleveland Cavaliers, before injuries and illness derailed his once promising career.
After being selected sixth overall in the 2002 NBA draft, Wagner appeared in 103 NBA games, the last coming on Nov. 11, 2006. He spent the next fall playing in Poland but sustained a torn labrum, returned to New Jersey and spent the last few years raising his two children and occasionally competing in recreation leagues. But the 31-year-old says he's healthy and prepared to make one last attempt at an improbable comeback.
He's taking it slow. He's played limited minutes in two other ABA games and doesn't know how much longer he'll compete before moving on to a higher level. He's hoping to sign with a team overseas next summer, possibly in Europe or Puerto Rico, and then potentially play in the NBA Development League.
"I ain't chasing (the NBA)," Wagner said. "It don't matter. But if the chance comes, I'll look into it and see."
Wagner first thought about returning more than a year ago. William Wesley, Wagner's godfather and a well-connected figure in the basketball world, approached skills trainer Guy Ikpah in the summer of 2013 and asked him to work with Wagner.
"(Wesley) said it was a project that was near and dear to his heart, like a special project," Ikpah said. "When Wes gives you a job, you've kind of got to do it, kind of see it to completion."
Ikpah has spent four days each week with Wagner at a gym Wagner owns in Cherry Hill, N.J. At first, Wagner wasn't in shape and could only last 15 minutes, but the sessions soon expanded to more than an hour. Wagner also trains with strength and conditioning coach Chad Hallett. He weighs 205 pounds, five more than during his NBA days.
"This is the best I've seen him," said Hallett, who has trained Wagner off and on for the past five years. "He's definitely determined, the most determined guy I've ever seen."
Despite his long layoff, Wagner remains a legendary figure in his home state. Camden High School recently named its court after him, as the nation's top recruit as a senior. He remains New Jersey's all-time leading scorer with more than 3,400 career points, including 100 in one game. In his lone season at Memphis under John Calipari, Wagner averaged 21.2 points per game and left little doubt he was ready for the NBA.
Before his rookie season with the Cavaliers, he was hospitalized for nearly two weeks with a bladder infection, sat out training camp and missed the first 14 games of the regular season. When Wagner returned, coach John Lucas inserted him in the starting lineup. Wagner scored at least 25 points in six of his first 11 games and averaged 13.4 points, but his season was cut short when he tore the meniscus in his right knee in March 2003.
That June, the Cavaliers drafted LeBron James and envisioned him pairing with Wagner to form one of the league's top young duos. But as James excelled, Wagner endured a series of ailments, including another knee injury, an inflamed liver and pancreas, dehydration and gastroenteritis.
"I followed Dajuan (through) all of his career in high school," Lucas said. "I knew exactly who he was and thought he'd do exactly what he was going to be able to do in the league. He just had to get a chance to get healthy."
Wagner sat out the 2005-06 season after being diagnosed with colitis and having his colon removed. During the recovery process, his weight dropped to 160 pounds. In September 2006, he signed with the Golden State Warriors, but he experienced dizziness and other issues and only played one regular season game before the team bought out his contract.
"The basketball part was always easy," Wagner said. "I know if I would've been healthy, it would have been a different story. That's the only thing you think about. When I was on the court, I was effective. I'm not saying the NBA's easy, but I ain't have no problem with it. I could play with 'em."
Wagner hasn't had any injuries for the past two years, and he's more committed than he's been in a long time. On a few occasions, he's called Ikpah at 2 or 3 in the morning and asked him to meet in the gym for a workout.
"We joke about it," Ikpah said. "But I feel like he'd get off the bench and average 12 points for an NBA team right now."
