Baseball was the family business. Baseball was his passion. Baseball was all Justin Minaya wanted out of life.
“When I was real young, I wanted to be a Major League Baseball player,” he said in a phone interview. “That was my dream.”
His father, Omar Minaya, was the Mets’ general manager, affording him the luxury of hanging out in a major league clubhouse and on a big league diamond, getting to know stars like Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran.
Dreams, however, change. A growth spurt in middle school gave him pause. There was something different about basketball, a rush baseball didn’t deliver. When he tore his ACL in eighth grade, basketball was what he thought about while rehabbing his knee. He had to make a choice, but not before consulting with his father, the famous baseball executive.
“When I told him, I was a little nervous,” recalled Justin, a talented, sweet-shooting junior guard from Northern Valley Regional High School at Old Tappan in Northern New Jersey.
There was no reason to be.
“I didn’t want him to feel he had to play baseball,” Omar said. “I think it’s great. He’s doing something he loves. As a father, you want to allow your kids to do what they want to do. He’s trying to create his own identity for himself, and I’m all for that.”
At the moment, 16-year-old Justin holds three scholarship offers, from Boston University, American and Vermont. But lately, his phone has been buzzing frequently, calls coming from high-major programs such as St. John’s, Miami, Boston College, Arizona and Dayton, among others.
He only began playing AAU basketball full time midway through last summer for the Brooklyn-based Juice All-Stars, so he’s a new name for college coaches. He’s enjoying a solid junior season for Old Tappan, leading the New Jersey school to a 10-4 record, after playing for the Dominican Republic’s 17-and-under national team over the summer.
“When I walked into the gym, I was taken aback by his size,” said one Division I coach who’s recruiting the 6-foot-6 Minaya. “He has great size for a guard.”
The coach said he was most impressed by Minaya’s basketball IQ and grasp of the team’s game plan. He was like a coach on the floor, the coach said. He has a smooth stroke and can handle the ball well for someone his size.
“He’ll be a high-major recruit,” the coach said.
Omar, now working as a senior adviser for the MLB Players Association, is enjoying the process. He’s used to being the recruiter and the evaluator from his time as a baseball executive. He’s getting a taste from the athlete’s perspective.
“You’re on the other side,” he said. “Let the pros and the college recruiters make their evaluations. Just let the process happen.”
There was one catch when Justin decided to drop baseball: his father wanted him to play baseball his senior year of high school, which remains the plan. When people hear who his father is and see his long, lanky frame, they assume he’s a pitcher. Justin was, after all, a left-hander and center fielder before he traded in his spikes for sneakers.
“If you’re lefty and you can throw a strike,” Omar said jokingly, “you have a chance.”
While Justin has chosen a different sport than his father, Omar is still his hero. Justin remembers how gracious his father was — and still is — with fans, signing autographs and taking time out of his day.
“I want to have that,” said Justin, still a Mets fan six years after his dad moved on. “He told me how much I have to work for it. He knows what it takes to get there, so I just listen to him.”
Five-star guard Rawle Alkins of Brooklyn is taking his first official visit this weekend to St. John’s. The former Christ the King star, now attending Word of God Academy (N.C.), took an unofficial visit to Arizona on Thursday.
Alkins will be one of several highly touted local recruits at St. John’s game Sunday against Villanova at the Garden. Also expected to be in attendance are four-star Thomas Jefferson guard Shamorie Ponds, who has signed with the Red Storm, top junior target Jordan Tucker of Archbishop Stepinac and his teammate, sophomore guard Aundre Hyatt , along with St. Raymond junior duo Isaiah Washington and Sidney Wilson and Iona Prep sophomore Bryce Wills .
Cardozo senior guard Tareq Coburn is taking an official visit to St. Bonaventure on Sunday.
VCU offered Bishop Loughlin sophomore guard Markquis Nowell a scholarship Sunday and assistant Rasheen Davis will be in Queens on Sunday to see Christ the King junior guard Jose Alvarado.
