Maldonado, Reynolds Return to Old Stomping Grounds
LARAMIE -- It almost felt like old times again Monday afternoon inside a vacant Arena-Auditorium.
Hunter Maldonado, driving the lane, only to kick the ball out to the perimeter and into the hands of fellow guard Noah Reynolds and a wide-open look.
Swish. Repeat.
The former standouts at the University of Wyoming, just minutes after trudging through a grueling two-plus hour workout with the current roster, openly chatted about former head coach Jeff Linder and some inside jokes that only a nearby Sundance Wicks understood.
They talked about old teammate Graham Ike and his outside shot, which was on display last week in Las Vegas during the NBA summer league.
"He doesn't have that hitch in his shot anymore," Reynolds said.
Maldonado recently inked a new contract to continue playing for the Kaohsiung Aquas, a professional basketball team in Taiwan. Reynolds, who left Laramie for Wisconsin-Green Bay -- and eventually TCU -- following an injury-riddled 2022-23 campaign, has signed with a squad in Poland after spending one season in Slovakia.
The latter now spends his offseason with his girlfriend in Fort Collins. Maldonado, the program's all-time leader in assists with 630, stays in his hometown of Colorado Springs.
Both will report to their respective teams in August.
This duo helped lead the Cowboys to a berth in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament and a date with Indiana in March of '22. That was the final appearance in the Big Dance for this storied franchise.
That's still a sore subject for these two.
Maldonado, the team's acting point guard, committed a career-worst 10 turnovers in that 66-58 loss to the Hoosiers inside Dayton's UD Arena. Reynolds, who netted 14.5 points a night, primarily off the bench, never saw the floor.
"You remember that, huh?" he said. "To this day (it stings), for sure. Those are opportunities you can't get back, but those are the things that continue to drive me. When I look back at my career, and I think about all the things I've overcome in my career, those are the types of things that keep you going, right?"
Maldonado, who suited up for this program his entire collegiate career -- a rarity in these days -- said the temptation to leave was very real when it came to the invention of the NCAA Transfer Portal in 2018. He returned for his final season for a number of reasons, one being potential. Though he could've gone pro, or even cashed a check to play at a bigger school, he instead saw the opportunity to take this program to heights it hadn't reached since the early 2000's.
Wyoming received first-place votes in the preseason Mountain West polls, finishing second to San Diego State.
That didn't happen.
Ike, a heavy favorite to win conference player of the year honors, didn't play a single minute as he dealt with a lingering foot issue. Reynolds suffered his first of many concussions in an offseason tournament in Greece. He was eventually sidelined for the season. Brendan Wenzel and Kenny Foster battled a number of ailments throughout.
Power-4 additions Max Agbonkpolo, Ethan Anderson and Jake Kyman never materialized, either. That trio, which came to Laramie vis the Pac-12 Conference, all left the team in early February, claiming verbal abuse from Linder.
An under-the-radar loss was outside sharpshooter Drake Jeffries, who declared early for the NBA. And people thought he was crazy for missing out on what could be a championship team.
The Cowboys limped to a 9-22 record and finished dead last in the league standings.
"That sixth year I had a lot more money on the table than if I stayed here," Maldonado said. "I think, like anything, you can stay here and be like, 'Oh, the money's good and want to leave,' but, I mean, I had everything I wanted here.
"... At the end of the day, this is where I made my name and who I am. For me, it wasn't ever really about the money I got. It would been nice to get as much as these guys get now, yeah, but for me, it was more just playing for the Brown and Gold."
Admittedly, Maldonado hasn't been able to watch his alma mater all that much since he started his professional career. A 14-hour time difference can have that effect, though he tries to keep up on social media. Reynolds, whose older brother Nic Reynolds is on the Wyoming staff, has been able to keep a closer eye on his former team.
Both are impressed with the job Wicks is doing, rebuilding the culture and demanding a higher standard. Reynolds got a firsthand look at how the Gillette product operates as the bench boss, lacing them up for him during a brief one-year stint together at Green Bay.
Maldonado always knew this could be the perfect opportunity for his former position coach.
"I was happy to see Sunny get the job, and so far, pretty proud of what he's been able to do," he said. "I think this being his third year, I mean, I think we'll see good things."
Maldonado, who averaged 13.7 points per game over 157 games played at Wyoming, really got his first look at this current crop on Monday in Laramie. He didn't know names, but said soon, everyone will know of one in particular.
"Impressive," he said, referring to his teammate on this day, rookie guard Madden Smiley. "When I came in as a freshman, it's kind of the same thing -- you can't be scared to have a voice. He wasn't scared. He got a big stop in practice. That's huge, you know, and just shows how much heart, how much of a dog he is. And, to me, that was impressive."
Smiley, the son of Northern Colorado head coach and former Sheridan College bench boss, Steve Smiley, was a two-time 5A Player of the Year in Colorado, helping lead Windsor High School to its first state championship since 1924 as a junior. He netted more than 24 points per game last season, and added nearly eight rebounds and more than three assists.
Wicks has often simply referred to his godson as a "winner."
"Madden is a stud, man," Wicks said on signing day. "... I wouldn't recruit him if I didn't think he was good enough, but he's good enough, man. And he's a local kid that's going to make an impact, immediately."
Reynolds agrees, wholeheartedly.
Though he was impressed with the maturation of returners like Naz Meyer, Gavin Gores, Uriyah Rojas and Khaden Bennett, on this steamy summer afternoon on the high plains, he also shifted his focus to the Cowboys' projected point guard.
"I told Sunny when I came up here a few weeks ago, that kid's got 'it,' You know, it's in here and it's in here," he said, pointing to his heart and mind. "You can't see it yet, but that's on (sports performance coach) Jimmy (Edel) and Sundance. They're going to get him right and he's going to be a player. I'm excited to see his growth."
Wyoming Athletics Director Tom Burman entered the court as the duo took post-practice shots.
"Legends are in the building," he shouted before embracing the two.
There was another star in the corner, too -- former guard Josh Adams.
Wicks is building this program brick by brick but also hammering home how special this place can be, inviting back players who litter the team's history books. He wants this to be a welcoming environment for the players that came before him. Even if that means attending a summer workout.
"For me, it's always been my home," Maldonado said with a smile. "I'm happy to have made it my home, and them being so welcoming. That's why I stayed."
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