The newest installment of the Nova Notebook focuses on former Wildcat NCAA national champion and two-time NCAA Final Four participant Jermaine Samuels, Jr.
 
Standing outside the Davis Center locker room shortly after a workout on a warm June day, sweat is still dripping off Jermaine Samuels' Villanova Basketball togs. One-time teammates Justin Moore, Eric Dixon, and Jordan Longino pass by on their way to the Wildcats' locker room.
 
In some ways, it feels as though time has frozen a scene from March 2022, when the Wildcats were on the march to the NCAA Final Four in New Orleans. Back then, Samuels and classmate Collin Gillespie were helping to lead a seasoned group to a BIG EAST Tournament title that helped catapult Nova through March.
 
Alas, 15 months have passed. Gillespie is now a National Basketball Association champion as a member of the Denver Nuggets. Moore has battled back from a torn Achilles tendon and is again in top form as he prepares for his fifth season in the Blue and White in 2023-24. Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree earned his Villanova graduate degree and now answers to "Coach Da" at Cristo Rey Philadelphia High School.
 
As for the man called "Maino" inside the Davis Center, he is coming off an impressive first season of professional basketball. The native of Franklin, Mass., enjoyed an excellent 2022-23 season playing for the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Mad Ants in the National Basketball Association G League. He averaged 15.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per contest while toiling for the affiliate of the Indiana Pacers.
 
"I got pretty lucky," Samuels says. "I stepped up when the team needed me. I learned a lot. It was rough early, but at the end of the season, I'd like to think I was one of the more important players on the team. I was grateful for the experience."
 
Like many former Wildcats, the 6-7 Samuels makes it a habit to return to campus. A year ago, he spent much of his summer months in the Delaware Valley before heading off to training camp with the Mad Ants.
 
"I love being back at Villanova," states Samuels. "It's love, first and foremost, from top to bottom. On top of that, it's easy access. I can get in the gym whenever I need to. (Head Athletic Trainer) Dan (Erickson) and (Sports Performance Coach) Justin (McClelland) are always here to help out.
 
"It's appreciated."
 
Samuels reports that it took him some time to adapt to life on the cusp of the NBA.
 
"The biggest adjustment for me was the speed and the pace of it," he states. "Decision-making was another thing I had to get used to. The game moves so much faster. Guys are so much more athletic. At the same time, the game is simpler in some ways.
 
"It was a crazy adjustment early, but you get used to it. I had a lot of fun."
 
Samuels described his life off the court as rather straightforward. He lived near the organization's training facility in downtown Indianapolis and came over to see the Wildcats prior to their regular season game at Butler on Jan. 13.
 
"It's very simple living actually," he states. "I liked Indianapolis a lot. It was chill. The city and people are very nice."
 
Up next for Samuels is another journey to the NBA Summer League, where he hopes to build on his G League success. It was his work in last year's session that helped earn him the opportunity with the Pacers franchise.
 
"My game is evolving," he notes. "I'm just trying to sharpen a lot of tools, mainly my shooting. The rest I feel like I can continue to do pretty well. I feel like I'm more prepared now, after a year as a professional than I was then. You have to be ready for anything. You never know what can happen."
 
That said, Samuels is still unsure where his 0223-24 trek will take him.
 
"I don't know what's going to happen," he states, "but I know I'm built for it. I'm ready to tackle what the game will give me. Obviously, the goal is to play in the NBA."
 
Samuels found no small measure of joy watching his pal Gillespie – sidelined by a leg injury all season – nonetheless be part of an NBA championship as a rookie. In fact, he attended a playoff game in the Nuggets' Western Conference semifinal series against Phoenix.
 
"I'm extremely happy for him," he states. "I kept hitting him up all the time."
 
The other part of the trio of classmates who won an NCAA title as newcomers in 2017-18 and returned to the Final Four in their final season is Cosby-Roundtree. The Philadelphia native has been seen in a few sessions of open gym this summer.
 
"I love it," Samuels notes. "Da's a competitor and I think he's still got a lot in the tank, whether he knows it or not. That's my brother and I'm glad I got to share the floor with him again."
 
One of those Villanova people Samuels is grateful for is current head coach Kyle Neptune, a Wildcats' assistant for most of his days as a student-athlete.
 
"The biggest thing Nep did for me is that he always kept it honest with me," Samuels states. "He always coached me. When I needed to hear it, he told me how much better I needed to get. That's what I appreciate about Nep the most. He did it out of love."
 
With the interview concluded, Samuels steps back into the Villanova Locker Room. The work for this day is complete but there is more activity ahead. Later he'll stop by the home of Assistant Coach Dwayne Anderson II and his wife Lindsay, where he's been something of a regular these last two summers.
 
"Our third son," quips Anderson, whose own young sons Dash and Nova adore their buddy "Maino".
 
"Dwayne and Lindsay have been so good to me," Samuels says. "They gave me the opportunity to get better by staying here last summer. And I've got my two little brothers, Dash and Nova, who are a blast to spend time with. I'm blessed to have them in my corner."