Braeden Anderson ready for law school, hoops at Seton Hall

Braeden Anderson knows it’s going to be tough -- really tough.

Playing Division I college basketball while attending law school is the hardwood equivalent of flying to the moon: Only a few people have done it, and the margin for error is razor thin.

Yet that’s the plan when Anderson arrives at Seton Hall this summer, a skilled big man with an enormous appetite for challenges.

“This is a crazy, psycho, ridiculous thing to ask to do, to even want to do,” he said earlier this week from California, where he is wrapping up his undergraduate degree at Fresno State before enrolling in Seton Hall’s School of Law. “This is going to be absolutely, insanely hard. But I wanted this, and I think it’s important to note: This is something I’ve been planning on doing for a long time.”

In Anderson, the Hall is getting more than a 6-foot-9, 235-pound frontcourt body to take some heat off of standout sophomore-to-be Angel Delgado. They are welcoming a thoughtful, outspoken advocate for the beleaguered student-athlete ideal.

“I want people to think of it in this perspective -- we don’t get paid in cash; we get paid in education. That’s the whole point,” Anderson said. “The value of my Seton Hall Law education is $55,000 a year. My bachelor’s was about $30,000 a year at Fresno State, not including books and room and board. That’s how we get paid. If you’re getting Cs and Ds and barely getting by in school, how much are you really getting paid -- or are you playing for free?”

The future attorney makes a strong case.

“We put in so much blood, sweat and tears for the university, and what we get in return is an education,” he said, his voice rising to hammer home the point. “If you’re not taking advantage of the one thing they give you, what are you doing?! That’s all I’m doing -- I’m just trying to take advantage of the perks of being a student-athlete.”

To Seton Hall’s credit, they’re going to let him do it.

“I think he’ll be a tremendous role model,” said Pat Hobbs, the longtime dean of Seton Hall’s law school. “It’s a great story. Here’s a perfect example of a kid who appreciates the opportunity and takes advantage of it.”

Thinking about the future

A Canada native, Anderson began his college basketball career at Kansas. But he was declared a partial qualifier during his first semester there and relocated to Fresno State, where his two seasons bookended a broken neck that cost him the 2013-14 campaign. It happened in a car crash.

“I was in that hospital bed for 28 days,” he said. “Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I started thinking about the future, the next steps.”

Resolved to prepare for life after basketball, he hit the books hard this past year. In the spring semester, Anderson said he took nine courses. Nine!

“I really put the work in,” he said. “Homework on the plane, homework in the hotel, writing papers on the bus.”

His degree is in forensic behavioral science. Earning it in three years early allows him to use the NCAA’s graduate transfer waiver to finish out his playing eligibility elsehwere. As he sifted through options, the 22-year-old Anderson said other schools he considered “were hesitant” to enroll him in law school.

Hobbs used to oversee Seton Hall’s athletic department, so he understands both sides of the equation. He also has a good relationship with head coach Kevin Willard, which helps.

“If it was any other kid we might have had hesitation, but you meet the young man and you just know he’s going to work incredibly hard,” Hobbs said. “You see his intellect and his maturity, and that’s really important.”

Up for the challenge

Anderson will carry a heavier load in the fall semester and a lighter one in the spring, all the while shuttling between the law school in downtown Newark and the basketball facilities on the South Orange campus.

“I’m going to have to wake up early and be in a study group before class, hten be in class from 8 to 12,” he said. “I’ll have practice in the afternoon, until 5 or 6. Then I’ll come back to the law school for other classes or study groups. I’ll be reading textbooks until bedtime, 10:30 or 11, and repeat the process every day.”

Two women’s basketball players are doing the same balancing act this year, one at Iowa and one at Baylor. It’s uncommon, to say the least, and requires uncommon drive.

“It’s going to be very challenging, but I’m confident he’s up to the challenge,” Hobbs said. “He’s going to have to be incredibly disciplined, and I believe he will be disciplined.”

Not surprisingly, Anderson is setting the bar high.

“I don’t want to be an average law student or an average basketball player,” he said. “I want to be near the top of my class in law school and I want to be an important player on the team.”

Anderson’s eyes are open to the difficulty of his quest. It seems to energize him.

“I don’t know what I would do if there wasn’t an obstacle for me to conquer,” he said. “I’ve created this to challenge myself once again, to really put myself to the test.”

Staff writer Jerry Carino: jcarino@gannettnj.com.