But now Collins' basketball career begins a new chapter as he has signed with the Phoenix Suns.
"It was a great situation," Collins said. "I was kind of waiting to see what I was going to do this upcoming season and whether or not I was going to play overseas."
Collins, who is listed as a center by the Suns, is currently working in the Suns' training camp in Tucson, Ariz. The Suns signed Collins after Jiri Hubalek signed a contract in Europe.
Even though it has been a little less than a year-and-a-half since he left Tech, the path to get to this point in his career has been a long and twisted one for Collins.
After his senior season, Collins became eligible for the 2007 NBA Draft but went unselected. He was then given an opportunity to participate in the NBA Summer League with the Denver Nuggets, who did not sign Collins to a contract after he saw action in two games.
"The summer league is different than regular season play," Collins said. "The whole team is not there; it's usually just the rookies and free agents."
Collins ultimately opted to play overseas for the 2007-2008 season, signing with EnBW Ludwigsburg, a first-division club out of Germany. With Ludwigsburg, Collins averaged 10.6 points per game and helped the club reach the league finals.
Playing in a different country on a different continent no less, Collins believes his first year of professional play taught him punctuality.
"I learned a lot about being organized and being on time," Collins said. "I lost a couple thousand dollars for being late. Over there, it's a lot stricter. You have to be on time for everything -- breakfast, practice. I would lose $500 for being three minutes late for practice. Now I'm 15 minutes early for everything."
At the beginning of this past summer, the seasoned Collins found himself back in the United States, once again playing in the NBA Summer League, this time for the Toronto Raptors. His stats in three games were not enough to garner further attention from the Raptors and it was back to the drawing board once again.
The Suns are the third NBA team with whom Collins has seen action but they are the first to sign the 22-year-old.
With the Suns, he will share the floor with Shaquille O'Neal, Steve Nash, Grant Hill, and longtime rival and UVa standout, Sean Singletary.
"It's a great deal," Collins said. "It's a big thrill playing with guys like Shaq and Grant Hill who got into the league when I was 8 years old. They've been really nice and helpful to me, too, way more personable than I could've expected."
Although he is most known for his achievements on the basketball court, Collins was also a standout in the classroom, as he graduated with honors in communications by the time he was 19 years old.
"Coleman has always been a very committed young person," said men's basketball head coach Seth Greenberg. "He was raised by parents who really value education and who gave him a good values system."
Greenberg, although pleased with how Collins has progressed since leaving Tech, said he's no more proud of his players who make it to the NBA than his players who go on to be successful in everyday life.
"I'm proud of all our guys whether they play professionally or go on to do other things," Greenberg said. "I don't get more satisfaction because somebody plays in the NBA. I'm just as proud of the guys who go back and get jobs in their own community. I am excited that Coleman is getting a chance to play in the NBA, though."
Along with fellow seniors Jamon Gordon and Zabian Dowdell, Collins led the 2006-07 Hokies to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before bowing out to Southern Illinois.
Collins says he still stays in touch with a lot of his fellow teammates, including Dowdell, Gordon and Deron Washington.
"I still keep in touch with all of them," Collins said. "All those guys are overseas right now so they've all got good jobs. Who knows, maybe I'll end up joining them once again."
During the team's regular season, the Hokies defeated No. 5 Duke and No. 1 North Carolina in the span of eight days.
"Right now, I wouldn't trade that season for anything in the world," Collins said. "But I hope that's not it for me. I hope I go on to do some great things professionally as well."
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