ALLENDALE – A secondary definition of the word “belief” is “trust, faith, or confidence in someone or something,” even when evidence is currently lacking.

For former Orchard View basketball star Ke’Ontae Barnes, that type of belief is what brought him to the Grand Valley State University men’s basketball team as a walk-on this season.

Barnes averaged an amazing 26.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 4.9 steals and 3.7 assists as a senior at Orchard View last season, but didn’t get the looks from college programs that many expected.

“I wasn’t getting the looks I felt I deserved,” said Barnes, who was named the Michigan Associated Press Division 2 Player of the Year in 2021. “But God made a way. (OV) Coach Nick Bronsema always told me to stay ready and work out every day. He told me that things would work out and they did.”

Staying ready turned out to be vital in June, when Barnes was invited to work out at Grand Valley by Laker assistant coach J.R. Wallace.

“My coaches had sent him a bunch of film,” said Barnes, who measures at 6-1 and 160 pounds. “He (Wallace) was interested and had me come work out with their starting point guard Jordan Harris. It went awesome and was perfect. From there on out, I was coming here.”

Part of what led Wallace to Barnes was the fact that Wallace grew up in Muskegon and played at Reeths-Puffer against Bronsema and Bronsema’s assistant coach Omar Jones.

“They kept telling me, ‘Oh he’s really good,’” Wallace said about his conversations with Bronsema and Jones. “They said how he reminded them of me. So, I checked him out and got to watch him play. He’s a really good scorer and has an imagination.”

Once Barnes nailed his workout, he accepted a non-scholarship walk-on position with the team, and enrolled in two classes over the summer to get acclimated to college life.

“It’s been amazing honestly,” said Barnes about college life. “Being able to do what you want whenever you want, it’s your own structure. You have times when you can get stuff done and other times when you can chill. You just have to know when those times are.”

While Barnes is a part of the Grand Valley team, he’s yet to see the court due to a broken nose and concussion that he suffered in practice a day before the Lakers traveled to Michigan State for a preseason exhibition game against the Spartans.

“This has been my first injury ever,” said Barnes, who has been sidelined for multiple weeks. “I had to go through my first surgery and everything. It’s been hard just sitting there and watching my teammates. But I’m learning a lot and being vocal for my teammates.”

Whenever Barnes does take the court for Grand Valley, it will be his first live game action since March 20, when Orchard View finished its 2021 regular season with high hopes for the state tournament.

Unfortunately the Cardinals never had the chance to live out those dreams, because they had to forfeit their first district game due to a COVID outbreak on the team. So Barnes and the Cardinals had to settle for a final 17-1 record and unfulfilled dreams.

“That was really heartbreaking for everybody,” Barnes said. “We really felt like we had a team that could have won a state championship. I didn’t think Montague was going to be my last game, and it was.”

While some may have sulked due to the disappointment, Barnes immediately started focusing on his next steps.

“It was really okay,” he said about getting over the frustration. “I knew it was over and life keeps going. I thought about my next move and knew I needed to figure out my plan, because at that time I didn’t know where I wanted to go. I just knew I wanted to go into business, and I looked for a college because of that.”

That hunger for a business degree is also a huge part of what led Barnes to Wallace and Grand Valley.

“When I came here on my visit, Coach Wallace put it in my head that school comes first,” he said. “I wanted to be somewhere where I could focus on my grades if basketball doesn’t work out. That way I can do something else with my life, and being here has really helped me.”

Barnes is hopeful to show his new coaches what he can do on the court, as soon as possible.

“They’re trying to build me into being a point guard,” he said. “But they know I’m a scorer and they’ve seen if I get the ball in my hands, I can make things happen. I’m trying to show them I can score at this level and play against the teams we’re going against.”

Even if Barnes never sees game action at Grand Valley – which is highly unlikely – he feels he’s at home and on the right path.

“I feel like if I get that business degree, I can take care of my family,” he said. “My family is all I care about. But this has become home, and this is where I’ll be at the next few years.”