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Jermaine Guice may be in the second decade of his professional basketball career, but the 1990 Westerville South High School graduate and former Butler University standout is showing no signs of slowing down.

At the conclusion of the 2004-05 season, Guice, 33, was named Player of the Year in the French Pro A League, marking the second time in his 11-year professional career that he has earned that honor.

"Being named MVP of the whole country is a great accomplishment," said Guice, who was named Player of the Year in the Israeli National League while playing for Maccabi Qiryat Ata/Motzkin in the 1995-96 season. "It's something you wish can happen once in your career, and I've been fortunate enough to have it happen twice."

Guice, a 6-foot-4 guard, averaged 19.7 points, 5.6 assists and 2.6 steals playing for Le Havre. He ranked second in the 18-team league in scoring average and steals and tied for second in assists while averaging a league-high 39.1 minutes per game.

In addition to being the Player of the Year, he was named Guard of the Year and Import Player of the Year.

"I guess in a sense you could say that it was (my best season as a professional) because I was voted Player of the Year, but I've had great seasons other than this year," Guice said. "Maybe I didn't get the recognition those other years, but you definitely could say that this year was one of my best years."

In the latter stages of the season, Guice knew that he was a candidate for Player of the Year but didn't dwell on the possibility of receiving the accolade.

"It was a surprise," he said. "There was speculation about it, but you never know till it happens. A lot of people thought I would get it, but I didn't want to think about it. I just tried to stay focused on playing my game. When it happened, I was very happy."

In addition to France and Israel, Guice's pro career has taken him to Portugal and Australia. He also has had stints in the United States Basketball League, the Continental Basketball Association and the International Basketball League.

"I'm somewhat of a journeyman, but everywhere I've been, I've had pretty good success," said Guice, who has spent the last three seasons in France. "And everywhere I've gone has been a pretty unique place. I had a great time in Israel, I had a great time in Australia and I've had a great time in France. Those three countries have been great to me."

Guice usually spends about 10 months of the year overseas. Being so far from home is not as difficult as it once was, though.

"In the beginning, it was a little more difficult, but you learn to adapt and make the best of the situation," he said. "I miss things back home, but now I have my family and children with me and that makes it a lot easier."

Guice and his wife, Sara, have three children: Peyton, 3; Jaiden, 2; and Nelia, 6 months. He also has an 11-year-old daughter, Jalynn, who lives in Columbus.

"I've picked up a little bit (of French), but my wife is pretty fluent," he said. "She had two years of French in high school. ... I can comprehend most of what people are saying to me, but it's a little more difficult to speak back to them."

Guice will have two more years to expand his French vocabulary, as he recently signed a two-year contract with another French Pro A team, Le Mans.

At the end of that contract, he will decide if he wants to continue to play professionally.

"Hopefully everything will go well the next two years and I'll stay injury-free," he said. "After that, I'll just have to see what happens."

Guice has yet to play in the McDonald's Summer League this summer for Andrew Insurance, which is coached by his father, Eddie. He recently underwent laser therapy on a back injury and is taking some time off to rest his back.

"The doctors said I need to rest a little," said Guice, who plans to play for Andrew Insurance at some point this summer. "I had a little bit of a herniated disc and I had laser therapy to take care of the problem before it got worse."