Lorenzo Romar is downplaying the talent and potential of his Washington Huskies basketball team. Yes, they lost all-time leading rebounder Jon Brockman along with productive guard Justin Dentmon, but the Huskies are deep and have three able incoming freshman that make Washington a Top 25 team this year.The Huskies have the type of depth that can compete with the perennial power programs. What's more, Washington is three deep at nearly every position, and that type of competition sparks potential transfers. But the Huskies lost only one player, little-used center Joe Wolfinger, in the offseason. So this loaded roster -- featuring Pac-10 freshman of the year Isaiah Thomas and vastly improved swingman Quincy Pondexter -- is ready.
At least that's what Romar hopes.
"Well I wouldn't say I feel totally comfortable because I'm not sure yet.," he told FanHouse. "We have to see how mature we are. We have to grow up quickly. We can't take Jon Brockman and Justin Dentmon's absence for granted. To me that is the major question, is what kind of leadership are we going to have? How mature we are going to be as a group? Quincy will be our team captain. He will be one for sure. But again, you can't just do it alone."
The Huskies are coming off a heartbreaking second-round NCAA loss to Purdue, a game they sleep-walked through the first half before furiously rallying and falling short. The end was bitter, especially considering Washington was playing in Portland, Ore., just 170 miles from home.
Brockman will be a major loss. The Huskies, however, feature an imposing and athletic front line in Matthew Bryan-Amaning and Darnell Gant, along with redshirt freshman Tyreese Breshers. Romar said he believes the club can compensate for the rebounding loss of Brockman by committee.
"I guess what I'm saying is we're not going to have anybody who may average 11.5 rebounds a game. That hasn't happened in a long time. Jon is the leading rebounder in the history of the program," he said. "It's hard to bounce right back and say we've got another one that's going to out-rebound him. But I think we'll do it another way. What did it mean that Jon got rebounds for us? Well it meant he got us baskets when maybe we couldn't score because he got the rebound putback. Defensively, we get a stop and he'd come up with the basketball for us. He was a low-post option for us to get baskets. Now, I think the difference is we have some guys coming in that have a chance to be able to score on the block."
The Huskies will have more weapons but Romar can't play 12 guys. In addition to incoming guard Abdul Gaddy, Venoy Overton returns as well as Scott Suggs, Elston Turner and Justin Holiday, brother of Philadelphia 76ers guard Jrue. This could be the most competitive fall practice in Romar's seven-year tenure in Seattle and that is a testament to advancement of the program.
Programs such as UConn, North Carolina and Kansas recruit the best players and allow them to fight it out for rotation spots. The rest can sit or transfer, and that has become the situation at Washington.
"I don't think there are many programs that win at a high level that have two or three players," he said. "You've got to have some talent. You've got to have some depth. But I think it shows that we're gaining a little consistency in our program and I think it does help that we have pretty good character guys. Like last year there were guys who didn't play as much as they would have liked. They were upset. But I think their character won over and they were still part of the team concept."
Chemistry has to be developed with the new players and returning ones. The Huskies have to overcome an early schedule that includes Texas Tech, Georgetown, Texas A&M and Portland State and then comes the difficulty of the Pac-10. Washington could be the early favorites, but Cal returns four starters from its tournament team while UCLA and Arizona are young but talented.
Romar was not necessarily convinced that his team is the prohibitive favorites. He is sly enough to pass that responsibility to Cal.
"We can't just show up and win games. People are probably going to come after us. I don't know if we are necessarily the favorite," he said. "Obviously Cal is going to be very good. UCLA is going to be good but I think there are going to be some teams better that people think. You talk about Arizona is not left for dead as people thought they might be. USC is the cupboard still is not bare over there. There are going to be some surprises."
Fall practice will tell Romar a lot about his team. Pondexter will be the leader and he has yet to play a consistent full season. Bryan-Amaning, Gant and Overton also experienced growing pains. So excuse Romar is his enthusiasm is tempered. He wants results.
"Again potential means you haven't done anything yet," he said. "But I would agree. We do have potential to be a good team. But until we go out and work our tails off, that doesn't mean anything."
