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    Home » Dybas: Gaddy finding his get up and go
    University of Washington

    Dybas: Gaddy finding his get up and go

    Todd DybasBy Todd DybasAugust 9, 2011Updated:October 4, 20128 Comments4 Mins Read
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    Washington point guard Abdul Gaddy had to watch his teammates after tearing the ACL his left knee Jan. 3. / Drew Sellers, Sportspress Northwest

    Campers cut and dashed Monday at Lorenzo Romar’s Basketball Camp inside Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Finally, Washington point guard Abdul Gaddy doesn’t have to watch with envy.

    Gaddy’s slight scar on his left knee is the pressing reminder of his anterior cruciate ligament tear from January that ended his season. Well-padded crutches aided him through Hec Ed’s back halls a week after the injury.

    Monday, he sat comfortably in the team’s lounge following his coaching duties at the camp.

    Gaddy can now cut, run, jump and slide, but no contact yet. He’s on a daily grind toward Sept. 15 when basketball practice starts. By then, he anticipates being able to play every day.

    “I have no reason to come back too early, no reason to be out there trying to play right now,” Gaddy said.

    As with most injuries, Gaddy’s has delivered a modicum of perspective. He’s not taking the previously assumed right of playing basketball for granted. Instead, he drills with trainer Pat Jenkins, performing simple tasks those campers would do. Rebound, outlet, run the floor, cut to the basket and lay the ball in. Then backpedal and do it over. Gaddy’s intent is to retrain his knee to make the basketball maneuvers again commonplace.

    “My leg is getting stronger and it’s going to continue to get stronger; it can be stronger than before, really,” Gaddy said.

    He’ll need it to compete. Washington shuffles in six freshman to the previously experienced squad. Notable is point guard Tony Wroten. Where he and Gaddy fit in the equation is exceptional offseason fodder.

    Gaddy knows about being an incoming, vastly hyped freshman. He’s two years removed from being the No. 2 point guard in the land according to scouting rankings — for the little they are worth — behind John Wall, who played a year at Kentucky then went No. 1 overall in the 2010 NBA draft.

    The departure of Isaiah Thomas leaves Gaddy among the franchise faces, if not the main one. He’ll be part of a smaller group of upperclassmen who need to shepherd the newbies.

    “Some guys, when you come in as a freshman, you come in as a highly ranked player, so, the attitude is, ‘I’m going to come in and just do me,’ ” Gaddy said. “With coach (Lorenzo) Romar, all that is thrown out the window when we start practice. (It’s about) buying into team and buying into winning.

    “The main thing you have to convince them, (is) team success brings individual success.”

    Gaddy was always a willing convert to team-before-numbers philosophy. He has stored tricks, but even his no-look passes are thrown with moderate pizazz.

    Anticipating Gaddy as one of next season’s leaders is a rightful assumption. Unless you’re him.

    When asked who the voice of the team will be without effervescent Thomas around, Gaddy is reticent out of polite deference.

    “I wouldn’t want to say myself,” Gaddy said. “All that stuff will come. We’ll find out who our leaders are, who our scorers are, everyone will fill into their roles as fast as we can so we can hit our stride going into conference.”

    That’s where he stumbled last year before the injury. After a steady non-conference performance, Gaddy went cold heading into the new year. His last five games, he was 1-for-12 from behind the 3-point line. Prior, he was 12-for-20, showing a new dynamic to his game.

    Gaddy’s ability to hit open 3s and play off the ball will be crucial this season. Otherwise, he could see his minutes reduced on a team overloaded with wings and guards.

    “The last two years we’ve won the Pac-10 (tournament) championship,” Gaddy said. “We don’t want to lose that because we lost Isaiah, we lost Matt (Bryan-Amaning), Venoy (Overton) we lost Justin (Holiday). We have to keep going. So everybody has to be on the same page.”

    It will largely be up to him to make that happen.

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    8 Comments

    1. John Cox on May 26, 2011 1:36 pm

      Possession without goals doesn’t win games: http://pauldorset.blogspot.com/2011/05/seattle-sounders-v-dallas-fc-possession.html

    2. John Cox on May 26, 2011 5:36 am

      Possession without goals doesn’t win games: http://pauldorset.blogspot.com/2011/05/seattle-sounders-v-dallas-fc-possession.html

    3. Travis on May 26, 2011 2:02 pm

      “Schmid subbed Roger Levesque for Alvaro Fernandez, Nate Jaqua for Montero and Lamar Neagle for Rosales late in the game. Jaqua and Neagle worked hard and had an influence”

      What a shock, three subs were made, yet only two had any influence, the one who did not… Levesque.

      Also, Montero was subbed off in the 75′, not sure that would be considered “benched.” It appeared Sigi subbed in preparation of Saturday’s game. I hate that. Win the game you’re playing, then worry about Saturday, especially when your current game is home, and the next game in on the road, to a top team.

      I thought Montero, Fucito & Flaco had very active 1st halves. Then Montero & Fucito sort of disappeared for the first 20 minutes of the 2nd. Montero then got subbed out, and Fucito picked up the energy again.

      Ozzie looked fantastic. He was everywhere trying to make things happen. Sure, he wasn’t prefect, but, considering how much of the ball he had, he did a lot more good than bad.

    4. Travis on May 26, 2011 6:02 am

      “Schmid subbed Roger Levesque for Alvaro Fernandez, Nate Jaqua for Montero and Lamar Neagle for Rosales late in the game. Jaqua and Neagle worked hard and had an influence”

      What a shock, three subs were made, yet only two had any influence, the one who did not… Levesque.

      Also, Montero was subbed off in the 75′, not sure that would be considered “benched.” It appeared Sigi subbed in preparation of Saturday’s game. I hate that. Win the game you’re playing, then worry about Saturday, especially when your current game is home, and the next game in on the road, to a top team.

      I thought Montero, Fucito & Flaco had very active 1st halves. Then Montero & Fucito sort of disappeared for the first 20 minutes of the 2nd. Montero then got subbed out, and Fucito picked up the energy again.

      Ozzie looked fantastic. He was everywhere trying to make things happen. Sure, he wasn’t prefect, but, considering how much of the ball he had, he did a lot more good than bad.

    5. ivan on May 27, 2011 12:40 pm

      Dallas had George John on the back line and Brek Shea dropped back on defense. Those are two big dudes. Montero and Fucito looked like a couple of hobbits next to them. Seattle needs to pony up the dough for a big, strong, athletic center forward who can outmuscle people, win balls in the air, and go around defenders.

      In short, they need Kenwyne Jones, of Stoke City. 

    6. ivan on May 27, 2011 4:40 am

      Dallas had George John on the back line and Brek Shea dropped back on defense. Those are two big dudes. Montero and Fucito looked like a couple of hobbits next to them. Seattle needs to pony up the dough for a big, strong, athletic center forward who can outmuscle people, win balls in the air, and go around defenders.

      In short, they need Kenwyne Jones, of Stoke City. 

    7. sitka on May 31, 2011 4:22 pm

      It’s a young man’s game; these guys (Neagle, Carrasco, Montano, Montero)
      should ALL be on the pitch together! C’mon Sigi, stop running the 18
      using college nickel and dime psych. Bury Levesque low on the 18, say
      good bye to that giraffe Jacqua. Loyalty should be to the TEAM as a
      whole! Oh yeah, I’m gonna keep beating the drum for KLINSMAN!!!!

    8. sitka on May 31, 2011 8:22 am

      It’s a young man’s game; these guys (Neagle, Carrasco, Montano, Montero)
      should ALL be on the pitch together! C’mon Sigi, stop running the 18
      using college nickel and dime psych. Bury Levesque low on the 18, say
      good bye to that giraffe Jacqua. Loyalty should be to the TEAM as a
      whole! Oh yeah, I’m gonna keep beating the drum for KLINSMAN!!!!

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