Romar’s pleasant dilemma

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, January 20, 2005

SEATTLE – The genesis for excitement and concern are one and the same.

The University of Washington men’s basketball team has won its last two games by a combined 61 points without the services of star swingman Brandon Roy.

That’s great for the past, but a bit of a conundrum for the immediate future.

Jennifer Buchanan / The Herald Washington’s Brandon Roy, who has missed the previous two games, is expected to play in Sunday’s game against WSU.

Roy is expected to return this weekend after missing two games with a sore knee. While the Huskies are happy to have Roy back, they haven’t shown much of a need for his services.

“Our thoughts, as a staff, are making sure Brandon Roy gets to play,” head coach Lorenzo Romar said this week. “Now, how that manifests as far as him, Tre Simmons, Will Conroy, Nate Robinson … I don’t know at this point.”

Not even Roy knows what to think about his impending return to action Sunday against Washington State.

“My biggest fear is going into a game wanting to force anything,” said Roy, who is expected to play between 20 and 25 minutes off the bench Sunday. “I don’t want to break up any chemistry. They’re playing well, and there’s really no rush for me to be spectacular right away.”

Based on the results of UW’s last two games – a 77-56 win over Oregon, followed by an even more convincing 108-68 victory over Oregon State last Saturday – Roy doesn’t need to do much of anything to help the Huskies (15-2, 5-1 in Pac-10 play).

But his arrival comes at a pretty good time. After easing him into the lineup Sunday against WSU (8-7, 3-3), the Huskies hope that Roy will be close to full strength for next Thursday’s game against second-place Arizona. The 6-foot-6 junior took two games off to give the injury time to heal, and now the Huskies believe he’s on the road to a full recovery from a November knee surgery.

” (Roy’s) conditioning will be the issue,” Romar said. “I don’t think the knee will be the issue.”

The biggest issue for Romar could be how to find playing time for all of his stars.

Roy, who was second on the team in scoring last season, really hasn’t been healthy since injuring his knee on Nov. 26. He has come off the bench in five of eight games this season, while former sixth man Tre Simmons has thrived in a starting role.

Romar didn’t want to commit to an eventual starting lineup, saying that there would be enough minutes to go around.

“Tre has been contributing. Tre has got to play,” Romar said. “I can’t tell you right now whose minutes are going to get cut, but Brandon is going to play.”

Roy’s two games away have been bittersweet. On the one hand, he hates missing out on all the fun. On the other, the team hasn’t missed a step without him.

“I love that the team’s playing well,” he said. “It makes it much easier on me on the bench.”

Roy’s main goal as he gets back onto the court is to not make any waves. He realizes that the Huskies are on a roll, and he doesn’t want his presence to take away from that.

“I have to be patient and work my way back onto the team,” Roy said. “It’s just about getting guys used to having me around again.

“I’m not rushing things. Because they’re playing well, some guys might want to rush things, like, ‘Remember me?’ But that’s not my mentality at all.”

Simmons has emerged as UW’s leading scorer (17.4 points per game), while Roy is one of four other Huskies who average in double figures. It’s a team that prides itself on balance, so no one is worried about Roy disrupting the flow.

“Brandon’s so skilled, and he does so many things for our team, that adding him to the lineup just gives us an extra threat,” junior forward Mike Jensen said. “Tre’s a big-time shooter, but Brandon rebounds, passes and he can really penetrate. Brandon’s one of our versatile guys, and having him in the lineup can only help.”

On a team that is getting the kind of national attention not seen in these parts for a long time, Roy will try to stay out of the limelight. To make a fuss or grumble about playing time would go against everything this team has stood for over the past calendar year.

“We all know that we have a chance to do something special with this team,” Jensen said. “We know that if we get selfish, or if one person wants to take all the credit, it won’t work out. But if we keep playing as a team, the way we’ve been playing – unselfishly – that’s the key to our success.”