Just a week ago, after an exhibition loss to the Harlem Globetrotters, Syracuse players worried they might have to play the entire season without star forward Hakim Warrick because of an ankle injury.

Now, they hardly seem to remember he suffered one.

Warrick returned to practice Friday and participated in all drills Monday without much of a limp. Both days, teammates refused Warrick any special treatment, instead opting to bang him, foul him and throw him to the floor during scrimmages.

The Orangemen barely remembered the injury that frightened them last Tuesday night, when Warrick collided with 320-pound Globetrotter giant Ron Rollerson. After the collision, Warrick hobbled directly to the bench and then into the locker room, where he stayed for the rest of the game.

‘I’m thinking about him and I’m worried about him,’ SU guard Billy Edelin said then. ‘After I get out of here, I’m going straight to his house to check on him. His health is my No. 1 concern.’

Now that Warrick is OK, he and his teammates are free to worry about other things – like Warrick’s production.

In the 10 minutes Warrick played before his injury last Tuesday, he forced at least three jump shots. After opening the game with one of his trademark, thunderous dunks, Warrick made just 1 of 6 jumpers.

At one point, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim pulled Warrick to the sideline, took him out of the game and said: ‘That’s it. You’re sitting.’

‘My biggest problem is trying to do too much,’ Warrick said earlier this year. ‘I feel a responsibility on this team, but I just have to relax and let the game come to me.’

The 6-foot-8 junior did a much better job of that in SU’s first exhibition game, against Nike Elite on Nov. 4. That night, Warrick scored 21 points to go with nine rebounds. He hit a 3-pointer and two long jumpers, showing off the outside shot he worked hard to improve this summer.

An honorable mention Preseason All-American, Warrick averaged 15 points and nine rebounds last season. Ideally, he hopes to slightly better those stats this year and then declare for the 2004 NBA Draft.

‘It’s a big year for me and a big year for the team,’ Warrick said earlier this year. ‘I’ve put a lot of pressure on myself, because there are a lot of things I want to do. There are a lot of things for me to worry about.’

Thankfully, his ankle is not among them.

Weighty matter

Poor Craig Forth can’t seem to catch a break.

During the summer of 2002, he put on weight to please the Syracuse coaching staff only to be told he looked slow. This summer, he dropped 30 pounds, worked on his speed and looked happy – until last Tuesday night’s game against the Globetrotters.

During that game, Rollerson pushed and shoved Forth around the court for 12 minutes, holding the SU center to no points and five rebounds. Rollerson made Forth, a 7-foot junior look – and feel – way too small.

‘It’s pretty frustrating, that’s for sure,’ Forth said. ‘I don’t know the answer, to be honest. I’m playing against a guy who’s twice as big as me, so what am I supposed to do?’

Offered one reporter: ‘You could gain back the weight you lost this summer.’

‘Sure,’ said Forth. ‘Then I’d be too fat and too slow. You can’t win.’

Play time

Matt Gorman, who played rarely last season, seems content with his role after SU’s two exhibition games.

The sophomore forward played 13 minutes in both games. Each time, he came off the bench after Jeremy McNeil, Terrence Roberts and Demetris Nichols – making Gorman SU’s ninth man.

‘I feel comfortable with how it is,’ said Gorman, who played well both games. ‘We go pretty deep this year. I just want to come into the game, get minutes and be very productive. I’d be happy if it stayed like this.’

Precedent, however, suggests it might not. Last season, Gorman averaged more than 16 minutes in SU’s exhibition games before disappearing once the season started.

(Almost) game-time

With the Orangemen’s opener – Nov. 26 in the Carrier Dome against Charlotte – just a week away, SU practices are starting to look more and more like games.

Instead of lay-up drills, Syracuse does dunk contests. Instead of low-impact, 3-on-3 scrimmages, Syracuse plays physical games of 5-on-5. Monday, the Orangemen did a foul-heavy drill where one Syracuse center would try to shoot while three guys pushed and fouled him.

‘From this point on, we’re doing everything to get ready,’ Forth said. ‘It can get pretty nasty and competitive.’

This and that

Jim Boeheim turned 59 Monday and celebrated, at least in part, by holding an afternoon practice. … Former Orangeman DeShaun Williams, now with Iona, was named third team Preseason All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. Williams, though, has missed both of Iona’s preseason games with a minor knee injury. … Meanwhile, in Detroit Mercy’s first exhibition game, former SU guard James Thues scored 14 points to go with five steals.

Published on November 18, 2003 at 12:00 pm