Wake Forest Athletics
Wake Forest Traditions
 Arinze Comes Back In Full Force For Deacons Men's hoops forward has made name for himself this season.
Jan. 13, 2000 By Jay Reddick Niki Arinze had a full year to figure out how he could make the Deacons a better basketball team this season, and he has set out to do just that. Arinze was sidelined during the 1998-99 season after having surgery on both shoulders, and the time off allowed him to see where he fit into the scheme of things. ï ¿ ½I think we all have to define our own roles,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½We all have an opportunity, but you have to find your own niche. As you get older, your roles change.ï ¿ ½ Arinze, the Deacsï ¿ ½ 6-foot-5 swingman, knows his role now. ï ¿ ½You can look at it statistically, scoring, rebounding, defense,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said, ï ¿ ½then add in the intangible stuff like leading and making others better. I want to do both, as much as I can.ï ¿ ½ Heï ¿ ½s done his share of both this season. Statistically, he was averaging 7.3 points and 3.6 rebounds a game through 13 contests while leading the team in assists with 2.6 a game. But his leadership style may be the most unique thing about his play. The redshirt sophomore, who often looks stoic on the floor, can in reality be something of a trash-talker ï ¿ ½ even to his own teammates. ï ¿ ½Iï ¿ ½m not a positive encourager,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½I like to get under other peopleï ¿ ½s skin and make them work harder. They can be mad at me all they want to, but if it makes them play better, itï ¿ ½s good for our team. There are other players like Tim Fuller and Jim Fitzpatrick who give the positive side. Itï ¿ ½s kind of a mix.ï ¿ ½ When Arinze subluxed his shoulder for the second time seven games into last season and was redshirted, it removed a facet from the Deaconsï ¿ ½ game. He was one of the first true small forwards to flourish under Dave Odomï ¿ ½s tutelage ï ¿ ½ a player who was athletic enough to slash and sky to the basket, but who could also nail a medium-range jumper. He also was quick enough to defend the position and get more than his share of rebounds. Which makes this seasonï ¿ ½s numbers all the more interesting. The Deacons were outrebounded as a team in 1998-99 with Arinze absent, but even though his rebounding average this season is barely half what it was as a freshman, Wake Forest is crushing its opponents by more than seven boards a game on average. One reason for the surge, besides the increased skill level of everyone on the floor, may be that with Arinze back to provide the spark, the rest of the Deacs can focus more on the task at hand, and the rebounds just come naturally. Arinze likes that notion ï ¿ ½ that his presence isnï ¿ ½t just affecting his own numbers but those of the entire team. ï ¿ ½I consider myself a pretty good basketball player,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½When I came back, I told myself last year, it would just make our team better. Our team has a lot of expectations on it but not on myself. Iï ¿ ½m just part of the team.ï ¿ ½ Besides watching and learning on the court last year, Arinze spent a good bit of time rehabilitating his shoulders. For four months, Arinze was in the weight room every other day for over an hour, concentrating on nothing but his upper body. ï ¿ ½It was definitely intense,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½Most of it was weights and exercise without weights. In the beginning, it was a lot of work without weights, to let the healing take place, then you bring the weights in to build the muscle back up.ï ¿ ½ Arinze stayed on the program until mid-June, then went home to Nashville, Tenn., and continued workouts at the YMCA there. He was back to full strength, he says, by July. The rehab definitely worked. Physically, Arinze is as good as new, or maybe better, since he added 12 pounds of muscle in the past year. Arinzeï ¿ ½s spring and summer months werenï ¿ ½t all hard work, though. His biggest thrill came in mid-May, when his uncle, Cardinal Francis Arinze, delivered the commencement address to the Wake Forest class of 1999. ï ¿ ½Graduation was definitely a big deal for me,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½It was a big thrill, for me and for him.ï ¿ ½ As just about everyone knows by now, Cardinal Arinze is a high-ranking official in the Vatican, and has a chance to be the next Pope. However, no one, including the Cardinalï ¿ ½s nephew, seems to know just how likely it is that he will be chosen from the College of Cardinals. ï ¿ ½Iï ¿ ½m not too sure on the specifics,ï ¿ ½ said the ballplaying member of the family. ï ¿ ½I think heï ¿ ½s one of seven who have the chance, or maybe one of nine.ï ¿ ½ The Deacs suffered some debilitating losses in December and early January, but Arinze is confident that a turnaround will come soon enough. ï ¿ ½I think we just have to start over as a team and figure out where we want to go,ï ¿ ½ Arinze said. ï ¿ ½A lot of it is going to come from internally. Weï ¿ ½re not going to look ahead too much, but weï ¿ ½re also not going to look behind and let a loss ruin the rest of the year.ï ¿ ½
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