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Aminu displays plenty of moves
Journal Photo by Lauren Carroll
Al-Farouq Aminu won’t be under the radar much longer.
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Published: November 20, 2009
Almost all the eyes in Joel Coliseum followed the ball.
Late in the first half of Wake Forest's 83-60 win over High Point on Wednesday night, the Deacons' Ari Stewart fired a jumper from the left corner. As players turned toward the basket, Al-Farouq Aminu performed another routine magic act along the right baseline.
Aminu leaned into the High Point rebounder, planting an arm in his back and nudging him farther under the rim. The ball ricocheted long, verifying the natural percentages of Naismith physics. In a flash, Aminu snatched the rebound and banked home the follow shot before his flustered foil could react.
The ACC refs evidently noticed nothing. The play happened so quickly that most fans noticed only Aminu's finishing flourish. Aminu remained poker-faced until 90 minutes later. "That's the way they teach us," Aminu said, grinning.
Willing student
If coaches teach, Aminu learns. At 19, this Atlanta-born descendant of Nigerian royalty has absorbed the nuances of the commoners' winter game. Al-Farouq means "the chief has arrived." Early glimpses suggest that Aminu has arrived among the NCAA elite.
His contributions far exceed the statistical evidence: 23.3 points a game while shooting 69 percent from the floor and 82 percent from the foul line, with 10.7 rebounds and more loose-ball sweeps than a riding vacuum cleaner. He missed only 2 of 10 shots and a single free throw Wednesday. Observed point guard Ish Smith: "Farouq's smooth. He's calm and cool. He had the quietest 22 points anybody can have." Pro scouts adore the 6-9 sophomore forward. If he had joined the NBA pool last summer, Aminu quite likely would have been a lottery pick, ahead of first-round teammates James Johnson and Jeff Teague. He chose for another college tour on the advice of brother Alade, who had just finished at Georgia Tech, and his parents, who wanted more academic credits in the bank before Al-Farouq deposits huge checks.
Under the radar
For whatever reason -- third-ring status on last season's team, Velcro hands that seem faster than witnesses' eyes, generally understated body language -- Aminu remains something of a stealth star. His name appears on All-America lists but not at the top. An October media poll somehow left Aminu off the preseason All-ACC team. Center Chas McFarland didn't get a vote but protested the results in a conversation with Aminu.
"Farouq is an amazing player," McFarland said. "I honestly think he could be one of the best, if not the best college player out there. I told him that he always talks about the best players here and there, but he never mentions his name. Nobody ever mentions his name. They need to start talking about him more." Aminu returned the compliment, rating McFarland among the ACC's best big men.
"He has a lot of faith in me," Aminu said. "We always try to push each other. We don't aim for the accolades, but we just feel that if you pursue those personal aspirations, you're trying to be a better player and a better teammate."
Although Aminu can stoke the crowd with long-distance dunks, he tends to deliver so efficiently that even teammates overlook the presence of gliding greatness in their midst. Coach Dino Gaudio, his team ahead by only three at halftime, reminded the Deacons of this oversight, then ordered isolation plays for Aminu.
"He's as good a player as there is in the country, and we've got to make sure that the kids know that he's got to get touches," Gaudio said, invoking the philosophy of a coach-turned-TV analyst. "Hubie Brown always said that every team has three big scorers. You'd better find out when they got shots, when was the last time they got one. If they don't have one recently, you'd better call a play for them."
Wake Forest will call Aminu's play a lot this winter, and he will answer, sometimes in invisible ink.
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