6Basketball '92-'93nhe Daily Tar HeelFriday, November 20, 1992
2
Lost among the trees
With 7-foot quartet, Wenstrom does best work off court
By Michael Workman
Assistant University Editor
Twenty minutes after leaving the
Smith Center court. Matt Wenstrom
again emerged from the locker room
tunnel.
It was media day, and while other
players stayed on the floor to talk to
reporters, Wenstrom had headed back
to the locker room.
"We sent him back in because no one
was talking to him," explained a Smith
Center official.
No one wanted to talk to the 7-foot-1 ,
250-poiind Wenstrom, a senior player
for one of the most prestigious basket
ball programs in the nation.
Wenstrom seems left out of the ex
citement that surrounds a new season.
Three years after graduating from high
school and being selected to the presti
gious McDonald's All-America team,
Wenstrom is a self-acknowledged role
player.
At another school, he probably could
have been a starter.
But the Houston native still believes
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Matt Wenstrom
he made the right choice in coming to
North Carolina, even though a logjam
of 7-footers has kept him out of the
starting lineup. The emergence of 7-1
junior Kevin Salvadori and 7-0 junior
Eric Montross has limited Wenstrom's
playing time.
"The package here is the total pack
age you have a great coach, you have
a great program, you have a great life
outside of basketball," Wenstrom said.
"I could have gene somewhere else
and played more, but I'd rather come
here, learn more and be coached by a
better coach."
That coach, Dean Smith, appreciates
Wenstrom's contributions.
"Matt has improved," Smith told
Carolina Court magazine. "Everybody
saw what he can do. When he got his
chance to play against Cornell, he got
points, he got rebounds."
Just because Wenstrom is a role player
does not mean he won't contribute to
this year's team on the court and off it.
On the court, Wenstrom has shown
flashes of brilliance, such as the 21
point, six-rebound performance against
Cornell last season.
Off the court, Wenstrom, a political
science major, looks to be a solid leader
for the underclassmen.
"Man's pretty vocal," said teammate
and fellow Pi Kappa Alpha member
Scott Cherry. "He'll tell you what he
thinks.
"He's usually there, not just vocally
but physically."
Wenstrom is looking forward to his
new leadership role this season.
"I'm really excited about being a
leader," he said. "Not so much a leader
on the court I try to be a leader off the
court (and) with my teammates in prac
tice." "With me and Scott Cherry being
reserve players and George (Lynch)
being a real team leader, I think there's
a place for me to step up in the locker
room. My roles are more off -court."
Although the leadership of Hubert
Davis, who now plays for the NBA's
New York Knicks, will be difficult to
replace, Wenstrom said this year's se
niors were ready to take that role.
"The seniors are always looked to to
provide leadership and guidance for the
younger players," he said. "Hopefully,
we'll continue to do that. Hubert did a
great job last year."
He knows that the season, and the
seniors' careers, have to end sometime.
"When it does come to an end, it's
going to be a sobering thought, but it's
also going to be a day when we look
back on all the successes," he said.
Wenstrom worked this summer on
his post moves and on his outside shot,
hoping to diversify his on-the-court
contributions and improve on his 2.1
points and 1.3 rebounds per game last
season.
"I think my overall game improved
this summer being a year older and
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Wenstrom (55) says he would like to play professional basketball overseas next year
more experienced just gives me an
edge," he said.
If Wenstrom does get more playing
time this season, he knows he will have
to make the most of it. But he doesn't
want to try to do too much.
"That's something Coach (Smith)
always talks about," he said. "It's easy
to get caught up in that when you get in
the game you're excited about being
in the game, you try to do too much.
"When you get out on the court, don't
so much try to help the team, because
your existence out there will help. Ex
ecute the plays, and you'll make good
things happen."
Wenstrom hopes to make enough
good things happen during his senior
year to earn him a chance at continuing
his basketball career.
"I just want to play well when I'm in
there and do good things for the team
and hopefully get enough time during
the year to possibly continue my career
overseas next year," he said.
The immense height of this year's
team will make things happen,
Wenstrom said.
"It is going to be exciting this year
with all that height," he said. "I don't
even know we'd probably be the
tallest team in NCAA history.
"On the court, there's not going to be
a lot of lane left."
MM
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