As the sun sets on another year of Lobo basketball, a rising star waits in the horizon, itching for his big opportunity.
Although the young man has never stepped foot on The Pit floor in live action, he is sure to make an instant impact on the 2003-04 Lobo men's basketball team.
Meet Danny Granger Jr. - a 20-year-old civil engineering major hailing from Louisiana - the Cajun capital of the world. Granger has traveled an unorthodox path in his quest to the confines of New Mexico, where he says he feels right at home.
"I'm real excited and glad to be here," he said. "This is a great, great basketball city."
Granger has battled through adversity in the past months with transfer complications, but adversity is nothing new to him. Growing up, he lived with his stepmother and father after his parents divorced. Despite the tribulations, Granger found a game that he immediately fell in love with. He thanks his father for introducing him to the game of basketball.
"My dad got me hooked," Granger said. "My dad loved to play and I used to tag along with him. At first, I didn't think about it much, but I had a lot of natural ability and he told me to keep on playing. Then I fell in love with the game. Now it's a release for me, it's like a haven to play basketball."
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Coupled with family issues, Granger also had to face the adversity of racism. Deciding to play for a black head coach in Ritchie McKay at UNM was important to Granger.
"Coming from the south, I've experienced so much racism," he said. "There are areas where I lived in Louisiana that I was told not to go because of racism. Growing up in Louisiana and being around stuff like that, it is just easier to play for a black coach. I just love coach McKay."
Since arriving in Albuquerque, Granger has come to respect McKay and the players that surround him.
As a high schooler in New Orleans playing for Grace King High School, Granger was a small skinny kid who learned the fundamentals of shooting and ball handling. As he aged into his senior year, growth spurts shot Granger up to 6 feet, 8 inches with his weight hovering around 200 pounds. With added size, Granger gained a feel for playing the post position.
Granger is a prolific scorer with the ability to put the ball in the basket from anywhere on the floor. He can also grab rebounds and block shots. Granger is a perfect fit for a Lobo team lacking a true scorer after the departure of Ruben Douglas. He feels he can play an all-around game, describing himself as a "mismatch."
"When I first started my college career I was a post player, but going toward my sophomore year, I kind of stepped out a little bit," Granger said. "I'm always comfortable in the post, but I'm getting real comfortable outside and shooting more."
Expect Granger to be a deadly weapon for the Lobo squad next year. He has lit up teams throughout his high school and college career. When Granger was a senior in high school, he scored 47 points, grabbed 21 rebounds and blocked 11 shots in an immaculate triple-double. At Bradley University, Granger scored 29 points and grabbed 20 boards versus Pepperdine University - the same team that humiliated the Lobos at The Pit this past season. He also put in 37 points versus Evansville and 32 against Butler last year.
This young, stable and ambitious man has high hopes for his basketball and academic career.
"My dad always told me you can't have everything resting on basketball," Granger said. "If you get hurt and you can't play anymore, you'll still have a good degree and good job to follow. When I graduate, I plan on coming back and attaining my master's like my sister."
Earning a degree is a top priority, but Granger would like to take basketball as far as he can.
The future has arrived for the Lobo men's basketball team. With an entourage of new faces and loads of talent, Granger hopes to fit right in and give Lobo country the show it has been so eagerly waiting for.
