Missing Dawgs: Dollar, Garcia anchoring Seattle U instead of UW

Jan 26, 2010, 12:00 AM

Cameron Dollar always wanted to be a head coach. Charles Garcia just wanted to be a Husky. Only Dollar, a former Washington assistant who coached under Lorenzo Romar for 10 years, got his wish, accepting the head coaching job at Seattle U. after last season ended. And he also struck a big recruiting coup by picking up Garcia, a UW signee who didn't meet the school's strict transfer rules. So today's rare midseason, nonconference game between the Huskies and Redhawks will be another frustrating reminder of what could have been for Washington, which has struggled to a 3-5 Pac-10 record this year, partially due to the lack of an inside presence. Garcia would have been just that, in spades. The 6-foot-10 center is projected as a first-round draft pick by some, and he's averaging 20.7 points and 9.1 rebounds per game this year for Seattle. Romar said it stung to lose him, but that the frustration has mostly subsided at this point. "I think we're past that," Romar said. "I think that when initially he wasn't coming, it was tough. When he started playing early in the year, saw the things he was doing, obviously you would have loved to have had him. That's behind us now. I don't continue to bring that up in my mind." Garcia was recruited by the UW out of Riverside Junior College and figured to move into the starting lineup as soon as he stepped on campus. But he was denied entrance to the UW despite meeting the NCAA's qualification requirements, and Dollar, a master recruiter who had built a relationship with Garcia while recruiting him to the UW, scooped him up. And, yeah, the Huskies could use him. Their production out of the post has been limited, and Garcia is versatile enough to score on the block, take defenders off the dribble and knock down mid-range jumpers. "It'd have been lovely," UW sophomore guard Isaiah Thomas said. "He would have been great. He's a good player. He would have made it a lot easier for me, Quincy, anyone on this team. When I first saw him play, I was like, 'Man.' That's all you can say." Asked if their record might be slightly better with Garcia in the lineup, Thomas said, "A lot. Not just a win or two." That same question must be asked of Dollar, who combined his recruiting prowess and his demanding practice demeanor with the UW's guards to make himself one of the most highly regarded assistants in the Pac-10. He was in charge of coaching guards and defense and was always the loudest of the assistants. "He was the one always yelling, always on us," Thomas said. "It was like he was more of the coach in practice. Romar would just bring you to the side and be the nice guy, but Dollar was always the one that was on you no matter what." You have to wonder if that toughness and discipline has been missing from this year's squad now that Dollar is gone. The Huskies haven't won a road game yet this year, and their defensive effort has been questioned on more than one occasion. "He meant so much to us," senior guard Quincy Pondexter said. "He was just as influential as coach Romar. I respect him so much. I love the guy." The love only flows to a certain point, though. "When we step on the floor tomorrow, we're not trying to be kind to one another," Romar said. "We're out there trying to win." Something that may be easier had Dollar and Garcia's fortunes changed in the UW's favor. Reach Sports Editor Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.

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