Huskies Ready to Unveil Well-Traveled Christian Nitu

Christian Nitu presents an interesting look. He's got hair going in every which direction, a thin mustache, a thick goatee.

The 6-foot-11 big man for the University of Washington basketball team and formerly of Florida State just gives off a vibe that he's a fairly scrappy player who's not real concerned about formalities.

Considering his family background that's Canadian and Romanian, Nitu (pronounced knee-two) is as well-traveled as anyone on the UW roster, certainly comfortable in his own skin.

"I've played all over the world," Nitu said. "I've played at an international level and at a FIBA leveI. I played at Florida State last year. I played my high school ball in Canada. I've traveled around to America all the time. I feel like I've gotten used to the adjustment."

With the Huskies opening the season on Monday night against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, coach Danny Sprinkle is pushing to get the lanky left-hander ready to play, especially with transfer forward Jacob Ognacevic out until January with a broken bone in his foot.

"He's got great energy," Sprinkle said of Nitu. "He's 6-11 and can really, really run. When he's being active, stuff happens. When he's flying around and getting tips and tips dunks, that's when stuff happens."

Sprinkle felt he had to have this guy who was coming off his freshman year in the ACC, to the point the coach flew down to Tallahassee, Florida, to watch him work out and secure his services through the transfer portal.

"That was the most important thing for me," Nitu said of the coach's cross country recruiting trip. "It showed he believed in me."

This player found himself drawn to the challenge of competing in a conference known for its big-man battles.

"The Big Ten is definitely a different level of physicality and that's what I'm working toward every day," Nitu said. "I'm working on my strength and being able to hold with those guys on a day-to-day basis."