MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — If there is still any lingering pain in Lamont West’s right wrist, you will never hear the West Virginia junior forward speak about it.
That is by West’s own design. He is ready to move forward from the three torn ligaments that Mountaineers head coach Bob Huggins said was the reason West went from shooting 44 percent from the floor through the Jan. 1 game against Kansas State last season to shooting 39 percent over the final 23 games.
“Tear three ligaments in your wrist and see how well you shoot it,” Huggins said.
West, though, doesn’t put a lot of stock in that theory, a part of his personality that sees him constantly moving forward to overcome obstacles.
He is a straight-forward kid, one that doesn’t get lost in too many details.
And when he began to feel pain in his wrist last season, he didn’t tell anyone.
“I play for Bob Huggins,” West said matter-of-factly. “You want to play, you play through the pain.”
That pain required offseason surgery and then a cast, which was removed in July.
“After that, it was basically some rest, treatment and stretching with a lot of dumbbells,” he said.
Through it all, West’s shooting percentages were comparable to his redshirt freshman season, when he became a sort of “X” factor off the bench with his outside shooting, giving the Mountaineers an extra body that defenses had to pay attention to.
“It was OK last year, I can’t really complain about it,” West said. “It’s better now. I did what I had to do over the summer. I’m good to go.
“I feel like it’s 100 percent.”
If that’s the case, then West becomes an intriguing part of the Mountaineers’ roster.
At 6-foot-8, West has the height to match up with fellow forwards Esa Ahmad, Sagaba Konate, Wes Harris and Andrew Gordon.
With 90 career 3-pointers, only “Beetle” Bolden (91) has more among current players.
West is an outside guy with the size of an inside player, something that could help WVU create some mismatches.
But, he’s got to make shots for it to happen.
“I shot the ball decent last year. I could have shot better,” West said. “I feel like my jump shot has improved.”
Early on, Huggins believes this will be a good-shooting team.
“From what I’ve seen, I think we can shoot it,” he said. “It may be a different story once there are fans in the stands and the lights go on.”
For now, it’s on to a new season, which is where West’s focus is. No more worrying about pain or rehab. No need to discuss what happened in the past.
“I kind of know what I have to do to be one of the leaders,” West said. “I’m one of the older guys now, so I have to set an example for the younger guys and go as hard as I can all the time.
“If you’re telling people to go hard and you’re not going hard, they’re going to stop listening.
Follow Justin Jackson on Twitter: @bigjax3211
