UH-Hilo freshman center Erik Borg, Sasa Vuksanovic’s replacement, is already making himself at home on the basketball court and off it as well.
The 6-foot-10 mobile post from Norway already has an 808 Hawaii area code phone number. He played soccer for a year before a growth spurt, so he knows how to move his feet to get in someone’s way driving the lane or flashing on a pick and roll.
“It’s really nice. I love it here. The people, the weather are very nice,” he said. “I feel very welcome. I’m having a good time. It’s probably snowing right now in Norway. It’s getting dark and cold for winter.”
Who doesn’t enjoy 90 degree warm weather? Perhaps only penguins. It’s 6,800 miles from Hilo to Norway, so Borg is a long way home from mom and dad, Solveig and Bjorn Borg.
No, Erik’s dad is not tennis legend Bjorn Borg, who won 11 Grand Slam titles. That Bjorn Borg is from Sweden and has two children, none named Erik. So same name, different guys.
Borg grew up playing pick and roll basketball. Thanks to the wonderful invention called YouTube, Borg could watch videos of LeBron James, Shaq and his favorite European players like Luka Doncic (Slovenia) and Nikola Jokic (Serbia) to combat the 11-hour time difference.
Vuksanovic (Serbia) grew up as a ball-handler and learned his post moves in college. So Borg can always hit up YouTube to study Shaq for drop-step moves, Kevin McHale for the Up-and-under counter, or Tim Duncan, the Big Fundamental, on a Paint Shots 101 Lesson.
“He’s got a good feel for the game. He’s an inside-outside guy, has a good feel on ball screens,” coach Kaniela Aiona said. “We can run the pick and roll, and he can step out and shoot it. He’s good at pick and rolls.
“They don’t go too much in the post in Norway. That’s one reason he needs to get reps. He just needs more reps, and it’ll help expand his game, and he’ll get better.”
Still, it’s a whole different culture for Borg, who doesn’t see Swedish or Danish students on campus. It’s a much easier adjustment for his U.S. teammates, but the one thing in common is hoops.
“I really like that we’re together as a unit. There’s good chemistry,” Borg said. “We want to be a good team on and off the court.”
Borg’s favorites foods are hamburgers and pizza. That’s a universal connection with all his teammates, so team meals should be a piece of cake in building team harmony.
Vuksanovic averaged 30 minutes per game so there wasn’t a lot of room for others to fill in for him. Tom Power is the next tallest guy at 6-8, but he averaged just 4 minutes a game.
“He’s got experience, and he’s trying to bring along the younger guys, things freshmen struggle with,” Aiona said. “He’s good on ball screens, and it was tough playing behind Sasa. Regardless we want him to have a great senior year.”
Borg’s game is vastly different from Vuksanovic’s. Sasa mastered all the low-post moves, one reason he’s playing pro ball in Portugal. Borg wants to play pro ball one day, so maybe his screen-and-roll scoring turns him into a guy like Sasa, someone who helped the Vulcans and himself.