Kong, Harris join GU fold
Back with the unedited article on Bol Kong's arrival, soon to be followed into Spokane by Elias Harris. Read on for more.
Bol Kong is finally a Zag.
Kong, a Sudanese native who has lived in
The talented, 6-foot-7 forward verbally committed to the Bulldogs’ basketball program in May, 2008, roughly at the same time as fellow Zag Mangisto Arop, a native of
But Kong’s status was in doubt – and the subject of endless Internet debate – as he worked through the immigration process for roughly the last 16 months. Arop’s paperwork apparently was already in order. Kong arrived in
“We know it took quite a while and I’m not sure exactly when he started the process,” Roth said. “He did get his Canadian citizenship recently and that started a new set of balls rolling and he had to re-submit all of his visa information, which he did.
“Bol spent a tremendous amount of time making it happen.”
Roth said Elias Harris, a 6-7 forward who just finished playing for
Kong last played in an official game for
Gonzaga head coach Mark Few was out of town and unavailable for comment. Roth said the staff wants Kong to “get his feet on the ground” and become situated on campus before he’s made available to the media.
Kong, a sophomore in terms of eligibility, and Harris are expected to contribute this season for the Bulldogs, who lost five seniors and Austin Daye, who left school early for the NBA, from last year’s squad that advanced to the Sweet Sixteen before falling to eventual national champion
Those familiar with Kong’s game describe him as a skilled, face-the-basket small forward who can score in a variety of ways. Since he hasn’t played in an official game since the end of the ’07-’08 season, nobody is quite sure of his conditioning level or how polished he’ll be when Gonzaga opens practice next month.
“He’s been working with the academic folks, via the Internet and the university system, so he’s been keeping up class-wise,” Roth said. “Everything is good to go, and Elias has been doing the same thing (academically).”
Harris, who is from
Harris, who weighs 230 pounds, usually plays the ‘4’, or power forward position, but saw time at small forward at the European Championships.