Jumping into the spotlight

In college basketball recruiting, there is a major difference between American high school players and international players. Coaches are equally challenged with bringing domestic players up to a higher level of play, and introducing international players to a more physical style of game.

Gonzaga junior forward Guy Landry Edi has the rare combination of domestic and international experience. The Ivory Coast native played professionally in France before moving to the United States and continuing his career at Sylmar High in Van Nuys, Calif. Edi eventually played for Van Nuys High and at the junior college level for Midland College in Texas.

"My mom has always been big on experiences and seeing different parts of the world," Edi said. "I had the opportunity to leave France and figured ‘Why not?'"

Overseas experience led to a speed bump for Edi at the outset of his college career. He was ruled ineligible by the NCAA for the first eight games of the 2011-12 season as the result of playing for a professional French team as a teenager.

"[From having to sit] I learned that nothing will come easy and that you have to earn your minutes," Edi said.

Since seeing his first action Dec. 17 against Arizona, Edi has become a reliable sixth man for the Bulldogs. He hit several key shots in the team's Jan. 19 victory over San Francisco, finishing with a career-high 15 points.

"I got into the starting lineup which is a great feeling. I'm definitely getting more comfortable in the system," Edi said.

In his bench role, Edi has seen inconsistent court time this season. The 6-foot-6-inch forward has played 11 minutes or less in six of his 11 appearances.

"To his credit, for a guy that has sometimes played less minutes this year, he's never lost his zeal to perform," assistant coach Donny Daniels said. "Those are things that can get a player down, but not him. I think a lot of it has to do with how he approaches the game."

Freshman guard Kevin Pangos noted Edi's improvement from beyond the arc as a boost to the GU offense, explaining that defenders cannot afford to give him space on the perimeter. Edi began the year 1-for-9 from three-point range and has improved to a combined 4-for-7 in his last two games.

"He's a very confident guy and he trusts his abilities," Pangos said. "With each game and each practice you adjust and get better, and I think he is definitely feeling that right now and it shows because he is playing really well."

"He plays hard and although he makes mistakes, he goes 100 percent when he does it," Daniels said. "Sometimes you have to calm him down, but you never have to tell him to play harder because he's at full tilt no matter what."

Despite only one start this season, Edi is no stranger to a starring role. As a sophomore last season, he was a key component in Midland College's run to the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I national championship. And at the FIBA World Championships in 2010, he was Ivory Coast's co-leading scorer with 10.2 ppg. Edi also played with the French under-16 team before deciding to play at the senior international level for Ivory Coast.

"They called me and said you have an opportunity to come in and play right away. I got to work with some professional players and learn from them," Edi said. "It was my goal in the World Championships to get to the Olympics. We missed the Olympic opportunity but it will come again."

Living around the world and playing basketball in several different cultures has provided Edi with, what he calls, "experiences." His living situation in Spokane with sophomore guard and fellow Frenchman Mathis Keita has allowed Edi to relive some of those memories.

"It's nice to have someone who I can talk to and not have to think about what I am saying, because I speak pretty good English but it's still my second language," Keita said. "We talk about what we used to do in France. When we were younger, we used go to the same place in Paris."

The pair is also able to bring some French flair to Spokane through cooking, which Keita described as quality French food all the time, but nothing too fancy.

"The best one I've thrown down this year was some chicken with tomato sauce, and a really nice marinade with some pasta or rice," Edi said. "I'll try anything. I call my mom and she tells me what to do."

Even though basketball has taken Edi around the world, he still finds a way to get home cooking.