LARAMIE – Simm-Marten Saadi is about 5,000 miles away from his home in Estonia.
Despite not completing the trek to 7,220 feet until the Cowboys were halfway finished with their eight-week summer workout sessions, the 6-foot-9, 235-pound freshman looked right at home in the Arena-Auditorium.
"The altitude is getting better. Overall, there's some things I'm not used to because I came in late, but I think I did a pretty good job catching up," Saadi said. "We're already in a better situation than some of the schools. The guys were working here for eight weeks, and I was working back home. I wasn't just lying on the couch the whole time."
During one scrimmage, Saadi went 7-for-10 on 3-pointers. He also showed a knack for making Nicola Jokic-like passes, sometimes to teammates who weren't ready to catch a no-look over-the-shoulder offering.
"I'm not sure I could have ever expected a guy in four weeks to be able to do what he did in that amount of time," UW head coach Sundance Wicks marveled.
While Saadi was getting acclimated to the altitude he was also making his first month of college basketball look smooth while playing with a swagger.
Jokic, the Denver Nuggets' three-time NBA most valuable player from Serbia, and other stars like Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) and Luca Doncic (Slovenia), are inspiring the next generation of European basketball players.
"We can all see that the NBA is actually being dominated by European players, so it's giving you extra motivation. Now in the NCAA we can all see so many Europeans coming to the USA," Saadi noted. "What's the saying, everybody wants the American dream? Basketball is the best in America right now so it's really nice to be here from Europe."
So, how did Saadi end up at UW?
Wicks said there was a healthy debate about adding the versatile forward to the program's 2025 high school recruiting class that already included Gavin Gores, Nasir (Naz) Meyer and Neil Summers. Assistant Will Martin made a strong case that Saadi was a perfect fit as a pick-and-pop big for the Pokes.
"You've got to be really careful when you say he can stretch the floor or is a pick-and-pop five because he's really got to be able to shoot. There are a lot of guys that shoot it but not make it. He's a maker," Wicks said. "When he went 7-for-10 from 3 that was kind of the Simm Shady Show. Will the real Simm Shady please stand up?"
While prepping at Sunrise Christian Academy in Wichita, Kan., Saadi committed to Drake. He was released from his letter of intent when head coach Ben McCollum left to take the Iowa job shortly after the Bulldogs made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
"I had some great options, but I think Wyoming is the right for me because the coaching staff was really onto me and they play the style I like to play," Saadi said of his decision to come to UW. "The Mountain West is a very high-level conference. I hope I can get on the court and help the team in the conference. That would be my biggest goal and the best thing that could happen to me."
Saadi averaged 11.9 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists for the Estonia National Team during the U20 European Championship. He will be one of six players to have played NCAA Division I basketball from Estonia in the last two seasons.
"I think it was just an absolute steal of a find because you've got to really dig in Europe," Wicks said. "Coach (Nick) Whitmore has a lot of connections and everything we got back from overseas was this is the right guy. We're just so grateful and thankful he's a Cowboy."
During his brief time with the Cowboys Saadi has mostly been grinding in the arena or relaxing in his apartment. He said adjusting to life in Laramie will not be an issue.
"I love snow. I'm from Estonia and I'm used to snowing," he said. "The campus is very nice, which I really like. All the green stuff, I was really amazed by it. The sprinklers keep the grass green … you're laughing but when I was in Wichita everything was gray and yellow. It was depressing to be fair. But here it's like nature and stuff. Laramie is very small but I'm here to play basketball and study in college. I don't need much."
(Editor's note: This is the 11th in a 12-part series introducing fans to UW's new men's basketball players. Next up: Leland Walker).
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.
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