Mired in poor field-goal shooting and a horrible team three-point percentage, the Penn men's basketball team needs someone to step up as an outside threat. The departure of sophomore guard George Zaninovich from the Quakers this year leaves one to wonder what could have been. Heading into the season, Zaninovich had the potential to be a starting shooting guard with the possibility of handling the ball as similar to the Matt Maloney/Jerome Allen backcourt last year, Penn coach Fran Dunphy said. The Eugene, Ore., native was well-liked by the entire squad, bringing a west-coast demeanor to the Palestra. Around the end of September, however, Zaninovich left the team for what he calls "personal reasons." He would not specify just what those reasons are. "It definitely did not result from team problems," said Zaninovich, who added that the decision had nothing to do with any coaches or teammates. "Nobody influenced my decision either, but I did listen to what people had to say." His decision to interrupt his basketball career was disappointing to the team, but well-respected at the same time. "We support him in his decision," Dunphy said. "But in life there are windows of opportunity, and you don't want to look back and regret the decisions you've made." "There was no animosity," starting guard Jamie Lyren said. "[Dunphy] told us that he was taking some time off from the game. The team feels pretty much the same -- what is best for the individual." Although he saw limited playing time in 17 of the Quakers' 28 games last season, Zaninovich showed much promise at his high school in Eugene -- enough that Dunphy recruited him over Yale's Gabe Hunterton, last year's Ivy League Rookie of the Year. "Sometimes these high-scoring players are just great shooters, but George is good at every phase of the game," Zaninovich's high school coach Dean Stepp said last year. "He was an outstanding passer, he can handle the ball with the best of point guards, and he's been our best defender in the last two years. There's not a hole in his game." While a starting position on this year's squad was not set in stone, Zaninovich's contributions would definitely not have hurt Penn. His statistics from last season aren't a clear indicator of his potential, though his 31.6 percent three-point shooting was clearly better than the 25 percent the Quakers have knocked down in their first two games. These days, Zaninovich has nothing with which to fill the time that had been filled by basketball. He does, however, still play basketball at Gimbel Gym. As for the possibility of returning, like senior Bill Guthrie did this year, Zaninovich is leaving his options open. "I don't really know [about returning] at this point," Zaninovich said. "I'm concentrating on being a college student." Like Guthrie, however, Zaninovich will have to work harder than ever to make a return, according to Dunphy: "Bill had to work very hard to get back into the team picture. George will have to work just as hard." The Quakers are completely satisfied with Zaninovich's decision, regardless of whether he will return or not. "I think there are a lot of kids at Division I schools in the same position," Dunphy said. "They don't leave because they're on scholarships. For George, that wasn't part of his decision."
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