Q

uincy Guerrier held his wrist at the free throw line. It was winter 2017 and moments earlier, Guerrier drove the lane against Woodstock Academy, hoping to add to his team-high 45 points. A defender knocked him to the ground and sent Guerrier to the line.

“Stop holding your wrist,” Ibrahim Appiah, Guerrier’s coach at Thetford (Quebec) Academy, remembered instructing from the sidelines. “That’s going to be your excuse.”

Guerrier missed one of two free throws and turnover-prone guards cost Thetford the game in overtime. Appiah waited for Guerrier by the bus afterward. “It’s your fault we lost,” Appiah said to no response. When they returned from the six-hour drive back to Canada, Guerrier apologized to his coach.

Appiah didn’t actually think Guerrier had cost Thetford the contest, but he wanted the Division-I recruit to feel the blame. It was a motivational tactic.

Much of Guerrier’s game developed this way: Appiah or another member of Guerrier’s inner circle would critique his skillset, and true or not, Guerrier would immediately adjust. It started in 2013 when Guerrier transferred to Thetford and hasn’t stopped since. Appiah, Kolia Konan, a former Thetford teammate and close friend, and a couple others comprise Guerrier’s support group. Each of them has a story about the first time they saw him play, and the first time they saw his talent. The two usually coincide.

“I think the beauty about him is the fact that I don’t even think he knew how much potential he had,” Appiah said.

Guerrier’s five years at Thetford bridged the player he was to the one people thought he could be. Syracuse awaits the results. The 6-foot-7, 220-pound forward projects to crack the Orange’s starting lineup, replacing Oshae Brissett, another Canadian wing who came to the Orange with a lanky frame and NBA aspirations.

In his summer months on campus, Guerrier attempted 38,000 shots. Yes, he kept track — to the point that SU coaches told him to slow down. He didn’t want to.

“I know there’s a lot of high expectations for me this year,” Guerrier said. “I just keep working hard. There’s no pressure. If I’m working hard and doing what I need to do, I’ll be fine.”

Guerrier first appeared as a blip on SU’s recruiting radar when Syracuse associate head coach Adrian Autry powered on his computer one morning in 2016. A Thetford coach emailed Guerrier’s most-recent highlight tape to Autry. Autry knew to temper expectations, but he still grew enamored with Guerrier’s talent: Long arms, effective shot and mature playing style. Some of his dribble moves weren’t fluid, but to even attempt them showcased Guerrier’s “upside,” Autry said. After he watched one workout in Thetford’s gym, Autry told Appiah that he envisioned Guerrier at SU.

By then, Guerrier had grown from a 6-foot-3 high school freshman who didn’t know how to run properly, according to Thetford assistant coach Oscar Lerebeson, to a volume scorer. Guerrier thrived as the best player on an otherwise smaller program

While larger prep schools in Ontario flew teams across North America for tournaments, Guerrier scheduled lunchtime shootarounds with Appiah. Meanwhile, other coaches told Appiah that if Guerrier attended a U.S. school, he’d be a top-25 recruit, not his 247sports No. 122 national ranking.

Larger schools approached Guerrier to transfer and he turned them away. He believed in Thetford’s system and Appiah’s coaching. Appiah grew up with SU alum Kris Joseph, and quickly drew comparisons between their play styles. This allowed Appiah to identify the parts of Guerrier’s game that needed work.

“Especially mentally and physically,” Guerrier said, “(Thetford) really helped me.”

Over the summer, Guerrier honed his shooting stroke by taking 38,000 shots. Corey Henry | Photo Editor

He also grew close with Konan, who was two years older than Guerrier. Konan mocked Guerrier’s rigid jump shot that always seemed to slip through twine. Feeling that a bond had been built, Appiah and Konan decided to tweak Guerrier’s development plan in his junior year.

They held meetings in Appiah’s office and challenged Guerrier to improve. Shoot better? Guerrier was in the gym the next morning. Be a better leader? He’d communicate more in practice. Even his strengths were questioned. As Guerrier received offers from Oregon, Syracuse and other programs, he saw the potential future Appiah, Konan and others laid out for him.

Guerrier regimented his training, constantly shooting alone in the gym. If team meetings ran long and Guerrier had a set time for an individual practice, the high schooler asked to cut them short. Whenever Thetford traveled for road games, he’d ask Appiah for an advanced copy of the itinerary.

When Guerrier arrived at Syracuse on May 18, he brought with him a notebook — another motivational tool from Thetford. To keep track of his progress at SU, Appiah suggested Guerrier document each day. So far, Guerrier has logged every practice, weight-training session, and individual shootaround, even tracking practice free throw percentages.

“It keeps him honest with how hard he’s been working,” Appiah said about the notebook.

The initial results didn’t show in Syracuse’s Italy Tour in mid-August, though. In four games, he averaged 11.8 points and 9.3 rebounds, focusing on his rebounding instead of 3-pointers. Once back at SU, coaches wanted him to shoot more, tucking in his elbow and readjusting his hand placement.

Off the court, Guerrier and Konan spoke daily. Konan intentionally didn’t ask about basketball, instead discussing the best cities from the trip. He knew as the season neared, Guerrier would handle the prep.

After a string of days in the gym during the offseason, Guerrier’s wrist ached and Orange coaches recommend he take a break, Appiah said. Guerrier complied, but returned to his schedule once he felt better.

Syracuse — with four new starters and a five-player freshmen class — needs Guerrier to be an Atlantic Coast Conference-caliber player sooner rather than later. Knowing he’d operate out of the post, Guerrier watched highlights from Carmelo Anthony’s lone season at Syracuse, trying to pick up anything he can.

In the first half of the Orange’s first exhibition against Daemen, Guerrier scored two of his eight points on a turnaround-jumper from the elbow. But after the Oct. 26 game, head coach Jim Boeheim chided Guerrier’s play. A pair of missed layups. Poor rebounding. Defensive lapses.

“He’s got a lot of work to do,” Boeheim said. “But he’s got a lot of talent.”

Sitting in his locker minutes later, Guerrier acknowledged the same issues. Before he left the locker room, he already knew what he had to work on next.

Banner photo by Corey Henry | Photo Editor