Warrior Insider

Anthony Salter can talk the talk.

A foot injury has slowed his progress, but it should only be a matter of time before he is able to walk the walk for the Hawaii basketball team.

“I missed a couple of exhibition games, a lot of games where you have opportunities to make mistakes and it’s OK,” he said. “But we’re in the season now so it’s a little different. I feel like it’s going to take me a little time to get adjusted to this level. But I feel like I’ll be fine.”

Prior to his foot injury, Salter was pushing senior Hiram Thompson for playing time at point guard. But then his foot was placed in a cast for two weeks, and all he could do was observe practices and the team’s scrimmages.

He was cleared to play the day before the season opener against Montana State and has been catching up ever since.

“I definitely can bring some speed and quickness to the team, definitely up the tempo,” said Salter, who is 5 feet 11 and 170 pounds.

He can also bring some flash. Salter is a fancy ballhandler who doesn’t mind exciting the crowd with a crossover dribble or a deep 3-pointer.

At the same time, he realizes that he needs to keep his game under control to be effective on the NCAA Division I level.

“There’s times when that’s necessary and times when you’re just supposed to just be solid,” Salter said. “But I mean, when I first picked up the ball, those are the things that got me the love for the game that I have today … but I definitely love the flashy part of the game, I love to spice the game up a little bit. There’s a time and place for everything.”

Salter is a junior, and in his first season with the Warriors. He was a standout the last two seasons at Iowa Western Community College, and was considered one of the top point guards in junior college.

He grew up in Tallahassee, Fla., so he is thousands of miles away from home. He said the unity of the team has helped him adjust.

“Actually, it’s real different, Hawaii and Florida,” Salter said. “But I look at all these guys as my brothers, even though we’re from different sides of the country. We enjoy our differences. We laugh about it.”

It is Salter’s sense of humor and gift of gab that have made him popular with the other Warriors. As teammate Trevor Wiseman noted: “I’m a funny guy, but Salt’s funnier than me.”

Salter said: “I love to talk with the freshmen and try to keep them laughing and keep them comfortable.”