Weigh-ing in — Australian Ute freshman wants to contribute now

You'd think the fact that Stephen Weigh came out of Australia and the same Institute of Sport program that produced former Ute basketball star Andrew Bogut would have made it a slam dunk for him to come to play for Utah.

Not quite.

The 6-foot-6, 220-pound forward weighed offers from New Mexico, Pepperdine and Saint Mary's before deciding on Utah nearly a year ago during the early signing period.

It came down to Utah and Saint Mary's before Weigh chose Utah because of "more opportunities, better facilities and great people," along with the fact that basketball is a much bigger deal here than it is in Moraga, Calif.

Weigh said Bogut called and e-mailed him a few times to encourage him but was very honest with him, which he appreciated.

Bogut discouraged him from going to New Mexico but didn't paint a totally rosy picture of Utah.

"He told me all the bad points about Utah, but that was good so I could better prepare myself," Weigh said. "But on the whole, he was positive."

So after about two months in Utah, what does Weigh think about his decision?

"It's been excellent," he said. "It only took me a week to adjust."

Weigh had the advantage of living away from home for two and a half years during his high school years when he went from northern Australia to the south to train at the Australia Institute of Sport, the country's junior national team development program.

He said he learned things like how to wash his clothes and also organizational skills both on and off the court. So when it came time to leave for the United States in August, he was hardly fazed.

He also said "the boys made it real easy," referring to his Ute teammates. "They're a great bunch of guys," he said.

Some have called Weigh the second-best basketball player to come out of the Australian Institute of Sport behind Bogut. Weigh twice played on championship teams and last year was the MVP of the under-20 league.

Ute coach Ray Giacoletti calls Weigh "versatile, athletic and well-schooled" in basketball.

"He can shoot it or put it on the floor," Giacoletti said. "He has a good feel for the game."

When asked about his strengths, Weigh said, "I'd like to say I'm a good outside shooter ... versatile ... a tall guy."