For three and a half years, senior forward Andreas Helmigk has been known by only one word.
\Smooth,"" Helmigk said. ""Everybody likes it. I think even the coaches do, too. They've been calling me that for a long time now. When even the coaches call you a nickname, it's stuck. But I don't mind it at all. It fits nice.""
Named by his teammate, junior forward Ray Nixon, the story goes back to even before Helmigk played his first game with the Badgers.
""I was here on one of my visits and Andreas was injured his freshman year and he came out one game in a leisure suit. So I asked the other players, who is the big guy in the leisure suit. And he just had a swagger to him that was so smooth so I just called him that. Then after I got here, I passed it on to the rest of the guys and we've been calling him Smooth since then.""
And so the legend of Smooth began.
For the 24??-year-old (soon to be 25 Dec. 10) this final year of eligibility with UW is the culmination of ""four incredible years"" as Helmigk said. After growing up in Klagenfurt, Austria, Helmigk arrived at UW nearly four years ago to develop as a person on and off the court.
""I've grown so much as a basketball player,"" Helmigk said. ""But in many ways, I've grown mentally a lot. I've learned a lot to get stronger and just everything you do here, it toughens you up.""
Helmigk learned right away how much he would need to toughen up after a knee injury forced him to sit out his entire freshman campaign.
While the 2001-'02 season was a wash for Helmigk on the court, he says it gave him a chance to work harder in the weight room and watch the game from the outside to pick up the style of the Big Ten.
So when Helmigk got his chance, like the savvy player he is, he made an immediate impact-an impact that has been improving statistically each year.
In his sophomore season, Helmigk played in 26 games, including each of the last 19 contests. He averaged 6.7 minutes per game and had nine games of 10 or more minutes. Over that limited playing time, Helmigk shot 0.568 (21-37) from the field.
In his third season, Helmigk raised his level of play even more, garnering 15 starts in 27 games and averaging 17 minutes per start. He scored a season-high 12 points versus Detroit in his first career start and since then his teammates have noticed the type of impact Helmigk can have on the game, both offensively and defensively.
""Andreas can play as good defense as anyone on the team,"" senior forward Mike Wilkinson said. ""He just continues to move his feet and get around. He boxes out well and gets rebounds. He's still learning some things, but overall he's becoming a pretty good player. When you give him the open shot he almost always knocks it down.""
Even Smooth, as modest as he is, will agree with that.
""If I get an open shot, 15-18 feet, I have a pretty consistent shot in there, pretty solid touch from there,"" Helmigk said. ""But I'm trying to always improve each day. This summer I tried to improve my hook and worked on my speed too.""
The hook is a facet of Helmigk's game which some of the other guys on the team are looking to learn from. While quiet in nature, similar to Wilkinson, Helmigk is also a teacher by example to the younger guys
""Andreas is a real good guy,"" freshman Brian Butch said. ""He constantly works hard everyday he's out there. He's got a real nice jump hook and you can learn from that-how he gets it off, and what he does. He also really teaches me by example the body positioning down low.""
Although he lost his starting spot earlier in the year, Helmigk continues to play a big role in the limited minutes he plays in his final season. With his inside and outside game, Helmigk provides a major match-up problem for defenses and will be a tough player to guard come conference play considering his experience.
And for the international relations major, the experience is something he'll never forget-the experience of the competition, the lifestyle and just being in Madison.
""I've loved the whole experience, I don't know if there is one best part, but the Kohl Center maybe,"" Helmigk said. ""I just love playing in front of-that's always been a dream of mine-almost 18,000. We don't have that kind of fan base back at home. There is nothing like that over there. The fans here are awesome. I love them.""
So in less than four months, Smooth will play his last game for the Badgers. But as his nickname has lived on, so will his personality and legendary leisure suit.
""Just watch him, he's always a half a step behind everyone because he's kind of cool, he's just that laid-back Euro approach so we call him smooth,"" associate head coach Rob Jeter said.
