Within the span of two weeks, the North Idaho College men's basketball team has seen one player suffer a setback on the road to recovery, while another attempts to fit in with a team he watched on the Internet starting in the fall.

COLE LUCKETT, a 6-foot-4 wing from Auburn, Wash., had his freshman season cut short due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during a November practice - then tore the ligament in the same knee again on Monday afternoon.

Recovery time is expected to be six months after undergoing surgery on Wednesday.

"If everything goes as planned, he could still be back by November or December," NIC coach Jared Phay said.

Phay added that Luckett could be cleared to resume running in November and possibly be back by early 2013 - if not sooner.

Luckett was granted a medical redshirt last year by the NJCAA and could use another redshirt if he's unable to return right away.

"At that point, I think we could do that," Phay said. "But that's not our plan right now. If he can play, he'll play and needs to play while he's got the chance."

The team was just concluding an open gym on Monday afternoon when Luckett slipped and hit the floor.

"It was kind of another freak accident," Phay said. "I don't know if there was a wet spot on the court. We'd just gotten done with an open gym and not many guys were in there."

NIC opens the regular season in early November. Scenic West Athletic Conference play begins Dec. 13.

"We kind of look at it to prepare to be without him," Phay said. "We hope he comes back at some point. That's still the plan and the good thing is he'll be cleared to run early and he works out constantly, so he'll be ready when he gets back."

JALIL ABDUL-BASSIT transferred from Monroe College in New Rochelle, N.Y., signing a letter of intent on April 20.

His father Muff Butler played with current NIC athletics director Al Williams for the Cardinals in the 1978-79 season. Butler was all-conference and a second team all-american as a sophomore.

"I met Jalil for the first time when he came to campus for a visit last month," Williams said. "Knowing Muff, if he said his son was good, I respected his opinion since he has always been a straight shooter. Jalil is extremely gifted offensively, can play point guard or shooting guard and he is a legitimate 6-4."

Thanks to the Internet, he's now a Cardinal.

"His dad saw our team play on the Internet and enjoyed our style of play," Williams said. "And I think he told his son he could fit in our system if he was considering leaving. Thank goodness for webcasting our games nationwide on our website. Hopefully the tradition continues - like father, like son. If so, we got a good one."

Abdul-Bassit, a 6-4 wing, played in 31 of 37 games for Monroe, which finished fifth in the NJCAA tournament.

"His dad is originally from New York, so that's how he ended up at Monroe," Phay said. "He wanted to transfer, so his dad called Al and we researched it a little more and it seemed like a good fit for us."

Abdul-Bassit had 17 assists and 10 steals for Monroe, and will be eligible to play this fall with one season of eligibility at NIC.

"He played in almost every game, but just didn't get a lot of minutes," Phay said.

REDSHIRT FRESHMEN Tyrell Lewis and Jordan McCloud will not return to the NIC team next season.

Both could have returned for a second season of play, but are pursuing the option of playing at four-year schools, Phay said.

Andrew Baracco, a redshirt from Coeur d'Alene High, will return. A walk-on last year, he is now on scholarship. Jason Wheelock, who played soccer at NIC before going on an LDS mission, will join the basketball team next year, according to Phay.

Phay is also expecting at least four signings in the next week, with a fifth player scheduled to visit the campus next weekend.

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d'Alene Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com.