Eldridge on Stewart: 'I Call Him Body Beautiful'

Former Husky guard admires new guy's old-school approach, gives him a nickname

Dan Raley | Dec 13, 2019

Eldridge on Stewart: 'I Call Him Body Beautiful' /

Eldridge Recasner looks at Washington freshman Isaiah Stewart and sees an unselfish player, a throwback to another time and, with that cut physique of his, the second coming of Michael Cage.

"I call him 'Body Beautiful,' " Recasner said, quite possibly giving the UW standout his first nickname as a collegian.

Cage was a 15-year NBA player who spent six seasons with the Seattle Supersonics. He had that body-builder look about him as well, with those wide shoulders that Stewart carries.

However, Michael's best nickname was more workmanlike, "the Windexman," because he was so adept at rebounding--at cleaning the glass. Cage was never a big scorer, though, averaging just 15.7 in his top season.

Stewart likely will be big point-producer in the pros, because he's dedicated to the inside game and can still launch shots around the perimeter.

"It's a refreshing sight to see him because everybody wants to shoot the 3," Recasner said.

Published Dec 13, 2019

DAN RALEY

Dan Raley has worked for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, as well as for MSN.com and Boeing, the latter as a global aerospace writer. His sportswriting career spans four decades and he's covered University of Washington football and basketball during much of that time. In a working capacity, he's been to the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, the MLB playoffs, the Masters, the U.S. Open, the PGA Championship and countless Final Fours and bowl games.