If White's game develops into something like Boozers, I'd honestly be a little disappointed. He has much more to offer than rebounding and elbow jumpers.
really good insight into white <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yy3MGt2Y0_8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
I love Royce White. He has a winning personality and admires John Lennon. Maybe he and I can start a band now that he will be here in Houston. Royce, if you're reading, hit me up.
Well, I've watched a lot of video on him, and the one thing I disagree with is "great hops." He has great timing, but his hops are just not that great really. The one comparison I like to Anthony Mason is that Mason couldn't jump much either. Mason was a much better college scorer, but had about half of White's assists. outside of being mostly floor bound, I don't like the Mason comparisons that much. I think Royce could be just as nasty but a much better overall basketball player, especially in terms of overall bball IQ and court vision/passing.
I've seen every game, full length, that he's played, plus summer league games. He's an efficient player. Just because you haven't seen it a lot, doesn't mean he's not capable of it. Jeff Buckley was actually a guitar virtuoso, but not a lot of people know because he didn't feel the need to show it off. Royce White was an efficient player and doesn't feel the need to show off much anytime. He's not an amazing jumper, but he's much better than you think. Go to 0:22 here. Notice how his head is nearly level with the rim at the apex? He took off from fairly deep in the paint too: <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/T6k69KLQkGM" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
You've seen a lot more than me, that's for sure, so I'll take your word for it. He'll need to use those hops a LOT in the NBA. He seemed content with some fairly low-flying finishes in college, and maybe it's just like you say: he does what he needs to do. I'm excited about having him on the Rockets in any case. The saddest part for me (sorry, everybody) is that I think Adelman could make a guy like this really awesome in the NBA. What will great passing skills get you in a McHale offense if you're not playing the 1?
2 point is 2 points, no matter how you do it. I wouldn't call him a flashy player last year except with some of his passes. I remember in the beginning of the year, they tried to do some flashy stuff and failed. Hoiberg (the coach) got PISSED OFF and they never tried any of that again all year, unless it was some no look passing. If you watch his driving dunks too, they're usually from much further away than it appears. Like the first dunk in the vid above is just maybe 3 feet inside the FT line and he made it look easy. Hard to do. He's not an amazing jumper, but IMO he's a good jumper especially for his size. I agree he needs to use them a little more in the NBA.
Well, they used to work together, I think, and I took that quote as him just saying the right (cliche) thing. I can't imagine him saying anything else really. "Oh, yeah, I'm happy for our player, but man oh man, it sucks that he'll have that particular coach. Oh well. Not everyone gets a good start to their pro career I guess."
He seems pretty explosive to me. He doesn't necessarily have the highest hops, but his combination of explosion and power looks like it lets him finish around the rim just fine. Honestly reminded me a bit of Landry. Maybe one of the Iowa State fans could help, but I saw one of his high school profiles listed him at 215? Has he really put on 50-60 pounds in 2 years or did the redshirt year lead to him being a bit out of shape? I wonder if he'll shed another 5-10 pounds and improve his hops. Also, I'd love to hear a long time Iowa State fan compare him to Marcus Fizer...
Or perhaps Hoiberg really does think that McHale would be a good coach for White. After all, Hoiberg runs a similar system that McHale does so White would have familiarity. And Hoiberg explains why McHale would be great for White: McHale plays same position, have similar post games, would be great teacher for how to defeat double teams and is a very good communicator
My take on that pat of the Hoiberg interview was that McHale is an expert on spacing at the NBA-level, and that if you put the ball in RW's hands with that type of expert spacing then he can really go to work as the point man. But this presupposes McHale would be willing to put the ball in the hands of a 6'8, 260-lb forward. Would he/will he? Rove White as the 2nd team point? I dont know the answer and am not pretending to, just asking a question.
I appreciate your input and agree with it. I would like to ask you about Royce's jump shot and defense. I think his mechanics are fairly good, but it will be harder to be a point forward unless his jump shot improves.
Yeah, he was around 215 out of HS. I honestly don't remember why he gained the weight or anything. He wasn't a small guy in HS at that, but who knows. I'm sure he got a little out of shape, but part of it could be "quitting" basketball for a few months, probably getting depressed, etc. I'm not really sure though, because he had been working on his strength. He wasn't nearly as strong in HS and U of Minnesota as he was after a few months with Iowa State sitting out. He might shed weight, who knows. Guess that's up to the coaching staff. I know he has been working on that stuff, taking yoga, etc in the off season to try and get his body movement even better. Marcus Fizer was a big dude too, but i'd say Royce is stronger and probably as dominant on the inside? Or has the room to be more dominant. I'd say Fizer was probably a better shooter in college maybe? White is a far better passer though.