There has never been a boring moment during Royce White’s basketball career. He began high school at De La Salle, got expelled and ended up winning at Minnesota state championship with Hopkins High School. As a 5-star recruit, he had just about every top school to choose from, and he picked his hometown school, the University of Minnesota, during his junior year. White actually blogged about his entire senior year on GopherHole: (http://www.gopherhole.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=805). During freshman year with the Gophers, he did not play one minute in the maroon and gold because of off the court issues. As a frustrated young man, he left the Gopher basketball team over the winter. He made it very clear that he had nothing but love and respect for Tubby Smith and the U of M. However, on Monday, White announced he would attend Iowa State University and play for former Minnesota Timberwolves player and executive Fred Hoiberg.

In this GopherHole.com exclusive, Royce explains why he did not return to Minnesota, and why he committed to the Cyclones over the University of Kentucky.

GH: Tell me about your visit to Iowa State.
RW: It was a good visit. I went down there with Coach Novak and I really enjoyed the people. He liked the visit as much as I did. It was a different vibe. It was a smaller city, so it’s a bit slower. You can just tell that the people take their time down there. They’re real aware of what they’re doing and what they’re saying. When you live in a big city, you just rush through your days. A lot of people make decisions that might come off as rude, but people just have to understand that it’s a big city and we’re just rushing every day.

GH: What ever happened to Kentucky? Many thought that was a done deal.
RW: Kentucky was still in it until the very last second. I like Kentucky and I like Coach John Calipari, and the guys that were going to play there next year. I also liked Kentucky’s fans, obviously. Their support system is incredible. It just wasn’t working out for me. It wasn’t a fit for me, and I felt that Iowa State was better.

GH: Why wasn’t it a fit for you?
RW: It was a fit, I shouldn’t say it wasn’t a fit, it just wasn’t the best fit. That’s simply because, that in Iowa, Fred Hoiberg is starting over, and he’s starting his career there, and I would be too – it’s sort of like we’re in the same boat. He’s starting over and so am I.

GH: So you can grow together?
RW: Yes, which is what I wanted to do here at Minnesota, with Coach Smith coming in and rebuilding the program. I’m looking for those challenges …I like those challenges.

GH: Were any of the rumors true that Kentucky wasn’t recruiting you?
RW: That’s not true; that’s a bad rumor. That’s terrible. That’s totally off base.

GH: So they did want you?
RW: Yes, they offered me a scholarship. If Coach Calipari is asked, now that I’m at another school, he’d say that. We didn’t want to announce that I was going to Kentucky, because we wanted to do it in the right time and fashion, and through that time, I just decided that I didn’t want to go. They offered me. They wanted me.

GH: Did you visit Kentucky?
RW: No, I never visited.

GH: Was playing time more of an issue there for you?
RW: No. He told me that I was going to have a chance to play great minutes because of the position I play, and what I brought, and what they were missing. And, what they were losing in a guy like (Patrick) Patterson.

GH: You went to meet with Coach Smith a few months ago to ask him to let you back on the team. What happened with that?
RW: It was a combination of things, Coach told me to get started on the waiver process, which I did. I needed a retroactive waiver to get the “W’s” (withdrawals) off my record, so I could be held to the 12-hour credit requirement, instead of the 24 hour requirement. I did that, and got the waiver process going and they denied me, the University of Minnesota did. To me, that was saying that they didn’t want me back, which is okay, because a lot of bad things have happened. There’s bad blood there, and some things can’t be mended within a couple of months. Hopefully, sometime I’ll be able to come back to the U and be part of the University.

GH: So, had you gone back to the U, would you have had to make up 24 credits?
RW: I would have had to get to 24 credits. I already have 13 credits, but I would’ve needed to get to 24 because I withdrew from classes, I think a day after the deadline. However, I was gone from classes from Day 1 of spring semester, I just didn’t know there was a day that you had to withdraw by. I didn’t know if I was coming back or not, so when the season came, and all of the court things were happening, and they didn’t look like they would let me play, I just said forget it – but the withdrawal date had already passed.

GH: How does that work for Iowa State then?
RW: Basically, you just go to the NCAA and say, look, this is the situation, this is what’s happening, this is what happened and why I don’t have the 24 credits I should have. This is why I didn’t stay at Minnesota – if the 24 credits wouldn’t have been a problem, I would have stayed at Minnesota because I would have been in class spring semester and most likely would have gotten another 12 credits; I already had 13, one “A” and three “B’s”. Hopefully I can go to the NCAA and they’ll vote in my favor, and will waive the one year transfer rule, because my situation was a special circumstance.

GH: Worst case scenario, would you have to sit out a year?
RW: I think worst case, I’d be out until Spring Semester. But then again, if I get that 12 credits, and get up to 24, I might still be behind for spring. It’s a weird situation. When it comes to special situations, you never how what’s going to happen or how they’re going to rule. I just hope they rule in my favor.

GH: Any last thoughts on Minnesota?
RW: Best of luck to them, I’m going to still be rooting for them, cheering for them when
I see them play. I still have people that I consider family there: Blake Hoffarber, Rodney Williams, Big Colt (Colton Iverson), Al Nolen…everybody there I consider as family and brothers. I’m still going to be rooting for them.

GH: As far as what the Cyclones can expect from you, you’ve taken some time off the game, when do you see yourself being back in top form?
RW: I think I’m not too far from it right now. I just got back to playing after not picking a ball up for months at a time. I’m getting back into it right now. Fred (Hoiberg) has seen me play already once. I worked out with the team a little bit when I went down there. He was impressed with how I played, even though knowing that I hadn’t been playing for so long.

GH: What would you say to your critics that say you have lost your love for the game, if you could go that long without playing?
RW: I think I got into some other things, such as music, which I’m going to continue to pursue, and business, which are things that will come with the game. It’s not like I’m going to be trading one for the other. I just focused on those while the game was taken away from me. I think now, going forward, I’m hungry again and I want to prove that I can be a great teammate and asset to the program.

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