All Things Royce White Thread UPDATED 10/25: Royce cut by 76ers

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LongLiveMilesTarver said:
He'd essentially be Gary Trent, which would not be a bad pick at 18. With Rubio he'd probably get three dunks a game and then a couple garbage buckets off the bench.
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You gotta take Royce's baggage into account though which drops him considerably in my opinion.
 

I saw Royce in the skyway this morning with Draymond Green and a bunch of other prospect-looking dudes. I think he'd be a terrible pick for the Wolves, but I think he'll end up being a contributor somewhere else.
 

I don't see how he fits in here, honestly. We need a true wing scorer, a real live shooting guard would be nice. Royce doesn't fill a need we have, well, I guess besides more ball handling/playmaking ability period, but I don't see it.
 

The Music In Royce White's Head: A Grantland expose by Johnathon Abrams

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8096247/on-road-nba-draft-prospect-royce-white

The U-Specific Part:
Instead, he delves into his short career at the University of Minnesota, an arranged marriage intended to benefit both parties. It was a stay that turned disastrous.

White didn't play a single game at Minnesota. In October 2009, he was accused of stealing clothes from a store at the Mall of America and was charged with fifth-degree assault for allegedly pushing a security officer. White pleaded guilty to theft and disorderly conduct.

"I don't want to make any excuses for what he's done, but Royce was never a thief in life," Frank White said. "When he lived with me, I had money in different places in the house and it was always there. Maybe there could have been a little more supervision and support and help. I'm not blaming anybody. I think Royce was trying to find himself. Royce, unfortunately, sometimes has been in a situation where he's grown up kind of too fast."

Frank White noticed the grandson he helped raise was slipping away.

"Basketball was one of the things that was his passions," he said. "One of our biggest problems is when athletes get catered to, they tend to get lost in things. They're elite. They're treated a different way. For a short time, Royce kind of got lost into that."

White was initially a suspect in the theft of a laptop computer taken from a dorm the following month. It only muddled his protracted debut on the basketball court. He steadfastly maintained his innocence. A third party later returned the laptop. White was charged with trespassing, but never with burglary.

"It's just the nature of being in that setting," White says of going into that dorm room. "It's kind of what you do in college. Why was I being targeted by the police department? The police department is employed by the university. Not that I'm implying that. But it was an uncertain time for me and I didn't like it. And having anxiety, it's messing with me. I was looking over my shoulder. I didn't know who to trust. The police were always circling my apartment."

Greg Hestness, chief of the University of Minnesota Police Department, said that it was simply White's actions that drew the department's attention.

"I remember toward the end, he made a comment to the media about he was fearful of the university police," Hestness said. "My comment was that he does not impress me as a fearful person."

It's something White has dealt with since childhood, Frank White said. Royce White has always been articulate and looked older than he is. Adults always expected more from him, maturity that wasn't always there. The same can be said of his anxiety. White doesn't look like he should be afraid of much. But only he is truly aware of the type of fear coursing through his body.

"We are all responsible for our own actions and I think Royce will be the first one to tell you that," said Joel Maturi, Minnesota's athletic director. "He was also surrounded by people who I think didn't always have his best interests in mind and that led to some of his issues and challenges we had."

White announced his departure from the university via YouTube and without informing the athletic department. The video has since been removed from YouTube.

"We did not dismiss Royce," Maturi said. "That's a situation where he decided it was best for him to drop out of school and eventually transfer. That was not a decision we recommended nor a decision that we initially knew was going to happen."

White thought he would never play basketball again. He found the music studio and stayed there. In the interim, he realized that basketball and girls had dominated his life.

"A lot of times, basketball, as you mature through the stages, something that comes along with it is women," White said. "When I was 18, that's all I was focused on: basketball and women. It was a reality check to get back to who I was and not who this industry produces."

He neglected other passions, like the tunes his grandmother played on her vinyl records, songs from Sinatra and The Beatles.

"He probably wasn't as directed as he should have been," Novak Jr. said. "I think anyone with anxiety issues needs a really set routine, and in the summer before that, his routine wasn't as set. The regulation of his medication was poor and he had trouble controlling the anxiety a little bit. It could have been controlled, but by that time, a couple of things had already taken place and it became kind of a PR nightmare and they all thought it was best to start anew."
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Edit: Johnathan Abrams*
 

With the Wolves trade, all parties should be happy. We don't need him here as a constent reminder, and I think he will be much better with a clean slate far away from here.

I do wish him well though.
 


There was actually a really good article about him in the Sports Illustrated that I got today.
 

Royce White will be an All-Star-calibur NBA player IF he develops a decent jump shot. He can pass, run the floor and rebound. I can see him guarding small forwards and some power forwards. Again, imagine him with a good stroke from 15 to 18 feet.
 

MaroonGopher said:
Again, imagine him with a good stroke from 15 to 18 feet.
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Imagine if Al Nolen could shoot like the Hoff?

Imagine if... blau blau blau. Royce shoots just under 50% the the charity stripe.

Looking at numbers of guys like Kris Hump, Jon Leuer, Patrick Patterson (who he will compete for minutes with) will Royce have better numbers his rookie season?

I see him as a 12-15mpg, 4-5pts, 3 boards guy.
 

I only bring the "what-ifs" up with Royce because he is a legit NBA player. Guys like Nolen were never even considered borderline NBA players. You can play the "what-if" game with a lot of guys, you're right, but very few have the complement of skills Royce has. He is seriously a jump shot away from being a star in the NBA. Nolen -- who I loved -- was not a jump shot away from being a star in the NBA.
 



Clem's Gophers said:
He is not a first rounder.
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Clem's Gophers said:
He is no first rounder. Deal with it.
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9194Gophs said:
I give him a 30% chance of being drafted 1st round and 30% chance he is on an NBA roster for a full season.
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Clem's Gophers said:
he will have little to no impact if he makes the NBA. IMO, he will make solid money in Europe.
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Gopher in Texas said:
Maybe a second round pick or sign as a free agent.
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Lots of humorous quotes earlier in this thread.
 


dpodoll68 said:
Lots of humorous quotes earlier in this thread.
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I got called out for saying he would likely be a first round pick. Looking forward to hearing these guys backtrack and act like that's not what they meant and they knew he would be a first rounder all along.
 




GophersOnTheRise said:
I got called out for saying he would likely be a first round pick. Looking forward to hearing these guys backtrack and act like that's not what they meant and they knew he would be a first rounder all along.
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No, that is exactly what I meant. I was wrong again. That makes 986,653,825 times for those keeping count. I hope Royce is successful, even more now that I will get to see him with the Rockets.
 

9194Gophs said:
Imagine if Al Nolen could shoot like the Hoff?

Imagine if... blau blau blau. Royce shoots just under 50% the the charity stripe.

Looking at numbers of guys like Kris Hump, Jon Leuer, Patrick Patterson (who he will compete for minutes with) will Royce have better numbers his rookie season?

I see him as a 12-15mpg, 4-5pts, 3 boards guy.
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Yeah and ur the moron that said he has a 30 percent chance of being a first round pick. He is going to be a 10 to 15 ppg and 6 to 8 rpg in the nba deal with it.
 

BuckyGopher said:
Yeah and ur the moron that said he has a 30 percent chance of being a first round pick. He is going to be a 10 to 15 ppg and 6 to 8 rpg in the nba deal with it.
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Glad I didn't say 2%. I'd give him a 30% to ever have a season averaging 15ppg and 8 rpg in the NBA. Could be wrong, but I don't see it. But if he does, I will have no problem dealing with it.
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Long write up with videos - http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/film-session-royce-white

Clipped sample-While video breakdowns such as these can only show so much, hopefully the enormity of White’s basketball IQ is beginning to come into better focus. This clip finds him once again operating out of the low post, where once more he draws a double-team. White not only recognizes it immediately, he also responds by quickly attacking its weak spot, spinning baseline for a dunk. Note that he wisely eschewed passing to his cutting teammate, knowing that any such pass would be easily picked off by the sagging defense. Plays like this look simple in real time -- and again, NBA defenses will certainly make him work harder for his points -- but the reality is they’re anything but; White’s instinctive decision-making is the byproduct of a basketball brain that has a deep understanding of how the game works and what plays can be made based on the situation at hand.

Moving Forward

So where does White go from here? First and foremost, you can bet that the Rockets’ player development staff will place a heavy emphasis on improving the rookie’s shooting stroke. His outside jumper is inconsistent and it’s obvious that fine-tuning that aspect of his game would only serve to further accentuate his elite playmaking skills. Simply put, if White can become a knockdown shooter, he’ll have a very real shot at becoming a star in this league as a pick-your-poison type offensive player. The Rockets will also work hard with White to become a significantly better free throw shooter; White hit just 50 percent of his free throws last season and with as much as he operates out of the low post, that number needs to be raised to at least an acceptable level.

On the defensive end, White will have much work to do as well, as is the case with virtually every rookie who enters the league, especially those who ply their trade primarily along the interior. Just as White will be a matchup nightmare at the offensive end, he could face similar issues defensively should he find himself matched up against players at the three who are quicker and faster than he is, or power forwards who have a height/length advantage. Like every NBA newbie, White will undoubtedly take his lumps early on, but he most definitely possesses the smarts and strength to eventually transform himself into an asset on the defensive end.

Now the work begins. The basketball world already knows Royce White is a unique player. Should he fully realize his immense potential, however, he has the chance to be a great one as well.
 


Well done. Royce appears to have come a long way since I knew him 3/4 years ago. Though he was a good kid back then, you could tell he was a little lost. Now, he appears poised to become a ultra-productive NBA player.
 

Heard a lot of praise for that video, but after watching it for myself.. what a yawner.

Has he ever said what has helped him cope in any detail (including whether or not any medications are prescribed and if so, the dosage)?
 

Gopher Warrior said:
Heard a lot of praise for that video, but after watching it for myself.. what a yawner.

Has he ever said what has helped him cope in any detail (including whether or not any medications are prescribed and if so, the dosage)?
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Why the hell is that any of your business?
 

rychart45 said:
Why the hell is that any of your business?
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Yeah! It's not like he invited a camera crew from California to film an entire day in his life with full intent of that video to be shared with the nation. All he wants is privacy and we must respect that!
 

There is a pretty big difference between filming a "day in the life" segment and asking how many mg of Xanax he is taken. I have NEVER been a Royce defender, but I'm not sure why any of us would be privy to his medication list.
 

rychart45 said:
Why the hell is that any of your business?
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Nothing is anyone's business. Why the harsh wording? I didn't say, "he better state details!!"

My recollection is that early on when he started this talk, he said that he was going to tell details about it so that he could help others. That was a stated purpose of his coming out with this information.

However, at that time, I thought he said he was not going to release all the details, rather they would be available in a movie about him at some future time.

In other words, my recollection was that his goal was to help people and he said at some time he was going to provide details in the hopes it might help others... but I've never seen them. I'm asking if they have come out yet.

Is my read of, "hey I want to be an open book and talk about this - over and over - to help people" not accurate?
 

Gopher Warrior said:
Nothing is anyone's business. Why the harsh wording? I didn't say, "he better state details!!"

My recollection is that early on when he started this talk, he said that he was going to tell details about it so that he could help others. That was a stated purpose of his coming out with this information.

However, at that time, I thought he said he was not going to release all the details, rather they would be available in a movie about him at some future time.

In other words, my recollection was that his goal was to help people and he said at some time he was going to provide details in the hopes it might help others... but I've never seen them. I'm asking if they have come out yet.

Is my read of, "hey I want to be an open book and talk about this - over and over - to help people" not accurate?
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You're right - asking which medications someone is taking along with the dosage isn't asking for details.

Why the harsh wording? Maybe because Royce has done a lot to be criticized about in his time (plenty of which I've personally criticized him for), but this video is refreshingly open and honest. He didn't sugarcoat anything. He was eloquent. In short, he seemed....mature, not a word I toss around easily with Royce. I'm sorry it doesn't measure up to your expectations, but for those with anxiety issues, I'm guessing this was an important film.
 



It's too bad, anxiety can be absolutely crippling.
 

start fining him for skipping out on camp and his anxiety will get better fast
 



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