Aaron White's season...

[tm3308]

Apparently, you haven't watched this season...White came in every game looking to attack. Just because he has a very high basketball IQ does not mean he approached the game differently from reserve to starter.
He runs the floor...every game
He attacked the glass...every game
He found the open man...every game

White knows how to play the game and knows who is, or isn't on. He is a team first guy no matter the situation. The one thing he doesn't do a lot of is force things. If you think he played differently as a starter than a reserve, you haven't been paying attention. The difference now is he is taking over games more and more even when others are playing well, like last night.

Which is more a product of having a better feel for his surroundings than he had at the start of the year. We'd definitely be getting the same AW right now, whether he were starting or not.

 

[JonDMiller]

Jon- you seem kinda down on AW. Hummel was/is the better shooter, granted. But when have we seen a freshman with this kind of all around game in Iowa City? To me the answer is never.

I am not down on White at all. He is on the road to being one of my favorite Iowa players, ever.

I just think those thinking 15/8 average as being something easily attainable are a bit out of touch. It's tough to get there, and the fact I think he can get there speaks to what I think of him.

Here are the Iowa players from the last 30 years who have averaged 15 points per game or better AND eight rebounds per game or better:

2002: Reggie Evans, 15.4/11.1
2001: Reggie Evans, 15.1/11.9
1993: Acie Earl, 16.9/8.9
1989: Ed Horton, 18.3/10.6
1985: Greg Stokes, 19.9/8.4

Brunner never did it. Settles never did it. So if White can get there, that is pretty good company to be in. Of the four guys that did it, each of them has played in the NBA.

As it relates to Robbie Hummel, the kid just had one of the prettiest strokes I have ever seen. Saw him at a summer camp when he was 16 and you could tell then that he had an energizer bunny motor and a stroke to match it, which is lethal. Aaron has that motor, just not an elite stroke like Hummel had.

White has hit 28.6% from three this year. Hummel's worst season was 36.4. Hummel averaged 16/7 this year, 15.7/6.9 last year. His numbers last year were mighty impressive on a team with Moore and Johnson.

 

[EddyP]

That's how I described him a year ago and in the summer. He is nowhere, NOWHERE near as good a shooter as Hummel was at the same age. Hummel was a freaking great shooter. The other stuff? Yes. But not a shooter and I dont think he ever will be. Robbie Hummel was a very good all around player and still is. I think White can become a 15/8 guy before he leaves and there have not been too many of those in Iowa history.

A little early for that prediction. The guy can shoot and will get better.

 

[DDStretch]

That would be a flat *** broke man's Magic Johnson

You took the words right out of my mouth. That would be one dirt poor fella.

Creighton All-Americans are legit. Look no further than Kyle Korver for confirmation of that.

Yes, no doubt. I would take Doug McDermott on the Hawkeyes in a flash second. He'd be the best player we've got by far. We'll find out just how good he is if/when they match up with North Carolina.

Aaron White is the type of basketball player who brings extra value because he does not have to dominate the ball to score. This means he scores a lot of his points on put back or off others penetrating and getting the ball to him. You really don't want White to shoot more just to score more. His scoring in theory could stay the same over the years as Iowa brings in better players. If Aaron was like Devyn or a wing and had the ball in his hands more often maybe I would expect a spike in scoring. Aaron is not really a create off the bounce scorer unless he has a mismatch. I am fine if Aaron brings 13 points 7-8 rebonds per game over his career.

Good analysis. White is a good supporting player. Nothing wrong with that at all. Ask Chris Bosh.

Jon- you seem kinda down on AW.

Maybe he's just realistic.

 

[DowsHawk]

As excited as I am about the future of the Hawks I get a little concerned when we all start to project and evaluate players on their numbers. Next year hopefully our front line rotation is considerably different. As many have pointed out we will have true front court depth for the first time in a long while.

If we look at the minutes Zach and Mel logged in the post you have to expect those to diminish. We're going to work to get them on the floor and their only real option is the 4/5. I expect Meyer to earn some limited playing time, probably at the 5. I'd guess Woody will get about 17 minutes a game (here come the posts). The point being if White gets 30 a good portion of that will come at the three which IMO isn't his best spot. To get the best 5 on the floor at points he may not be in his best spot.

Match ups, who has the hot hand, who defends a given player the best and the flow of the game will impact who scores and how much. I hope we can continue to throw fresh talented bodies on the floor as we should be able to run other teams bigs to the point where their effectiveness is limited.

Defense is the elephant in the room. We need to make major strides in that area and defensive rebounding will be a key part of that. I'm a lot more concerned about our progress when the other team has the ball than I am when we have the ball. Aaron will get his share and if it is 11 a game and the Hawks win we'll all be happy.

I'll project Josh outscores 2 of the group of Mel,Zach, and Aaron next year.

 

[CAARHawk]

If defense is the key, IDK if I would expect Josh to be outscoring too many folks. The freshmen might really have a lot to say about the guard rotation because of defense.