White gains notice as No. 7 Aztecs rise

Billy White never has lacked motivation.

Since his days at Green Valley High School, White has tried to disprove his doubters. His talent was never in question, but detractors wondered about his work ethic, consistency and willingness to conform. Basketball came easily to White, and perhaps some confused effortlessness with laziness.

Now a 6-foot-8-inch senior forward averaging 11.1 points for seventh-ranked San Diego State, White has begun to catch the eye of NBA scouts when they attend Aztecs games to watch his teammates Kawhi Leonard and Malcolm Thomas.

"A lot of people didn't think I'd make it," White said. "I'd hear things and all it did was make me want to prove everyone wrong."

White is back in his hometown a few days before Christmas to play in the Holiday Hoops Classic at South Point Arena. San Diego State (12-0) plays San Francisco (4-5) at 7 p.m. today and Indiana-Purdue-Indianapolis (5-7) at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

"I'm looking forward to that," White said. "It's always fun to play in front of family and friends."

Even the critics, too.

White's few remaining doubters will point to the holes in his game -- such as 64 percent free-throw shooting -- and say he's got no shot at the NBA.

White insists he's having too much fun playing for a nationally ranked team, off to the best start in school history, to worry. He has six double-doubles, is shooting 62 percent from the floor and also averages 3.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists.

"It's been great," White said. "We're having so much fun, it's a great team to be part of. Everyone gets along with each other. There's no selfishness whatsoever."

Coach Steve Fisher recruited White by stressing that he wanted him to play a role in building San Diego State into a basketball power. White, who was pursued by big schools throughout the West, including UNLV, wanted to leave Las Vegas.

"It couldn't have worked out any better," he said. "I was struggling during my freshman year, but all the coaches showed me a lot of love and that meant a lot to me."

Fisher said it was only a matter of time before White figured out how to excel at the Division I level.

"I've taken great pleasure watching him mature and enjoy being part of a winning program," Fisher said. "Billy's such a nice young kid. He wants to please everybody and we're proud of the job he's done."

Fisher said the critics were predicting that White would wash out and be gone from San Diego State after a year. Not only is White still there, he's playing like an all-Mountain West Conference performer. He scored a career-high 30 points against Gonzaga on Nov. 16 and had 24 against Wichita State on Dec. 4.

"I think a year from now, Billy's going to be playing for pay somewhere," Fisher said. "The biggest hurdle he's had to overcome is dealing with the frustration when things don't go well for him. He's still dealing with that to a degree. But he has finally realized if he's active and moves, things happen."

White admits his unselfish play has worked to his advantage and benefited the team. His interior passing skills have helped Leonard and Thomas maximize their talent, and he is getting to more rebounds because he can play without the ball.

"Actually, the coaches want me to score a little more," White said. "I've always tried to be a pass-first kind of player. With the kind of team we have that has so much talent, it's easy to give up the ball because we have so many guys who can score."

As for talk of an NBA future, White said he's blocking that out until after the season.

"It's hard not to look at it, but my teammates are keeping me focused," White said. "It's a long season. A lot of things can happen -- an injury, a slump. But I'm glad people are noticing us."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.