Syracuse Basketball: Andrew White is tearing up the G-League

Former Syracuse basketball star Andrew White’s tremendous play in the G-League should land him in the NBA sooner than later. ITLH breaks it down.

Things could have gone better for Andrew White after Syracuse’s unexpected loss to Ole Miss in the 2017 NIT Tournament. Nine months later, White has proven that he is far more determined to make the NBA than most undrafted players.

This past June, White failed to make the field of 60 in the 2017 NBA Draft and became an unrestricted free agent.

Just over two months later, on August 28th, the Boston Celtics signed White, only to place his contract on waivers on October 12th. Two days later, White became a free agent during Boston’s training camp and was allocated to the Celtics’ G-League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws.

Before we delve into his strong first year of professional basketball, let’s review White’s lengthy college career.

White was a promising talent out of high school. His first two collegiate seasons spent with the

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ever so illustrious Kansas Jayhawks did not go as planned. White averaged just 5.6 minutes over 43 games with the Jayhawks, scored less than three points per contest, and wasn’t given his chance to thrive as an offensive threat.

After sitting out the 2014-15 season due to NCAA transfer rules, White turned things around at Nebraska, and in a big way. In his lone year playing for the Cornhuskers, White started all 34 games, averaged nearly 17 points, six rebounds, and a steal on a whopping 48% shooting and 41% from three-point land. After averaging less than six minutes per game at Kansas, White averaged just below 30 in Nebraska, and in the process, became one of the NCAA’s most feared shooters.

In August of 2016, White decided to spend his fifth-year with the Syracuse Orange as a grad transfer, a decision he would not regret. Most SU fans were expecting White to serve as an average two-way player in college hoops’ toughest conference, the ACC. Not only did White go on to match his strong 2015-16 campaign with Nebraska, he exceeded the call of duty with Syracuse.

Last year, White averaged more than 37 minutes per game, nearly 19 points, more than four rebounds, and close to two steals a night. His shot got better as the year progressed, and by the end of ACC play, White was shooting a pristine 44% from the field and over 40% from long range.

White’s ability to score the basketball at an alarmingly efficient rate should have landed him a spot in the NBA Draft. After going undrafted, White decided to not pursue professional basketball overseas, and instead prove that he’s a NBA caliber player.

Since the draft, White has used adversity to his advantage and has already proved to be one of the G-League’s better two-way forwards.

Through 19 games with the Maine Red Claws, White is averaging more than 16 points, almost six rebounds, and close to five assists, all while shooting a strong 45% from the field and 42% from three. White’s stats on paper don’t do justice to some of his ridiculous individual scoring outputs.

In his season debut, White scored 37 points off the bench on 13-21 shooting and 4-6 from three. The electrifying performance propelled the Red Claws to a 118-109 win over the Delaware 87ers.

This past Saturday, White almost single-handedly led the Red Claws to a comeback victory over the Windy City Bulls, pouring in a career-high 41 points and 14 rebounds.

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If not for Boston’s depth, it would be hard to think that they could overlook such a promising talent in White. Plenty of teams around the NBA would benefit from having an above average three-point shooting small forward. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised to see White suit up for an NBA team before the 2018-19 season begins.