Hoosier favorite, White, goes out a grad

D.J. White will distinguish himself Saturday from many of his fellow blue-chip recruits from the class of 2004, and it won’t be on the hardwood. \nWhite will graduate with a degree in general studies with minors in African-American studies and criminal justice, a rare feat for a top-flight prospect coming out of high school. Only three of the top-15 recruits from the class of 2004 – White, Oregon guard Malik Hairston and Kentucky guard Joe Crawford – spent four years in college.\nWhite first earned headlines in the Hoosier state when he was the crown jewel of a top-5 recruiting class for former Hoosier coach Mike Davis in 2004. While White has obvious talent on the hardwood, his lack of size for a power forward has always been a concern when moving toward the NBA. Analysts were torn during White’s senior year in high school on whether he would leave college early for the NBA.\n“That kind of player’s stay in college may not be long,” recruiting analyst Mike Pegram wrote in 2004. “But D.J. could be a four-year guy.”\nWhite ended up being a four-year player, but his career was anything but typical. White and walk-ons Adam Ahlfeld and Kyle Taber were the only three players from the seven-man freshmen class of 2004 to suit up for the final game of the season against Arkansas.\nFirst, Lucas Steijn transferred to John A. Logan Junior College after the 2004-2005 season. Next, James Hardy quit the team in 2005 to concentrate on football. Hardy entered this year’s NFL draft and was chosen in the second round with the No. 41 pick by the Buffalo Bills. Robert Vaden followed Davis to the University of Alabama-Birmingham after the coach resigned following the 2005-2006 season. This season, A.J. Ratliff left the team Feb. 12 for “personal issues.”\nWhite had an up-and-down first three years of his career. He was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year in his rookie campaign, but sat out most of his sophomore season because of a foot injury. White’s career blossomed under former Hoosier coach Kelvin Sampson as the Alabama native became the unquestioned leader of the Hoosiers this past season.\n“This is D.J. White’s team,” Sampson said in a statement prior to the season.\nWhite responded to his leadership responsibility as he turned in his best season in Bloomington, earning both Big Ten Player of the Year and All-American honors despite the turmoil facing the program off the court. The decision to stay in school one more year has helped White’s draft status and allowed him to pick up several awards.\n“It is a tremendous honor to be named the best player in a league that has so many great players in it,” White said in a statement after being named Big Ten Player of the Year. “I want to thank my teammates, coaches and family for helping me obtain this personal goal.”\nEver since he was a senior in high school, D.J. White has been considered a future NBA player. Recruiting service www.rivals.com ranked White as the No. 15 prospect in the class of 2004 — a ranking higher than current NBA players LaMarcus Aldridge, Shawne Williams and Rajon Rondo.\nThe All-American forward is slated to be the first pick of the second round by the draft-projecting Web site www.nbadraft.net.\nWhile the Hoosier faithful will miss White, he will always be remembered as the guiding force during some of the darkest days of IU basketball in the aftermath of Sampson’s resignation stemming from allegations of NCAA violations.\n“Of all the great players, and there have been a zillion at IU, I have never seen a better combination of player, person and hard-working guy than the legend D.J. White,” former interim coach Dan Dakich said on Senior Night.