Wizards pick Iowa’s Aaron White

Aaron White had an inkling Washington might select him during Thursday's NBA draft. But he wasn't prepared for the emotions that overtook him after he saw his name on television.

'I broke down when I was picked,” White said. 'Just a culmination of a lot of hard work. Man ... I can't even put it into words.”

The Wizards tabbed White at No. 49 overall in the second round. The pick gave the Hawkeyes selections in consecutive NBA drafts. Last year, former Hawkeye guard Devyn Marble was tabbed in the second round by the Denver Nuggets and immediately traded to the Orlando Magic.

White worked out for 16 NBA teams spanning the last six weeks and counted Washington among his best workouts. White's agent, Chris Emens of Octagon, informed him that he was in play for eight different picks between 40 and 60.

'He told me there were eight picks between 40 and 60 and there were two or three guys on the list and when I heard that, I wanted a little bit more of an answer,” White said.

Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery attended a small gathering for White at a Cleveland-area restaurant. McCaffery was notified via text that White was picked by the Wizards. McCaffery showed the text to White, but it didn't quite register until the pick was announced on television.

'(McCaffery) had a guy at the draft, and the draft was basically two picks behind on live TV,” White said. 'So he showed me a text and obviously I had a lot going on and a lot of different thoughts, and he showed me Washington at 49 and I looked at it and I was like, ‘Oh cool.' It didn't really hit me. Then obviously I was really emotional.”

Spanning his four years at Iowa, White ranks second in career points (1,859), third in rebounds (901) and owns school marks for games played (140), free throws (618) and attempts (800). He sank more free throws than any Big Ten player since the early 1960s.

Last year, White became a first-team all-Big Ten performer with a late surge. He averaged a Big Ten-high 21.4 points a game over his final nine games. He scored 20 or more points in six consecutive games before ending with 19 against Gonzaga in an NCAA tournament loss.

White finished fifth in Big Ten scoring (16.4 points per game) and fourth in rebounding (7.3 per game). He was the only Division I player to average more than 16 points and seven rebounds a game while shooting better than 50 percent from the floor and 80 percent from the free-throw line. He led Iowa in rebounding all four years.

Washington will allocate White to its summer league roster. There's a possibility the Wizards could push White toward Europe for the upcoming season, but White said, 'nothing's official yet.”

'I'm still waiting to hear back from Washington,” he said.

Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld said White will play on the team's summer-league squad but whether White heads to Europe is undetermined. The Wizards still would retain White's rights.

Grunfeld called White 'a well-rounded player.”

'He can make some outside shots, and he knows how to play the game,” Grunfeld told reporters. 'He has a high basketball IQ, and he's a skilled player. He can pass the ball. Again, a young player, but he has experience.”

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