Derrick White captures national NBA Draft attention

Derrick White is a superstar. Colorado fans found out very early on how great of a player he is and what a great teammate he is. Throughout the season, he proved to opposing teams and the rest of the Pac-12 how fantastic he was, culminating in a heroic losing effort against Arizona in the Pac-12 conference tournament.

Now, the rest of the country is picking up on the fact that this kid is pretty good. His story makes for a fantastic article as well. After performing well at the Portsmouth Invitational, Derrick White earned an invite to the NBA Combine, one of only 11 seniors invited. Just as a he did in Division II, and Division I, and the Inviational, White will surprise people with just how great he is. He’s already generating some buzz.

Just today, two national writers dropped stories on White and his improbable journey.

You can read Jeff Eisenberg’s Yahoo piece here.

At the time, it merely seemed like the long-awaited break White needed to secure a foothold in college basketball. There was no way of knowing it would also turn out to be the start of White’s dizzying ascent from fringe Division II prospect to the cusp of reaching the NBA.

And Matt Norlander’s excellent piece is here.

But unless you're a hardcore college basketball fan, an NBA Draft junkie or watched the Pac-12 regularly last season, you may have no idea who Derrick White is. You may not know the name, the game, his look, any of it. But, once you watch him play, he's hard to shake from your mind. There's a captivating element to his style. He's lean but not lanky to a fault. His untamed, curly hair bobs with joy. Most fun: his seemingly mutant-type ability to elasticize himself whenever he dunks in traffic.