MURPHY’S LAW: White to Rockets, Barnes to Warriors, PCC to ????

By Chris Hassel

Fred Hoiberg said he was so nervous for Royce White, his heart was beating out of his chest. “Not good for someone with a heart condition,” Hoiberg said. It was a great night for Royce and the Cyclone basketball program. Hoiberg took a chance on the troubled kid from the Twin-Cities. He took Royce under his wing, and landed him in the NBA. After being selected 16th by the Houston Rockets, White becomes the 9th Cyclone in school history to be drafted in the first round. There were some that didn’t think Royce would ever see the floor in a college game. That says a lot about Fred Hoiberg. And about Royce White.

From Ames, to an Ames native. Harrison Barnes was in New Jersey to shake the hand of NBA Commish, David Stern, after hearing his named called 7th by the Golden State Warriors. Barnes says he can’t wait to get Northern California and try to turn the franchise around. The Warriors haven’t had an All-Star in 15 years. Latrell Sprewell in 1997 — the same year he choked head coach P.J. Carlesimo. 

As I write this, the draft is about to enter round 2. I highly doubt Matt Gatens gets taken, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him make an NBA roster. But if he wants to make a career in the NBA, he’s going to have to learn to be a sharp-shooter at the level of a Kyle Korver. 

The Principal Charity Classic needs a new home, and it’s having a tough time finding one. A week after Glen Oaks decided to end its relationship with the Champions Tour event, Des Moines Golf and Country Club has declined the PCC’s offer to host. The next course on the list has to be Wakonda. The problem is, members at these country clubs don’t want to sacrifice 3 weeks of golf in the middle of golf season. It sounds like it may end up back at the Tournament Club of Iowa; a course in Polk City that hosted the event in 2006. The problem with TCI is that the players didn’t like it because it was too hilly. There were also parts of the course that spectators weren’t allowed to go. It would be a shame for Des Moines to lose the tourney. 

Since Des Moines stole the Girls State Soccer Tournament away from Muscatine, maybe Muscatine can host the PCC. Fair trade-off.