Post by rainman on Jan 6, 2009 6:48:27 GMT -5
NBA just another transition for Alexander
BY MIKE RUBEN THE STATE JOURNAL
CHARLESTON — An efficient transition game is what basketball is all about, and Joe Alexander’s amazing basketball story has been all about making successful transitions.
The former West Virginia University standout is now playing with and against the best basketball players in the world as a rookie forward with the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association.
Alexander’s ascent to the NBA has been nothing less than a remarkable series of transitions. Unlike most of his peers, Alexander admits he has never been an immediate impact player on any level.
“That’s made it easy for me,” he said about paying his dues in a reserve role with the Bucks. “I’ve always been in situations where I’ve been coming off the bench. That has helped me relax and make that transition again.”
Alexander’s playing time has gradually increased to more than 13 minutes per game. Through 19 games, he averaged 4.1 points and 2.3 rebounds for the 7-12 Bucks.
Due to his father’s career as a business executive in the Far East, Alexander spent much of his childhood in China. He followed the early career of Yao Ming with the Shanghai Sharks and learned the game on the outdoor courts of Beijing from his older brothers John, 26, and Jeremy, 24.
Alexander had already set his goal of playing in the NBA when he moved back to the U.S. as a high school junior, living with his mother in Maryland. “I didn’t start on my high school team until my senior year,” he said.
He averaged 14.8 points and 7.0 rebounds during his senior season at Linganor High School in Frederick, Md. Division III Randolph-Macon College was the only college that expressed an interest, so Alexander opted to attend Hargrave Military Academy to improve his skills. Playing behind current Big East stars Sam Young of Pittsburgh and Shane Clark of Villanova, Alexander’s playing time was limited.
Still, he managed to catch the attention of WVU coach John Beilein. Once again, Alexander did not make an immediate impact upon joining the Mountaineer program. He basically played in mop-up roles as a freshman, but moved into the rotation as a sophomore, scoring 10.3 points per game during a National Invitational Tournament (NIT) championship season. His true emergence took place during his junior season under new head coach Bob Huggins. He acknowledges that he benefited from the basketball thought process emphasized by Beilein and the mental toughness emphasized by Huggins.
Alexander averaged 16.9 points and 6.4 rebounds in his final season in Morgantown. He also racked up a gaudy 54 rejections. More importantly, he went on a rampage during the second half of the season, averaging 25 points per game. The All-Big East selection garnered national attention as WVU knocked off Arizona and Duke in the NCAA tournament before falling to Georgetown in the Sweet 16 round.
With his stock on the rise with NBA scouts, Alexander opted to forego his senior season at WVU.
“I always wanted to play in the NBA, but I genuinely miss WVU,” Alexander confessed. “I miss my teammates and working out. It’s one of those situations where you don’t really know what you have until it’s gone.”
The eighth pick of the 2008 draft, he became the first WVU player in 40 seasons to be selected in the opening round. He will make more than $2 million this season with Milwaukee.
The 6-8, 230-pound forward played five games in the NBA Summer League, averaging 9.2 points and 3.6 rebounds. Shortly thereafter, the Bucks’ medical staff offered a different diagnosis of an abdominal injury that he suffered during his regular season finale a year ago against St. Johns. He spent a good portion of the fall rehabilitating his lower torso and was not cleared to play until early October.
Missing a good portion of training camp slowed Alexander’s learning curve, according to Bucks coach Scott Skiles.
“For rookies, it can be huge,” he said of the lack of preseason court time. “It was not an ideal scenario for him and he’s catching up. I’ll try to be smart about when I put him in and hopefully I can get him out there when he can have some success.”
Skiles added the Bucks organization is still “very, very” high on Alexander’s potential.
After sitting out the Bucks’ first three games, New York’s Madison Square Garden was a fitting location for Alexander’s NBA debut.
“I told Coach Skiles to look up my last performances there,” he chuckled in reference to a 29-point game against St. Johns and a 34point performance against Connecticut. It’s the same venue where the NBA draft unfolded in June.
He describes the NBA as much the same game as college hoops, with better competition, more games and less practice time.
“It’s not that different,” he said. “It’s just that everyone is bigger and more athletic. Everyone here can play.”
There is a difference, he noted, in coaching styles with professional players providing much of their own motivation.
“NBA coaches don’t spend practice yelling at everyone,” Alexander said. “Coach Skiles is tough by NBA standards — about like coach Beilein was — but he doesn’t yell as much as coach (Bob) Huggins.”
It’s that attitude, however, that Alexander says will make for another successful season for the Mountaineers. They have the right mentality,” he said. “They’re hungry and they want to put teams away.”
BY MIKE RUBEN THE STATE JOURNAL
CHARLESTON — An efficient transition game is what basketball is all about, and Joe Alexander’s amazing basketball story has been all about making successful transitions.
The former West Virginia University standout is now playing with and against the best basketball players in the world as a rookie forward with the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association.
Alexander’s ascent to the NBA has been nothing less than a remarkable series of transitions. Unlike most of his peers, Alexander admits he has never been an immediate impact player on any level.
“That’s made it easy for me,” he said about paying his dues in a reserve role with the Bucks. “I’ve always been in situations where I’ve been coming off the bench. That has helped me relax and make that transition again.”
Alexander’s playing time has gradually increased to more than 13 minutes per game. Through 19 games, he averaged 4.1 points and 2.3 rebounds for the 7-12 Bucks.
Due to his father’s career as a business executive in the Far East, Alexander spent much of his childhood in China. He followed the early career of Yao Ming with the Shanghai Sharks and learned the game on the outdoor courts of Beijing from his older brothers John, 26, and Jeremy, 24.
Alexander had already set his goal of playing in the NBA when he moved back to the U.S. as a high school junior, living with his mother in Maryland. “I didn’t start on my high school team until my senior year,” he said.
He averaged 14.8 points and 7.0 rebounds during his senior season at Linganor High School in Frederick, Md. Division III Randolph-Macon College was the only college that expressed an interest, so Alexander opted to attend Hargrave Military Academy to improve his skills. Playing behind current Big East stars Sam Young of Pittsburgh and Shane Clark of Villanova, Alexander’s playing time was limited.
Still, he managed to catch the attention of WVU coach John Beilein. Once again, Alexander did not make an immediate impact upon joining the Mountaineer program. He basically played in mop-up roles as a freshman, but moved into the rotation as a sophomore, scoring 10.3 points per game during a National Invitational Tournament (NIT) championship season. His true emergence took place during his junior season under new head coach Bob Huggins. He acknowledges that he benefited from the basketball thought process emphasized by Beilein and the mental toughness emphasized by Huggins.
Alexander averaged 16.9 points and 6.4 rebounds in his final season in Morgantown. He also racked up a gaudy 54 rejections. More importantly, he went on a rampage during the second half of the season, averaging 25 points per game. The All-Big East selection garnered national attention as WVU knocked off Arizona and Duke in the NCAA tournament before falling to Georgetown in the Sweet 16 round.
With his stock on the rise with NBA scouts, Alexander opted to forego his senior season at WVU.
“I always wanted to play in the NBA, but I genuinely miss WVU,” Alexander confessed. “I miss my teammates and working out. It’s one of those situations where you don’t really know what you have until it’s gone.”
The eighth pick of the 2008 draft, he became the first WVU player in 40 seasons to be selected in the opening round. He will make more than $2 million this season with Milwaukee.
The 6-8, 230-pound forward played five games in the NBA Summer League, averaging 9.2 points and 3.6 rebounds. Shortly thereafter, the Bucks’ medical staff offered a different diagnosis of an abdominal injury that he suffered during his regular season finale a year ago against St. Johns. He spent a good portion of the fall rehabilitating his lower torso and was not cleared to play until early October.
Missing a good portion of training camp slowed Alexander’s learning curve, according to Bucks coach Scott Skiles.
“For rookies, it can be huge,” he said of the lack of preseason court time. “It was not an ideal scenario for him and he’s catching up. I’ll try to be smart about when I put him in and hopefully I can get him out there when he can have some success.”
Skiles added the Bucks organization is still “very, very” high on Alexander’s potential.
After sitting out the Bucks’ first three games, New York’s Madison Square Garden was a fitting location for Alexander’s NBA debut.
“I told Coach Skiles to look up my last performances there,” he chuckled in reference to a 29-point game against St. Johns and a 34point performance against Connecticut. It’s the same venue where the NBA draft unfolded in June.
He describes the NBA as much the same game as college hoops, with better competition, more games and less practice time.
“It’s not that different,” he said. “It’s just that everyone is bigger and more athletic. Everyone here can play.”
There is a difference, he noted, in coaching styles with professional players providing much of their own motivation.
“NBA coaches don’t spend practice yelling at everyone,” Alexander said. “Coach Skiles is tough by NBA standards — about like coach Beilein was — but he doesn’t yell as much as coach (Bob) Huggins.”
It’s that attitude, however, that Alexander says will make for another successful season for the Mountaineers. They have the right mentality,” he said. “They’re hungry and they want to put teams away.”
