The Balancing Act: Isaiah White is a student, athlete and father all in one
Head Coach Andy Enfield likes to keep it real with his players after practice. Before the team heads downstairs to the weight rooms in Galen Center, he goes to graduate student guard Isaiah White to impart some wisdom.
“Isaiah, the [fans don’t] understand that you guys have to go to class, go to practice and then you have to go lift weights.”
White chimes in with a quick response.
“Then I have to go change diapers.”
After a long day of setting screens and hitting 3-pointers, White comes home to fatherly responsibilities such as diaper changing and singing lullabies. As if the workload of a D1 collegiate athlete wasn’t enough, White is also pursuing a master’s degree and above all, a father of two children.
“The average fan just shows up, they cheer for you, but they don’t understand what it’s like, how time consuming it is to be a student athlete at this level, especially when you have a family,” Enfield said. “He’s one of my favorite players I’ve ever coached. He’s such a team player, and he’s been through a lot, so we’re here to support him with his off-the-court family situation.”
The Balancing Act
White’s schedule is the ultimate test of time-management skills.
“I couldn’t even explain it,” White said. “Some days, it’s just going off of three hours of sleep trying to get a six-page paper done on game day. On some days, it’s easier than others. This has been the hardest year of my life as far as juggling everything and not quitting.”
But with the way he conducts his business on the court, you couldn’t tell White deals with sleep deprivation.
“He’s a dog,” junior guard Boogie Ellis said. “He brings a lot of energy. I love playing with people like that. It makes me wanna play hard alongside him. He does all the little things, the dirty things that other players don’t wanna do. Every team needs a guy like him.”
White has only started in two of his 20 appearances this season. He’s tasked with providing a spark off the bench, something his team has sorely needed. Against UC Berkeley on Jan. 29, White’s energy fueled a comeback after a slow start, and the Trojans went on to win 79-72.
“We were struggling, and he came in and provided a lot of energy defensively,” Enfield said. “He was all over the place, diving on the floor, getting through screens, [getting] rebounds. I thought he played a great game against Cal and helped us win the game.”
Journey to USC
White possesses the hooper’s build, his 6-foot-7, 210 pound frame renders him equally imposing physically as he is agile. Despite his physique, White didn’t start playing organized basketball until his freshman year of high school. Already involved in football and baseball as well as Advanced Placement classes, he added on basketball after he saw his friends make the team, thinking he could do the same.
“I thought I was better than them in junior high, playing at lunchtime, so I tried out as well and made the team,” White said. “After that year, I decided I’m [only] gonna [go] wherever my heart’s at, whatever [sport] is the most fun. … [So I stuck with] basketball my 10th grade year.”
The road to becoming a Trojan was far from traditional. White didn’t gain traction as a recruit out of high school, opting instead to play basketball at Salt Lake Community College. After his freshman year, White decided to redshirt and later transferred to Utah Valley University.
“Starting from JuCo, I’ve seen all the highs and the lows,” White said. “I was getting $175 stipend checks for a month at JuCo. Now, I’m in beautiful locker rooms, and I don’t take it for granted. I think all of it’s beautiful — JuCo, midmajor, here — I love it all.”
White never shied away from the grind, knowing he would come out a better person and player than before.
“I think my biggest ability is adapting to whatever situation is in front of me, just knowing that after winter comes spring,” White said. “You’re always gonna struggle in whatever you’re doing in life, but you’re always gonna get through it if you keep going … I’ve had bad years, I’ve had bad games, and I’ve learned to just keep playing because I love it and it’s fun to me. Once my good games and good years come around, it makes it all worth it..”
Enfield’s recruitment largely fueled the choice to transfer to USC, according to White.
“I talked to coach, and he just kept it real with me,” White said. “I could hear it in his voice, his tone … He kept it real saying like, ‘I’m not gonna promise you nothing, no one gets promised anything over here. You gotta prove yourself.’ That’s all I wanted, the chance to come in here and prove myself. He made it very clear to me that I have to work for my spot.”
Earn your respect
White slotted into last year’s USC team comfortably as a role player. Even as he played a crucial component to the team’s success, his contributions to the stats sheet were mostly modest.
That was, until the Sweet Sixteen.
Fresh off an upset of No. 2 Iowa, No. 7 seeded Oregon looked to spoil USC’s NCAA Tournament run. The Ducks jumped out to an early lead, leading with just over 12 minutes to play in the first half. All of the sudden, USC went on a run — scoring with every opportunity and getting stops on the defensive end — and didn’t look back.
Looking at the box score after the game, it wasn’t either of the Mobley brothers, nor was it redshirt senior guard Tahj Eaddy at the top of the scoring. It was White.
He wasn’t supposed to be the star of the team, but on that night in Indianapolis, White made it look like he was. The man who wasn’t known for stat-sheet stuffing finished with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals -—his best performance of the season.
“I feel like the team feeds off my energy,” White said after the game. “I make sure out the gate that I come with that energy and come with that heart, and hopefully it makes everyone else comfortable, and then we just get to playing our game.”
Enfield’s USC program has become a perennial title contender in the Pac-12 — pulling in high-level recruiting talent and developing players into stars — but the impact of role players is not lost on him. White acknowledged Enfield’s role in teaching him his own value.
“He’s shed light on what I bring to the table as a player,” White said. “A lot of times the dogs or the glue guys don’t get a lot of credit. The energy guys get looked over because they do things in the game that sometimes won’t show up on the stat sheet.”
Stay the course
From an early age, White understood the balance between being a student and an athlete.
“It’s the way I’ve played my whole life in any sport is always at least play hard,” White said. “My parents didn’t care if I was doing well or not, whether it was in the classroom or on the court or on the field, they just wanted me to give it 100%. That’s all I do, and it’s been working for me.”
The last offseason presented a massive decision for White. Although the NCAA granted athletes an extra year of eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic, White seriously considered ending his collegiate career with his second child on the way.
“I knew that I had my son coming right before the season, and I felt those challenges when my daughter was here last year,” White said. “I was like, ‘Man, I’m not doing that again.’ But I looked at myself from my dad’s point of view, and I looked at it like, ‘What would I want my son to do?’ I would want my son to get his master’s degree if he could, a free master’s degree. That was a priority, getting my degree here and having fun, and everything else will fall into place.”
For White, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the many hardships and intricacies of his life. He credits his family for grounding him.
“This game is where my passion is at. I love it so much sometimes I can get lost in it,” White said. “And they helped me to realize that there’s more things that are more important than the game of basketball, even though I love it so much. They bring me back to earth whether I’m going through a high or low. They make me pretty even keel and make me recognize what’s important in life.”