No Time to Sit: UW's Roberts Ready to Play More
Against USC, the Washington basketball team tried something new. The Huskies broke up the rotation and broke in a new player.
They pulled the wrapping off Nate Roberts.
The 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman from Maryland got his first real chance to show what he could do. He did a lot. In Sunday night's 72-40 rout of the Trojans, he pulled 21 minutes, threw down 3 dunks and grabbed 7 rebounds.
Obvious questions: Why hadn't Roberts played significant minutes before and will he get another shot against Stanford on Thursday night?
"When you come in and do what he did, you get him more minutes," UW coach Mike Hopkins said.
As for the first inquiry, Hopkins cited Roberts' inexperience, redshirt status and a set rotation for causing his previous inactivity, which limited him to just 36 minutes over the first 14 games.
In the 2018-19 season, Hopkins redshirted the big man and got him into a weight program with positive results.
"I remember the day he came out of the weight room and he looked like Dwight Howard," the coach said.
Yet with the team built around two supposed one-and-done freshmen, who won't be around long, it seemed only logical that Hopkins would have played Roberts more during non-conference play and let him build some experience.
Roberts will be asked to carry significant responsibility at some point for the Huskies. He might as well be ready when that day comes.
Asked if it was tough to sit early on, Roberts, who chose the Huskies over Syracuse and Nebraska, didn't try to sugarcoat his situation.
"It definitely has its dark days," he said "I just have to remain humble and patient. My family tells me, 'Your time will come.' "
Roberts brings decent height and great springs to the Huskies (11-4 overall, 1-1 Pac-12). Watching him play, the big man's most glaring weakness appears to be his hands.
In earlier appearances, he fumbled three or four snappy feeds sent his direction, unable to wrap his hands around the ball.
While he deals with his dexterity issues, the Huskies need what he brings.
"He's a physical guy who's a great rebounder," Hopkins said.
The coach doesn't seem inclined to shake up his starting lineup any at Stanford, even though play by the fifth starter, largely Hameir Wright and sometimes Jamal Bey, has been underwhelming.
Hopkins even registered concern that the struggling Wright has been drawing too much negative reaction on social media from UW fans. The same thing happened to departed guard David Crisp the season before.
However, Roberts should continue to pull longer stints and enjoy more of a headline role. A year from how, he'll likely be a starter with freshmen Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels moving to the pros.
"He brought energy," Hopkins said of Roberts. "If he can make an impact, he can play."
