AMES, IOWA - Iowa State had wanted him once before, back when Royce White was a high school sophomore at DeLaSalle. The Cyclones were the first basketball program to offer him a scholarship, a gesture the young forward remembered even as he chose to play for the Gophers.

The fact that they still welcomed him last summer meant even more. After two legal matters prevented White from ever playing at Minnesota, new Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg invited him to start over in Ames. Though White is ineligible to compete this season because of NCAA transfer rules, he has become an enthusiastic member of the practice squad, added nearly 10 pounds to his 6-8 frame and immersed himself in school and campus life.

Athletic director Jamie Pollard admitted he wondered whether White's background made him too big a risk for a first-year coach to take. He said White impressed a variety of people during a rigorous vetting process last summer, and he's lived up to their high expectations during his first months at the school.

"Royce has blown me away," Pollard said. "When Fred brought it up to me, I said, 'Are you really sure this is what you want to bite off in your first go through?' He said he really believed in him. We took a flyer on him, and he has been stellar."

A music major and self-taught pianist, White is spending much of his free time in the school's music building. Between classes, basketball, writing songs and hanging out with fellow music students, he is keeping himself busy -- which he said is exactly what he needs to do to capitalize on his fresh start.

"I'm more cautious of the things I do in my spare time," said White, who finished the first semester with a 3.0 grade-point average. "When mistakes are made, a lot of people don't come back from that. For me to be able to come back at all is definitely a blessing."

White, 19, was named Minnesota's Mr. Basketball in 2009 as he led Hopkins to the Class 4A championship. During his first semester at the U, White pleaded guilty to misdemeanor theft and disorderly conduct after an altercation at the Mall of America, and he later pleaded guilty to trespassing after an investigation into the theft of a laptop from a dormitory room.

White was suspended indefinitely and left the Gophers without having appeared in a game. Hoiberg, who inherited a sparse roster when he was named Iowa State's coach in April, began asking others about White and got enough positive reviews to invite him to Ames last summer.

Pollard insisted White pass muster with people outside the athletic department. He did, but White did not prevail before another important audience: the NCAA. Upon his transfer to Iowa State in July, he applied for a waiver of the rule that requires athletes to sit out a season after they change schools. That was rejected in November, meaning he will not compete in college until next fall – about 2 1/2 years after his high school career ended.

White said his shooting, passing and ability to make the right play have all improved since coming to Iowa State. So has his ability to make good choices off the court, helped by the support he's received in a place that kept the door open for him.

"Most people don't get second chances," he said. "I'm beyond ready to get out there and play again."