House Ready For Opportunity To Prove Himself

Eddie House has used the first four years of his NBA career as an opportunity to learn from some of the best in the game. From the likes of Pat Riley, Rod Strickland and Tim Hardaway, he has learned how to conduct himself as a professional both on and off the court. Now he’s ready to take that experience and put it to use as a member of the Charlotte Bobcats’ inaugural season roster.

The 6-1, 175-pound guard began his basketball education at Arizona State University, where he completed his collegiate career as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,044 points. He joined nine-time NBA All-Star Gary Payton as the only players in Pac-10 history to record more than 2,000 points and 250 steals during their career.

“Going to college was the best experience of my life,” said House, who was named Pac-10 Player of the Year as a senior. “I had a great time playing basketball for all of my coaches. I had three coaches in four years and each one had his own unique style. Even though I would have loved to play for one coach, I found out a lot about myself, my game and about what I can be by playing for three different coaches.”

House capped his career at ASU with a 61-point performance in a double-overtime win at California, tying Lew Alcindor for the most points scored in a game in Pac-10 history.

“The biggest thing about that is that I did it in front of my family and all my friends and everybody got to celebrate with me,” said House, who was born in Berkeley, CA. “It was my last time playing in the Bay Area as a collegiate player, so that was my last little stamp on my college career in the Bay Area.”

House moved across the country to begin his NBA career when he was selected by the Miami Heat in the second round of the 2000 NBA Draft with the 37th overall pick. As a rookie, he saw action in 50 games and was the team’s leading scorer off the bench 13 times. House capped his rookie campaign with an outstanding performance in the NBA Playoffs against the Hornets.

“That first year was great because I learned a lot from playing behind Tim Hardaway,” said House. “But it was also a great experience because I learned how to conduct myself in a professional manner from Pat Riley – one of the greatest coaches in league history. I learned how to approach every practice the same way, how to approach the game and how to come to the arena dressed as a professional every night.

“It was a great experience because it matured me a little faster. I thought life in the NBA was going to be more free and that you could dress however you wanted, but it was not like that at all. It was a little bit more structured and that was good for me at that time.”

House enjoyed his best season as a professional during his second year in Miami, averaging 8.0 points, 1.9 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 64 appearances as the primary backup to point guard Rod Strickland. House continued to grow as a player that season and also learned some valuable lessons on and off the court from Strickland.

“Rod sat right behind me on the plane and we talked all the time,” said House. “Not only did we talk about about basketball and how to get better, but he also taught me about off the court – things to watch out for and traps not to fall into. I appreciated that a lot. He didn’t have to take the time out to do the things he did. Rod would see something I was doing wrong in practice and would stop and say, ‘No, do it like this.’ Then he would explain it to me and let me see why I should do it another way.”

Another positive influence for House during his three years in Miami was then assistant coach Stan Van Gundy.

“Stan Van Gundy…he was tremendous,” said House. “He worked with me a lot and helped me stay positive. During my second year, I played a lot, but in my third year I didn’t really play at all. That was kind of deflating, but Stan let me know that if I kept working hard and kept a positive attitude, everything would work out.”

House appeared in 55 games in his final season with the Heat and averaged 7.5 points and 1.8 assists. He returned to his California roots in the offseason when he signed a free agent contract with the Los Angeles Clippers. The move put him closer to his wife’s family, which has strong basketball ties. House’s wife, Charlsie, is the sister of Sacramento Kings guard Mike Bibby and the daughter of University of Southern California head coach and former NBA player Henry Bibby.

“I see Mike on a regular basis in the summer. We work out together and our kids play together,” said House, who has a three-year-old son Jaelen. “We might talk about basketball a little bit, but it’s just a regular life. It’s awesome for my son – he has great genes.”

His season with the Clippers once again brought inconsistent playing time. House averaged 6.8 points, 2.5 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 19.8 minutes. When he received the phone call from his agent in July letting him know that he had been traded to the Bobcats, he was ecstatic.

“My agent called me on the morning that it happened and I was asleep – it was 7:30 or 8:00 a.m. on the West Coast – and that was a great way to wake up. I was very happy,” said House. “Then Coach Bickerstaff called later and welcomed me to the team. I thought that was big. That was the first time that had ever happened. That gave me a very good feeling. I respected him for doing that.”

House is most excited about the opportunity to prove himself on a consistent basis in Charlotte.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for me,” said House. “I’ve not really had the opportunity to get into a rotation with a team – not had the opportunity to play on a consistent basis. Everybody is new here and that’s what I like about it. It’s not like places that I have been before where a guy has been with the team for two or three years and no matter what you do, you’re not going to be able to get settled in. You’ve just got to understand that that is the business. You’ve got to continue to keep working and wait for your opportunity. I think I have a pretty good one here.”

By: Bo Hussey, BobcatsBasketball.com
Posted: September 3, 2004