Colorado State University Athletics
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Team Takes In Roddy's NBA Debut
10/20/2022 1:54:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Moment was special for the program, present and future
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – As they work toward their own season opener, there was another debut Colorado State men's basketball team was awaiting – former teammate David Roddy's inaugural NBA game.
Wednesday night, last year's Mountain West Player of the Year suited up for the Memphis Grizzlies against the New York Knicks, with Roddy's first game finishing with a 115-112 overtime victory. The team's first-round pick played 13 minutes, and while he didn't score, he collected a pair of rebounds and handed out an assist.
It was a night the Rams didn't want to miss. While head coach Niko Medved tuned in from home, the current crop of Rams hosted a watch party.
"Of course there was. We were at Jack Payne's house, but it was amazing," said John Tonje, who came to Colorado State in the same recruiting class as Roddy. "For David to play his first official game in the NBA, it was a surreal moment. It's something you can't take away from him. It's an amazing time. He also played his first game against my favorite player, Derrick Rose, so that added to the excitement of that."
Roddy declared for the NBA Draft a year early after a phenomenal three seasons at Colorado State. He became the third Ram to be selected in the first round, going 23rd overall to the Philadelphia 76ers, who sent the pick to Memphis.
Roddy was part of Medved's second recruiting class, one which helped change the trajectory of the program. They improved every year, reaching the NCAA Tournament last season – the first bid for the program since 2013 –after a 25-6 campaign. In a three-year career, he became a 1,000-point scorer, averaging 15.5, setting a school record his final season with 222 field goals. He is ninth all-time at CSU with 1,406 points and in the top 20 of just about every other category.
And he was Medved's first NBA draft pick.
"It's so cool. I had talked to him the night before, and again, reflected on what an unbelievable moment that was for him getting an opportunity to play in the NBA and that it was for real, and going back and forth with his mom a little bit," Medved said. "That was awesome, and then getting him a chance to watch him, watching my kids watch him, that was really cool.
"What I thought was funny, and he'd appreciate that, is he took a charge and they subbed him in late for defensive purposes. I guess I wasn't a very good coach because they clearly see him differently than I did. That's a joke David."
The hope is Roddy will continue to pay off for the program even though he no longer plays in Fort Collins. The Minnesota native was very vocal about how he felt Medved and his program saw something in him other didn't and helped him develop into the player he became.
When Medved is in a recruit's home for a visit, it's a message which will serve him well.
"The best predictor for future behavior is past behavior," Medved said. "And if you're selling that a guy can grow and reach that level and have that kind of success, obviously when you can see it and you have a player who's willing to speak to that and talk about his experiences here at Colorado State at such a high level, that can't do anything but help."
Now all that remains is some swag. Medved said they have a Grizzlies sweatshirt, but not a Roddy jersey. It just hasn't come in the mail quite yet.
"David's a little frugal," Medved quipped.
Same for his former teammates.
"We haven't gotten any of that yet. I'm pretty sure I'll be getting one soon," Tonje said. "David's taking care of what he has to take care of. All the jersey's and all that stuff, it's going to fall in line. Him taking care of business and representing us is all we want."
An answer worded perfectly by someone who still hopes, someday, to have a package arrive in the mail.
Wednesday night, last year's Mountain West Player of the Year suited up for the Memphis Grizzlies against the New York Knicks, with Roddy's first game finishing with a 115-112 overtime victory. The team's first-round pick played 13 minutes, and while he didn't score, he collected a pair of rebounds and handed out an assist.
It was a night the Rams didn't want to miss. While head coach Niko Medved tuned in from home, the current crop of Rams hosted a watch party.
"Of course there was. We were at Jack Payne's house, but it was amazing," said John Tonje, who came to Colorado State in the same recruiting class as Roddy. "For David to play his first official game in the NBA, it was a surreal moment. It's something you can't take away from him. It's an amazing time. He also played his first game against my favorite player, Derrick Rose, so that added to the excitement of that."
Roddy declared for the NBA Draft a year early after a phenomenal three seasons at Colorado State. He became the third Ram to be selected in the first round, going 23rd overall to the Philadelphia 76ers, who sent the pick to Memphis.
Roddy was part of Medved's second recruiting class, one which helped change the trajectory of the program. They improved every year, reaching the NCAA Tournament last season – the first bid for the program since 2013 –after a 25-6 campaign. In a three-year career, he became a 1,000-point scorer, averaging 15.5, setting a school record his final season with 222 field goals. He is ninth all-time at CSU with 1,406 points and in the top 20 of just about every other category.
And he was Medved's first NBA draft pick.
"It's so cool. I had talked to him the night before, and again, reflected on what an unbelievable moment that was for him getting an opportunity to play in the NBA and that it was for real, and going back and forth with his mom a little bit," Medved said. "That was awesome, and then getting him a chance to watch him, watching my kids watch him, that was really cool.
"What I thought was funny, and he'd appreciate that, is he took a charge and they subbed him in late for defensive purposes. I guess I wasn't a very good coach because they clearly see him differently than I did. That's a joke David."
The hope is Roddy will continue to pay off for the program even though he no longer plays in Fort Collins. The Minnesota native was very vocal about how he felt Medved and his program saw something in him other didn't and helped him develop into the player he became.
When Medved is in a recruit's home for a visit, it's a message which will serve him well.
"The best predictor for future behavior is past behavior," Medved said. "And if you're selling that a guy can grow and reach that level and have that kind of success, obviously when you can see it and you have a player who's willing to speak to that and talk about his experiences here at Colorado State at such a high level, that can't do anything but help."
Now all that remains is some swag. Medved said they have a Grizzlies sweatshirt, but not a Roddy jersey. It just hasn't come in the mail quite yet.
"David's a little frugal," Medved quipped.
Same for his former teammates.
"We haven't gotten any of that yet. I'm pretty sure I'll be getting one soon," Tonje said. "David's taking care of what he has to take care of. All the jersey's and all that stuff, it's going to fall in line. Him taking care of business and representing us is all we want."
An answer worded perfectly by someone who still hopes, someday, to have a package arrive in the mail.
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