Ballin' is a Habit

JOSH HEYTVELT INTERVIEW: Josh Heytvelt had a roller coaster career at Gonzaga. Coming out of Clarkston High School in Washington, he was not even a top 100 recruit (Rivals listed his as #120, behind the guys like Eastern Michigan's Darryl Garrett and Missouri State's Drew Richards).

But after successful seasons as a freshman and sophomore, Heytvelt's name started creeping up draft boards across the NBA. A 6'11" center that is athletic, can play on the perimeter and in the post, and can knock down a jumper from the NBA three point line does not come about every day.

But things started going down hill. In February of his sophmore year, Heytvelt and teammate Theo were arrested and charged with a Class C felony after thean ounce of shrooms were found in the car Heytvelt was driving. The following season, Heytvelt broke his foot and was sidelined for much of the year.

To his credit, Heytvelt was able to bounce back and have a very successful senior year, helping to lead the 'Zags to the NCAA Tournament's second weekend. Draft Express caught up with Heytvelt, and his time off has really seemed to humble him.

From the interview:

DX: During the interview sessions in Chicago, did any of the teams bring up some of the off the court issues that you’ve dealt with in the past?

JH: Yeah, I mean I talked about that stuff at every interview. I brought it up to most teams because I’m not trying to hide it, I talk about it and go through the whole process. I really put it out there that I’m a much different person now than I was back then.

I hope Heytvelt can catch on with an NBA team somewhere. I always liked his game at Gonzaga.