About Keith Shamburger

As there are some naysayers and some celebrating, here's a few comments regarding what Keith Shamburger brings to the court:

* He is small, probably 5-foot-9, and best suited to play the one

* Call him much more crafty than a blow-by-his-defender speed demon

* But he did go to the foul line a very good 150 times this past season

* He was a volume shooter in 2011-2012 -- based on need -- which is not necessarily a role for which he is best suited

* His assist-to-turnover ratio was a solid 155/63 on a team that shot 39%

* While he grabbed just under three rebounds a game, some of that number was due to a lack of bigs

* The junior-to-be tied for the team lead with 40 steals, a total derived from a combination of his quick hands and sense of anticipation

* He lives to compete

* Position him with a big or two, another outside shooter and a dribble-drive creator and you'll have a very able contributor

* He's not a take-over-the-game-guy but, really, how many of them are available?

Shamburger to ...

5-foot-11 guard Keith Shamburger has made his decision and will next be a Hawaii Rainbow Warrior.

The sophomore transfer from San Jose State University will have to sit out a year as a redshirt and then resume play in the 2013-2014 season.

One factor facilitating this move is Hawaii's jump to the Big West Conference in basketball. This means the southern California native will be facing mainland opponents such as Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, Cal State Northridge, UC Irvine, UC Riverside and UC Santa Barbara.

Also, transferring to an in-conference often means having to sit out two years but UH's new affiliation made this moot, if it ever was in play.

Two years ago, Hawaii Coach Gib Arnold recruited Shamburger out of Serra High but the decision was made to go with SJSU.

Shamburger departing

Here's the first of what will be many player change of residences across the WAC -- via Twitter, San Jose State's Keith Shamburger has announced he is transferring.

Because Shamburger is from southern California ... 

San Diego State has Jamaal Franklin and Xavier Thames now as sophomores but Chase Tapley and James Rahon will have just one year of eligibility after this season. Coach Steve Fisher has two frontcourters and a shooting guard, all high schoolers, coming in.

Long Beach State will be missing Casper Ware and Larry Robinson after this year but Mike Caffey and James Ennis return (however, Ennis will be gone once any redshirt can play again). Coach Don Monson has already signed prep backcourters Branford Jones, Javion Watson and Deng Deng.

Shamburger WAC POW

San Jose State’s Keith Shamburger has been named the Verizon Western Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 26-Jan. 1. The honor marks the first career WAC Player of the Week award for Shamburger.

Shamburger, a sophomore guard from Los Angeles, Calif. (Serra HS), was named Most Valuable Player at the Elgin Baylor Classic after leading the Spartans to the Classic title with a 2-0 record. Shamburger helped SJSU defeat Coppin State 81-66 and Seattle U 84-74 to claim the title. The Elgin Baylor Classic title marks SJSU’s first in-season tournament sweep since winning the 1996 Cable Car Classic.

In the win over Coppin State, Shamburger helped San Jose State wipe out a 15-point first-half deficit with three three-point baskets in the final 5:37 of the opening half as the Spartans took a 38-36 halftime lead. His six free throws in the final three minutes dispelled any hopes of Coppin State staging a comeback against the Spartans. Shamburger also helped SJSU set a single-game school record with 16 three-point baskets by making four in the Coppin State victory. He finished the game against Coppin State with 18 points, seven assists and four rebounds.

Shamburger ignited a 10-0 rally in the championship game with a pair of free throws with 7:51 remaining to break a 50-50 tie with Seattle U, giving the Spartans a lead they did not relinquish the rest of the night. He scored 16 points, dished out seven assists and pulled down four rebounds in the win over Seattle U.

On the week, Shamburger averaged 17.0 points, 7.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds per game. He committed only three turnovers and was credited with one steal at the Classic.

Other nominees:

* Fresno State sophomore guard Tyler Johnson
* Hawai‘i junior forward Joston Thomas
* Idaho senior guard Deremy Geiger
* Louisiana Tech junior guard Brandon Gibson
* Nevada junior guard Malik Story
* New Mexico State senior forward Wendell McKines.