Who is Isaiah Roby? A Closer Look at Nebraska's Latest Commitment

Isaiah Roby is currently a three-star prospect, but his recruiting has been heating up in a way that suggests he'll probably earn a higher ranking very soon. Nebraska was the first high-major to offer the big, lean wing but Creighton and Georgia followed while a number of Big Ten programs were at least showing strong interest. But Miles' early work paid off; Roby took two unofficial visits to Lincoln and says he knew after his 2nd visit, in late September, that Nebraska was where he wanted to be. The next time he saw Tim Miles, at an open gym earlier this week, Isaiah gave him his verbal commitment to join the Cornhuskers.

Roby is 6'8" but still weighs just 190 pounds at this point in his career. In the two seasons before he begins his collegiate career he will undoubtedly put on weight, but his girth may be a limiting factor early on in his career. In the long term though, he could be a major player for Tim Miles. Isaiah isn't highly ranked, but he seems to be pretty highly regarded nonetheless.

#Nebraska basketball fans: 6'8 SF Isaiah Roby from Dixon (Ill) is a high level passer with handle. Possible all-league performer! #Upside

— Paul Biancardi (@PaulBiancardi) October 22, 2014

As I suggested above, Roby has a body type not unlike that of a young Shavon Shields and his advanced ball-handling skills suggest that he may be able to develop the same ability to relieve pressure and initiate offense at the collegiate level. If so, Roby's presence in Lincoln could be part of the total roster transformation that Miles is in the process of.

Last year's Cornhuskers were an impressive unit overall, but they were a weak passing team. Only 42.3% of their baskets were assisted, good for 338th in the nation, which isn't typical of a Tim Miles offense. Because the offense was heavily based in isolation, their turnovers were low as well, but that speaks more to just how poorly last years Nebrasketballers passed. That's going to change before Roby makes it to Lincoln.

Tai Webster is now a rising sophomore, and should become more comfortable creating offense for others in his expanded role this season. By the time he's a senior, he should have full reigns to run the offense. And don't forget about Glynn Watson. Roby will arrive in Watson's sophomore season, while Tai Webster is also still on hand to help relieve pressure. Because of the depth of ball-handling that Nebraska will have at that point, Roby will be a major asset in relieving ball pressure and setting up the offense but will be able to ease into his playing career without the demands or attention that comes with leading the offense right away. Eventually, Roby's ability to handle the ball and create his own offense will set him apart from other big men in the conference and his ability to draw bigs out of the paint will be a major asset in creating the sort of spacing Tim Miles likes to see in his offense. Roby isn't the biggest kid in the world, and will need some time to put on weight before he can be effective within the Big Ten but when he does grow into his frame and his game Tim Miles is going to have a good one.