NBDL Dreams Coming True
Six Former D-Leaguers sign multi-year contracts with NBA squads.

08.01.04 – In just three seasons the NBA's National Basketball Development League is already making a name in the basketball world as a place where hoop dreams are given wings.

If the summer of 2004 is any indication, then those hoop dreamers are beginning to shed their wings and put down NBA roots.

Six former NBDL players, five of which left the D-League on the uncertainty of a 10-day contract, have signed multi-year NBA contracts since the 2003-04 season ended.

Included in that group is Chris Andersen, the first-ever NBDL-to-NBA callup, who just signed a multi-year deal with the New Orleans Hornets.

Andersen was the only one of the six who did not leave the NBDL with a 10-day contract in his hip pocket. He signed a standard player contract with Denver on Nov. 21, 2001 and remained with the Nuggets through the conclusion of this season.

Former Mobile Reveler guard Rafer Alston recently signed a six-year deal to
return to the Toronto Raptors after being called up to the club from the Revelers during the 2002-03 season. Alston spent last season with the Miami Heat.

Another former Reveler, guard Anthony Johnson, just signed a new deal with the Indiana Pacers.

Meanwhile, former Asheville Altitude guard Jason Hart has signed a multi-year contract with the expansion Charlotte Bobcats after being called-up from Asheville to the San Antonio Spurs during the 2001-02 season.

A pair of 2003 NBDL Draft choices, Jason Collier of the Fayetteville Patriots and Ronald DuPree of Huntsville Flight, have also inked new multi-year contracts with the Atlanta Hawks and Detroit Pistons, respectively.

Collier was a first-team All-NBDL selection last season before eventually parlaying two 10-day contracts into a full-season deal with the Hawks. DuPree was called up to the Chicago Bulls on a 10-day contact last season before eventually signing for the remainder of the season.

"It is gratifying to watch the development plan for the league so positively play out as we head into year four," NBDL president Phil Evans said. "To see our former players not just getting a spot on an NBA roster, but actually beginning to figure in long-term plans of those teams, proves that the NBDL is serving its primary purpose of developing talent."

Evans also pointed out that in addition to 39 player call-ups in three years, there have also been 6 coaches, 6 referees, 3 athletic trainers and 28 front office executives make the jump to positions within the NBA umbrella.

The six teams competing in the NBDL's 4th season includes the Fayetteville Patriots (N.C.), Huntsville Flight (Ala.), Roanoke Dazzle (Va.), Columbus Riverdragons (Ga.), Asheville Altitude (N.C.) and an new team in Florida (Ft. Myers).

The NBDL 2004-05 season tips off with the Roanoke Dazzle hosting the Fayetteville Patriots at the Roanoke Civic Center on Friday, Nov. 19, 2004. The 48 game regular season comes to a close with three games on Saturday, April 9, 2005.