Bandits' Hulett remains hopeful

Wednesday night, when Dee Andre Hulett and his family and friends gather in front of the television in Saginaw, Mich., to watch the NBA draft, Hulett may have a long wait before his name is called by NBA commissioner David Stern.

Make that, if his name is called.

Hulett, a 6-foot-8 forward, averaged 8.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 33 blocks in 56 games this past season with the Las Vegas Silver Bandits of the International Basketball League. The 19-year-old applied for last year's draft, then withdrew his name before deciding to play in the IBL.

"I really don't think he will be drafted because he didn't have a very good year," said NBA head scout Marty Blake. "I think he needs to play in another league at least another year.

"He needs to work on his game and get stronger. He's not ready for the NBA yet."

Originally, Hulett had individual workouts scheduled with about 10 teams the last few weeks, but that number was reduced to three: Phoenix, Toronto and Vancouver. Another sign he may not be drafted: Hulett was not interviewed by any of those teams. The interviewing process is normally reserved for players teams are really high on.

"The teams that cancelled said that they had seen me enough times and that they just wanted to see more game film of me," Hulett said over the phone. "At first it did bother me. I kind of thought nobody was interested. But at the end they said they saw me play enough times so I couldn't complain too much."

Of the three teams he did work out for, Toronto expressed the most interest. The Raptors have the 21st and 46th picks in the draft and Hulett was optimistic about being chosen.

"What we (Hulett and the Raptors) spoke about is they came to watch half of the games this year," Hulett said. "I'll see how high I go or where I go. I'm more excited than nervous."

Perhaps more teams would have taken a serious look at Hulett had he not skipped the predraft camp in Chicago he was supposed to attend about two weeks ago.

Hulett said he skipped the camp because he had scheduled workouts during that week, and doesn't regret what happened after the teams cancelled.

"I just ended up not going," Hulett said of Chicago. "Whatever happens, happens."

What will happen Wednesday night is something he can't wait to find out.

"I'm not really sure because it's all up in the air," he said. "You never know what's gonna happen between now and Wednesday, but I feel like I have a good chance.

"If I don't get picked, I won't be disappointed. I feel like it'll come eventually."

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