Lawrence Roberts and the Bulldogs were upset by Xavier in the second round of the 2004 NCAA tournament. Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Excuse Lawrence Roberts for not staying glued to the tube last Thursday night for the NBA Draft. From his parents' home in Houston, he snuck a few glimpses and saw Emeka Okafor, a former teammate on the freshman squad at Bellaire High in Houston, get taken with the No. 2 pick. But, Roberts said, "I didn't really want to catch it."

An understandable sentiment. Following a blockbuster junior campaign at Mississippi State -- during which he averaged 16.9 points and 10.1 boards as the Bulldogs went 26-4 -- Roberts threw his name into the draft without hiring an agent. But after he attended the Chicago pre-draft camp, NBA insiders told Roberts there were too many unanswered questions about his skills to give him the coveted first-round guarantee -- and so he pulled out. As you can guess, for an All-America selection and SEC Player of the Year who has excelled at the highest level of college hoops, watching high schoolers and young internationals get drafted in the first round on the basis of mere potential was not must-see TV.

Roberts' story, however, still has plenty of feel-good potential. Soon he will leave Houston and begin summer school in Starkville on July 7; later, as the fall session of his senior year begins, his name will top Wooden and Naismith Award watch lists, and his team will rank high in the preseason polls. He will be the Jameer Nelson of 2004-05 -- the rare four-year senior who ranks as the college game's top player. Come the 2005 draft, Roberts will undoubtedly encounter the same senior bias that Nelson did, but his game will have benefited immensely.

"When you go to college, your NBA value seems to go down. You can't get better when you go to college? That's absurd," Roberts said. "The longer you stay in college, the more you grow and become a better player. Each year, I've improved, and I want to continue to get better."

That said, in the final hours before the deadline, just a week before the draft, Roberts and his family were on the fence. Roberts eventually decided -- and persuaded his mother, who was wavering -- that going back to Starkville, instead of taking the risk of falling into the second round of the draft, was the best move.

"At first, I didn't think he was going to be comfortable with going back to school -- not enough for it to be good for himself or the team," Lawrence's mother, Cynthia, said. "I told him, convince me. Convince me that going back to school is going to be good for you."

Roberts convinced her by calling Bulldogs head coach Rick Stansbury to discuss not only his return, but also how his senior season might be different from the last. The harsh reality is that Roberts' role thus far in college -- as a 6-foot-9, 235-pound forward whose handiwork is done in the lane -- does not translate easily to the NBA, which prefers its post men bigger and wants players of Lawrence's size to be adept on the perimeter, as well as in the lane. Roberts should be a first-round pick in the 2005 draft, but to warrant selection in the lottery and change the NBA's lukewarm opinion of his game, he must show them more.

"NBA people want to see versatility," Roberts said. "That was one of the things I talked about with coach, just stepping out toward the perimeter more. Rebounding is a great skill, and not too many people realize how hard it is to pull down 10-plus per game for your career -- so that can't go away. The main thing for me is stepping out more, while still taking advantage of my rebounding ability."

This does not mean Roberts will be launching 3s at a J.J. Redick-like clip next season -- that's not what he is proposing, nor is it what Stansbury would want. But the Bulldogs do have the frontcourt personnel, in the form of returning 7-footers Wesley Morgan and Marcus Campbell, to allow Roberts to display his mid-range and perimeter offensive skills in four-out, one-in sets. Stansbury, after losing Mario Austin, Travis Outlaw and Jonathan Bender early to the NBA in recent years, is willing to be flexible. He knows how much Roberts is giving up to come back to school.

"If Lawrence gets stronger in that part of his game, there's no question you'll see him [on the perimeter] more," Stansbury said. "We're going to play to the strengths of our players. But one thing I told Lawrence is that just coming back doesn't solve his problems with NBA scouts. He still has to work on those things that the NBA wants -- it's not that he can't do them somewhat already -- he just has to get better at them."

MAILBAG Have questions or feedback? E-mail Luke Winn. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

The skills Roberts brought to the Bulldogs last season were a godsend for Stansbury's team, which already had veteran leadership in seniors Timmy Bowers and Branden Vincent, but no dominant frontcourt presence. Roberts, a transfer -- or rather a refugee from scandal-shocked Baylor -- was able to play immediately in Starkville courtesy of a special NCAA exemption for former Bears. He blossomed from a third-team, all-Big 12 forward into an All-American on a strong Bulldogs team that finished with the best record in the SEC.

But for Roberts, last season, despite its successes, was a lot about fitting in. He was uprooted from Waco, Texas, joined a new team in August and tried not to step on anyone's toes as he became a star. This season, conversely, will be about taking the reins. He has two goals: "Take the team to the Final Four and win every personal award possible."

Stansbury would add a third to that list, however: This time around, the coach expects his team's statistical leader to be its leader in every other facet of the game as well. Especially considering that the Bulldogs' point-guard replacement for Bowers is likely Gary Ervin, a sophomore who averaged less than 20 minutes per game in '03-04.

"Lawrence has a chance to be the national player of the year, and with that comes another degree of responsibility," Stansbury said. "He's not naturally a vocal guy. He has to step up and become a vocal leader, and lead by example every day."

Although Roberts' decision-making process was influenced primarily by his family, Stansbury did not sit on his hands when it became evident that his star's draft stock was slipping out of the first round. He flew to the Chicago camp to talk to Roberts, then to Houston to speak with Roberts' family. "I just tried to keep the truth in front of him -- what NBA GMs were saying, not what agents were saying," Stansbury said. "He didn't have to roll the dice by coming back. I said to him, 'If you come back, it's obvious you're going to be a solid first-rounder [next year].' There's only positives in that."

In an SI story from last season, Roberts said he's the type of player who "always wanted to go where I was needed." He transferred away from a high school team (Bellaire) that had Okafor and current Oklahoma State guard John Lucas III, to provide his services to its rival, Lamar High, which was closer to home. Last August, he went to the aid of Mississippi State, which had lost post men Austin and Outlaw to the draft. "Even in AAU, I wanted to play on a team that I could help, not just a big team that everybody knows about. I always wanted to go somewhere and make it my team. I see that as a challenge," Roberts said.

The NBA may not need Roberts this season, but Mississippi State certainly does, as it hopes he'll lead the Bulldogs back to their first Final Four since 1996. And Roberts needs to further demonstrate his talents -- both in and out of the lane -- in one of the nation's toughest basketball conferences.

For one, final collegiate year, it's a win-win situation.