By David Isaacs

	There are glaring questions about both Rudy Gay and David Isaacs' NBA potential. John Biever/SI

I took off for work. By lunch, Ned had left a very generic message, telling me to call him back. I trotted out my list of things to say, prepared for battle, and made the call. Ned picked up, and I went through my list, reiterated points, and made emphatic hand motions that scared several people nearby.

After I finished, there were a few awkward seconds of silence. I expected Ned to come back with how he had wasted five minutes. Instead, he turned the tables.

"Your agent must have misunderstood," Ned said. "The only reason we check for proof of having played is because there's a committee that gathers information for you, and projects where you would go in this draft. It's just so you have inside information and to give you a good idea of what your future is looking like."

"I appreciate that," I stammered, "but I think I can guess where I'm going to go all on my own. Can I waive this step?"

"Sure," he said. "And if you just want to declare, you'll need to send a fax and a hard copy to the commissioner's office."

Within ten minutes, I had faxed out the following:

Dear Commissioner Stern,

It is with this letter that I am announcing my intention to apply for the 2006 NBA Draft as an Early Entry. I feel that collegiate athletics have served me well, however I would like to take that step to the next level.

Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

David Isaacs

A day later, the process was complete. Sure enough, my name was listed in Section B of the Early Entry List that the NBA released on May 3, as well as several draft related websites.  OK, it was filed under "unknown individuals," but it's a step in the right direction.

There are six weeks to go before the draft. Just because I'm on that list doesn't mean my quest is over.

What? You're not sold on me yet because of my size? That's what they said about Calvin Murphy, who at 5-9 and 165 pounds was "too small to play in the NBA." He went on to score 17,949 points in 13 seasons and was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame. And unlike Joakim Noah, I can really use the first-round money.