ORLANDO, Fla. - With legends like Larry Bird and Jerry West watching him, Sean Dockery took one more step toward his dream.
The former Blue Devil guard participated in the Orlando NBA pre-draft camp June 6-9 as part of his quest to be selected in the June 28 NBA Draft. Dockery's team won two out of three games as the guard averaged 3.7 points, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals. Dockery played 21 minutes per game, a typical number because most coaches attempted to divide the playing time equally among the 10-person team.
"It went real well," Dockery said of the camp. "I led my team and did what NBA scouts want a point guard to do."
Dockery played the last day of the camp with a pulled hip flexor muscle, which he had injured during a game the day before. Dockery said he was only at "80 percent," and a trainer stretched him out each time he went out of the game. He still managed to score five points and register six assists, while committing six turnovers.
"I'm going to play no matter what," Dockery said. "These opportunities don't happen a lot, so I knew I just had to play it out."
Dockery was never the exclusive ball handler at Duke, splitting point guard duties with Daniel Ewing during his junior season and playing off the ball during his senior year as freshman Greg Paulus took over the point. The 23-year old, however, is projected to play the point position at the next level and served as his team's floor general throughout the camp.
Dockery said he felt more comfortable as the primary ballhandler, but some thought he had work to do, as one general manager was overheard complaining about his tendency to "overdribble."
"Some people probably saw some things they liked, some people probably saw some things they didn't like," Dockery said. "But I think that's for every player here. Hopefully people saw the little things I did-I fought with an injury and I led my team."
Like nearly all of the players who participated at the camp, Dockery's name will almost certainly not be called in the first round of the draft. Most of the projected top picks, including Dockery's former teammates J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams, did not play in Orlando, preferring to focus on private workouts for specific teams-a trend that has grown over the last decade.
"The truth is this is a watered down version of the camp," Orlando Magic general manager Otis Smith said. "The guys here competed hard and gave themselves a chance, but it's harder to evaluate them because of all the guys who are missing."
Dockery has also worked out for several teams over the past month, including Sacramento, Utah, Toronto and Chicago. Draft experts have projected the 6-foot-2 guard to go either late in the second round or undrafted, and Dockery said he is ready for draft day to arrive.
"This is a once in a lifetime chance," Dockery said. "[The process] is long and intense, but it's worth it."
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