<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Chicago - If Travis Diener wanted to put himself on edge, all he had to do was take a glance upward at the balcony and bleachers of the Solheim Center. veritable who's who of National Basketball Association all-time greats and current league executives was on hand for the opening game of the Chicago pre-draft camp, being staged at the Moody Bible Institute. Jerry West over here, Larry Bird and Kevin McHale there. Hey, it's Patrick Ewing standing in another corner of the gym. Instead of being awe-struck, the Marquette University senior point guard just did what comes naturally. He went out and hit all five of his shots in an impressive showing, although his team trailed most of the way and suffered an 88-71 defeat Wednesday morning. "I tried not to look up and see all the great personnel around here," Diener said. "You've got to stay focused on the task at hand, and hopefully one day you'll be playing under a guy like that." The 6-foot-1 Diener continued to make his case to be selected in the June 28 draft, after several strong individual workouts with NBA teams. Diener hit three jumpers early in the game, including a three-pointer, and finished with 11 points, five rebounds and four assists in 20 minutes. "He did a very nice job," said Ernie Grunfeld, the Washington Wizards' president of basketball operations. "He made all his open jumpers, was very feisty and played good defense. He ran the team very well, and he always plays hard. "He has a great feel for the game, is a great competitor, and there's a real premium on players who can make shots. But he also showed the ability to make some plays."</div> Source
