PHILADELPHIA — Two hours before tip-off of a mid-January game between the Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers here at the Wachovia Center, Demetris Nichols was doing what all basketball players do before games. He was stretching, shooting and dribbling.

Except Nichols, Bulls forward (for now) and former Syracuse standout, would not leave the court. Teammates came and went, but Nichols simply moved on to another drill. Joakim Noah, the celebrated first-round pick of the Bulls who led Florida to two national championships, was Nichols’ conditioning partner for a few minutes. But even Noah, a fellow rookie, went on to meet and greet a large group of Gators fans that found their way near courtside.

In the locker room, Nichols’ higher profile teammates Ben Wallace, Luol Deng and Chris Duhon reclined in benches in front of their lockers. Duhon listened to music and watched game film of a Sixers game from earlier in the week. Deng treated the tendonitis in his left Achilles while charging his Sidekick. Wallace cut his toenails over a towel. Nichols was on the court doing what he does best – shooting 3’s. Catch and shoot. Dribble and shoot. Pump, dribble and shoot. Over and over again, until the horn blew and he was all but forced into the locker room.

Finally, if only for a few hours before a tipoff, Nichols was able to stay in the same place.

Since leaving Syracuse, Nichols’ career has not gone as anyone anticipated. He is the poster boy for rookie journeyman. Actually, scratch the rookie part.

‘I don’t even feel like a rookie anymore,’ Nichols said. ‘I’ve been through so much in the past six months.’

Nichols was drafted by the Portland Trailblazers on draft night in June, only to be dealt to the New York Knicks. This was an ideal match for Nichols – he played at Madison Square Garden throughout college.

The problem was the Knicks never had any intention of actually keeping Nichols on the roster. Their plan was to send him to Europe for seasoning. Nichols did not know this. Apparently his former agent, Bill Duffy, did. Nichols fired the agent, but he could not reverse the Knicks’ intentions.

‘He did not even discuss that with me,’ Nichols said. ‘(Europe) wasn’t even on my mind. Whatever, though. I’m past that.’

The Knicks ended up cutting Nichols. He was on the market for four days before the Cleveland Cavaliers scooped him up. This seemed like another attractive situation. The Cavs made the Finals last season, and star LeBron James always commands double teams. That concept is a symphony to the ears of a 3-point shooter.

Nichols lasted a little more than a month with the Cavs before one of the reasons the Cavs even reached the Finals, Anderson Varejao, returned to Cleveland. There were too many players and not enough roster spots and Nichols was forced to pack his bags again.

This time, he ended up with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls, like the Knicks, were impressed with Nichols but not enough to keep him on the active roster. Instead, they sent him to the NBDL’s Iowa Energy – the NBA’s attempt at a minor league. Nichols treated Iowa like the Big East, averaging 18.1 points and 4.1 rebounds in nine games.

‘It was different,’ Nichols said. ‘It was good to just get some burn in.’

That’s when the Bulls called him back up.

‘God works in some crazy ways,’ Nichols said. ‘I’m just happy I got through this. It made me stronger. You know, it’s just like Syracuse. My first two years, I didn’t do anything. Then when I finally got over that hump…Now it’s like I need to start all over again.’

Syracuse isn’t far from his mind, either. When Nichols saw a Syracuse reporter, he wanted to know about the team, about the freshmen. His lifestyle is no doubt more glamorous than it was when Marshall Street was the best nightspot – a smile shot to his face when discussing a recent road trip to Toronto – and he enjoys seeing parts of the country he’s never seen before. And even Salt Lake City, the dullest of NBA cities, might have more of an appeal than Syracuse. Yet Syracuse still invoked a smile.

‘The Dome and the fans, man,’ Nichols said. ‘That’s what I miss. We had the best home crowd in the whole country, you know?’

Therein lies the irony of the Demetris Nichols story, one replicated by former players of nearly every major school every year. When he was in college, he was the star. His name was chanted, his autograph was sought and his mere presence would cause whispers on a Saturday night. Yet in the NBA, he is considered nothing special. Just another rookie trying to make a name for himself.

To stay in the league, Nichols simply wants to do what got him there in the first place. Shoot well, work hard, listen to the coaches. He explains it like reading off a checklist of how to be an NBA player. But if it were that easy, there wouldn’t be so many players like Nichols who reside on the border.

‘There are some guys who play right away. There are some guys who just need the opportunity,’ Nichols said. ‘I’m one of those guys who just needs the opportunity.’

The opportunity to play likely won’t come soon. A 15th man on an NBA roster, like Nichols, lives transacation-to-transacation.

‘It’s going to be hard for him to get minutes right now,’ Bulls interim coach Jim Boylan said. ‘He’s just going to need to be patient.’

Nichols has patience. What he needs is a home.

Zach Berman is the featured sports columnist for The Daily Orange, where his column appears weekly. E-mail him at zberman@syr.edu.

Published on January 22, 2008 at 12:00 pm