In August of 2003, two ISU freshmen, one from Boston, Mass., and the other from the Bronx, N.Y., stepped onto campus with dreams of successful college basketball careers playing under coach Wayne Morgan.

The two players, Will Blalock and Curtis Stinson, happened to also step into the same Frederiksen Court apartment and the two roommates and teammates quickly became great friends. Following successful careers as Cyclones which included runs to the NIT Semifinals in 2004 and to the NCAA tournament’s second round in 2005, juniors Blalock and Stinson decided to leave school early to test the waters of the annual NBA draft.

On June 28, 2006, 59 names were called by NBA commissioner David Stern, but neither Blalock or Stinson walked across the stage, shook hands with Stern and held up their NBA team’s jersey. Then, with the 60th and final pick in the draft, Blalock was drafted by the defending Eastern Conference Champion Detroit Pistons.

“Just hearing my name called was kind of special to me, but at the same time I did have somewhat of a bitter feeling about it because of being picked last,” Blalock said. “I was really just thankful that I got picked at all because there were a lot of good names that didn’t get picked at all, and Curt [Stinson] was one of them.”

Unexpectedly, Stinson went undrafted in 2006.

“I thought that there was a mistake at first,” Stinson said. “I really was hurt, but what can I do, I just wasn’t the right person for a certain team at that point.”

However, within three hours after the draft, he received a call from the Golden State Warriors asking him if he would join their summer league team. Stinson joined the Warriors, but failed to make the regular season roster.

Blalock began the season with the Pistons, but only played in 14 games before being assigned to the an NBA Developmental League (D-League) team, the Sioux Falls Skyforce. The D-League is a league that began in 2001 comprised of 16 teams that all have affiliations with NBA teams.

Since leaving Iowa State in 2005, the two have spent time with a combined 14 teams spanning five different countries and six different leagues. Despite both players having good experiences in the U.S. and abroad, they still have a burning desire to make it in the NBA. With nearly 20 percent of NBA players having D-League experience, Blalock and Stinson are hoping the D-League can give them the skills and the exposure to make an NBA team as soon as possible. Blalock is now a point guard for the Portland, Maine-based Maine Red Claws and Stinson is in his second year with the Iowa Energy out of Des Moines.

Will Blalock

A Boston, Mass., native, Blalock made a name for himself on the ISU court as a leader at the point guard position for three years under Morgan.

In his three-year career at Iowa State, Blalock finished 22nd all-time in scoring with 1,078 points and sixth in assists and steals, as well as eighth in 3-point shots made. Blalock earned All-Big 12 Third Team honors before declaring for the draft after his junior season. Blalock was also the floor general for the Cyclones’ 2005 NCAA tournament run.

“The NCAA run we had in ’05 was pretty special for me, I’ll always remember the times we had and the time we enjoyed together,” Blalock said.

After Blalock’s 2006 season ended with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, Blalock joined the Denver Nuggets summer league team after the Pistons failed to pick up his contract in 2006. Just like Stinson in 2006, Blalock was unable to make the regular season roster.

Over the summer months, Blalock began thinking about playing overseas in case he did not make the Nuggets’ roster, and in the fall of 2007, he took an interesting opportunity to play for Hapoel Jerusalem, a team in the Israel Premier League. Although there were six other Americans on the team, basketball was a much different game in the Middle East.

“It was a diverse culture, but at the same time, as far as basketball, they live and die by basketball and soccer over there,” Blalock said. “The team played in front of a packed crowd every single night.”

Blalock saw some differences on the court, such as a trapezoidal lane and no defensive three seconds in the lane penalty, but the real culture change was off the court. Blalock had to learn how to drive a manual transmission vehicle, had to adjust his stomach to Israeli cuisine and had to survive without the use of his cell phone.

Blalock was released in December by Hapoel Jerusalem and he made his way back to the U.S. for his second D-League stint, playing for the now-defunct Anaheim Arsenal. In Anaheim, Blalock had his most successful professional season, averaging 12.5 points and 5.3 assists per game over his 41 games with the Arsenal.

Back in the D-League, Blalock found a much improved developmental environment than that of his time overseas.

“If you’re looking for some tutelage in anything, you can pretty much find it playing in the D-League versus overseas where you pretty much have to showcase what you learned either playing in college or in the pros,” Blalock said.

After a solid season with the Arsenal, Blalock hoped to impress scouts at a training camp with the Seattle Supersonics in the summer of 2008. Unfortunately, as he got ready to board a plane to Seattle, the 24-year-old Blalock suffered a mild stroke, which would not allow him to play for six months.

When he returned to the court in late 2008, Blalock signed on with the Artland Dragons in Germany where he played 23 games. This past summer Blalock participated in a league with the Indiana Pacers and a camp with the New Jersey Nets, but in the end Blalock signed on with the newly-formed Maine Red Claws.

“I can’t say it’s the easiest way, but it definitely is the safest bet if you really have dreams, aspirations of playing in the league,” Blalock said.

Although he is with the Red Claws now, he would still enjoy another opportunity in the NBA. But at the same time, other factors such as his family may come into play when making a decision about his next team’s destination.

“As far as playing in the NBA — it’s great, don’t get me wrong — but I have a family that I need to take care of,” Blalock said.

Despite being back in the U.S. for over a year now, Blalock has not ruled out joining another foreign team.

“I wouldn’t hesitate to go back over there, because I’ve been through it twice already,” Blalock said.

When Blalock’s days on the court are through, he would like to stay with the game of basketball, but with a whistle rather than a basketball in his hand. Blalock has seen the way kids growing up in Boston use basketball as a solace from life’s troubles, and he would like to show that conduct off the court is just as important as on the court.

“I’d like to teach [high school players] what I have learned both from the game and more than basketball,” Blalock said.

Curtis Stinson

Stinson made an immediate impact as an ISU basketball player after highlighting the Cyclones’ 2003 nationally ranked recruiting class. The Bronx, N.Y. native took home Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors in his first season and along with Blalock, comprised one of the best backcourts in ISU history. Stinson finished his career ranked 11th on ISU’s all-time scoring list with 1,687 points and earned All-Big 12 First Team honors in his final season with the Cyclones.

After failing to make the Warriors summer league team in 2006, Stinson made his first trip overseas, joining the Croatia Split. In Croatia, Stinson found a lot of players who were still trying to learn the fundamentals of the game. That caused him to take on more of a leadership role as a point guard who had a lot of experience through his time in the college game.

Stinson stayed in Croatia until December, when he returned stateside to play in the D-League. Stinson finished the 2007 season with the Dakota Wizards and Fort Worth Flyers. Then Stinson began the 2007 –2008 season in Greece where he played for Kolossos Rodou in the Greek League.

Similar to 2007, he left Kolossos Rodou and finished the season playing for the Utah Flash, then the Austin Toros and finally ended the year with his current team, the Iowa Energy.

Stinson certainly knows about the D-League because of his variety of experiences in the league. He hasn’t played in an NBA game, but Stinson did spend the 2009 training camp with the Chicago Bulls where he got a glimpse of the difference between life in the NBA and life in the D-League.

“It’s a grind here more than in the NBA where it’s a finesse thing,” Stinson said. “It’s more like everything is given to you [in the NBA].”

The NBA practice facilities that include team whirlpools, hot tubs, saunas and top-of-the-line weight training apparatuses are non-existent in the D-League, where, as Stinson says, “If we can get a gym, we’ll play in it.”

Despite the “grind” of the D-League, Stinson enjoys the style of American basketball and believes it’s his best opportunity to make it to the next level.

“This is the best league in the world besides the NBA,” Stinson said.

Stinson played in 50 games for the Energy last season, averaging 16.1 points, 7 rebounds and 8.4 assists per game.

Iowa Energy assistant coach Nate Bjorkgren gave his take on the strengths of Stinson’s game.

“He is a great defender, and has an extremely high basketball IQ,” Bjorkgren said. “He plays to his strengths well. An NBA team would benefit from his defense, strength and intelligence. He can pick up schemes [and] plays very quickly. As long as he continues to develop in these areas, an NBA team will come calling.”

Already being familiar with the Iowa lifestyle from his time at Iowa State is something that benefits Stinson, as well as getting to spend more time with his three-year-old son, Curtis Jr., who lives in Ankeny.

“That’s one reason why I’m happy to be back here [in Des Moines] because I get to see my son grow up and he gets to see his dad play games,” Stinson said.

Stinson enjoys the close proximity to his son, but Stinson has entertained the idea of spending some more time overseas.

“I love being in the D-League, but Europe will be an option,” Stinson said. “It’s definitely not a bad place to play.”

Getting to be closer to his son isn’t the only positive of playing in Des Moines. With a lot of ISU fans living in the Des Moines area, Stinson has enjoyed the added attention he has received while playing for the Energy.

“I think I have a good fan base here and it’s like a second home to me,” Stinson said.

Blalock and Stinson

Although their days living in Frederiksen Court have now passed, Blalock and Stinson still keep in touch every few weeks.

“Although we aren’t in school anymore, we are still able to get in touch with each other and just make sure we’re both doing OK,” Blalock said.

On Dec. 31, 2009, the two were reunited on the basketball court when the Energy traveled to Portland to take on the Red Claws.

“We still have love for each other and we’re going to have fun out there,” Stinson said in an interview prior to their Dec. 31 meeting.

Despite riding a five-game win streak into Portland, the Energy lost a close game to the Red Claws, 95–88. Stinson played the most minutes on the floor, 37, of any player in the game, leading the Energy with six assists to go along with 10 points and three rebounds. Blalock failed to put any points on the board for the Red Claws, but did dish out three assists and grab two rebounds in his 16 minutes of play.

The next time the two met was over a four-day stretch from Jan. 4–7 as both players were in Boise, Idaho, with their teams to display their talents for NBA scouts, coaches and general managers at the annual NBA D-League Showcase. The showcase holds two regular season games for each team in the D-League and gives the NBA a chance to look at potential talent. As for Blalock and Stinson, neither of them were for sure on their chances at the showcase.

“I never really know the situation,” Blalock said. “If I’m playing solid I can’t see why I won’t at least be mentioned as someone who could be called up.”

In the Red Claws’ first game of the showcase, Blalock dished out a season-high 14 assists to go with four points and six rebounds in Maine’s 113–111 victory over the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Blalock finished the showcase by leading the Red Claws with a season-high 21 points and tallying six assists off the bench in Maine’s 121–102 loss to the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

“Honestly, I really don’t know,” Stinson said. “What I do is just play every game like it’s my last and keep doing what I do and if I don’t get called up, well, I know I did my job.”

Stinson kicked off his Showcase performance with a 10-point, 11-assist performance in a 116–93 victory over the Austin Toros. In game two, Stinson did himself one better as he went off for his second triple-double — 18 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds — in eight days in the Energy’s 96–91 win over the Bakersfield Jam. Stinson’s performance earned him a spot on the Showcase’s third team.

Blalock is currently averaging 6.2 points and 5.1 assists per game for the 12–5 Red Claws while Stinson is averaging 15.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 10.1 assists per game for the 15–3 Energy. The Energy sit atop the East Conference standings with the Red Claws only 2.5 games behind in second place.