I have seen the future of the NBA, and his name is Cato. Kelvin Cato that is! Mr. Cato to all you commoners. First we’ll discuss the Center Court game of Cato, then on to other Cyclones.

When Cato came to ISU, I thought about what everyone else thought. He’s big, but is he athletic? We all knew he would dunk and rebound, but how about everything else that goes along with the game of roundball?

Well, he is still rough around the edges, but if you have ever been down to the Center Court League by the cop shop to watch him play, you’ll notice something new with Cato.

The ISU big man now has a go-to move. The jump hook is his new weapon, and with all that I’ve seen, the league will be hard pressed to stop it.

Another aspect of Cato’s game that many may not be aware of is the fact that he is one of the more athletic players on the Cyclone squad. Cato, when he’s not slacking on defense or playing around with teammates, makes very good passes, runs the court with the best of them and has some of the most impressive dunks that I’ve ever seen. I’m not talkin’ weak two-hand monster slams, I’m talking high, and I mean high, flying windmill, tomahawk, reverse alley oop and damn-near-the-free-throw-line dunks.

Cato moves with the fluidness of a much smaller guard, evoking the question of whether he could play somewhere else in the NBA besides under the hoop.

If you get the chance, check him out at Center Court. The playoffs start Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. and it’s free.

Then there’s Dedric Willoughby. Dedric’s game is much like what you see at the Hilton, but with a little more flash.

You know, the consistent 26-footers, the behind the back pass and the (kind of) high flying dunks. Not much else to say, he’s a pro.

Kenny Pratt is next on the list. Pratt’s play looks more like he should be on the black top in Chicago than in the air conditioning in Ames.

Pratt does a lot of the same things in Center Court that he does during the regular season with the exception of one thing.

He shoots the three-pointer. Sometimes pretty, more often than not, ugly as Sam Cassell.

Then there is everyone’s favorite (next to Willoughby) Shawn Bankhead, who is sporting a new tattoo of a little guy with a big leg and a big arm ready to dunk.

The only thing that is the same about Bankhead’s game is the fact that he plays unreal defense and is always talkin’ smack.

Most of Bankhead’s time is spent shooting three-pointers, and he did have 10 of them two games ago. But don’t let that fool you.

He followed those up by shooting three of 11 with about five air balls.

Jacy Holloway is exactly the same.

Solid, calm, cool and collective. He will score if given the opportunity, but creates for others and grabs a lot of steals.

Then there is me, if I were in the league.

I jump out of the roof, steal my opponent’s last name, knock down threes from the bathroom, set up roadblocks around the rim and I do this all while dribbling three basketballs at once. Pretty good huh?

We’ll talk later.