SE: Wade Better Equipped to Chase Pro Dream After NCAA Elite Men's Basketball Symposium
Sep 18, 2017 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
Dean Wade couldn't tell you when his dreams of playing professional basketball began, but he does know when the idea of it being possible started to become a reality.
"I've always been, like, 'Oh, that would be so cool to do that,'" K-State's 6-foot-10 junior forward said before a team photo shoot last week. "It's never really been a reality for me until this year, and the past couple of years, when it kind of grew on me that I actually have a chance."
From September 8-10, Wade learned how to increase those chances while attending the NCAA Elite Men's Basketball Student-Athlete Symposium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Wade was one of 19 athletes invited to the symposium's second annual event, which is intended to educate college players on the expectations and responsibilities of being a professional athlete as well as planning post-playing career opportunities.
"I learned a ton of new information. They brought some great people in. It was a great experience," he said. "My biggest takeaway is I just have to keep my head on right, keep doing what I have to do to get there and just surround myself with the best people possible. I think I have that here at K-State."
Wade, who brought K-State director of basketball operations Drew Speraw with him for the event, roomed with Missouri State's Alize Johnson, a 6-foot-9 senior. He also interacted with players such as Udoka Azubuike (Kansas), Jevon Carter (West Virginia), Tyus Battle (Syracuse), Ethan Happ (Wisconsin) and Allonzo Trier (Arizona), among others.
"I met some of the best players in the country. A couple of them we're going to play, so I tried to get that early season scouting report," Wade joked. "It was good just getting to know those guys."
The three-day experience included many speakers, from former NBA executives and scouts to ex-NCAA/NBA players and even the NCAA enforcement staff. These speakers covered topics such as loss of value and disability insurance, the process of choosing an agent, what NBA teams look for in prospects, financial awareness, the impact social media can have on a player's draft stock, entering the NBA Draft while maintaining NCAA eligibility and post-playing career planning.
Overall, Wade said he gained much more from the experience than he anticipated.
"I went to it with, not a bad attitude, but not a great attitude. I was, like, 'Man, I have to go sit through some talkers. I don't want to sit down all day,' but it turned out that it was actually a really, really good experience," he said. "I haven't talked to anybody like that in my life, nothing like that. Being around all of those big-name guys from Arizona, Louisville, KU, it was kind of like, 'OK, I understand what's going on now.'"
The St. John native said every speaker said something that jumped out at him. Wade added that the symposium's keynote speaker, Derek Anderson, ended the event on a "high note."
"He just said make your brand, your name, as big and as powerful as you can make it just by making the right decisions and surrounding yourself with great people," Wade said. "I took a lot from his speech."
Coming off a sophomore season that included starting all 35 games and averaging 9.3 points on nearly 50 percent shooting, Wade looks to implement what he learned from the symposium into his third year at K-State.
"The scouts kind of told us what they're looking for in a player, so I'm going to try and take everything they said and put it in my game and hopefully they notice me," said Wade, whose former teammate Wesley Iwundu was drafted in the second round of this year's NBA Draft. "Hopefully I can wow a few people and get an opportunity."
"I've always been, like, 'Oh, that would be so cool to do that,'" K-State's 6-foot-10 junior forward said before a team photo shoot last week. "It's never really been a reality for me until this year, and the past couple of years, when it kind of grew on me that I actually have a chance."
From September 8-10, Wade learned how to increase those chances while attending the NCAA Elite Men's Basketball Student-Athlete Symposium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Wade was one of 19 athletes invited to the symposium's second annual event, which is intended to educate college players on the expectations and responsibilities of being a professional athlete as well as planning post-playing career opportunities.
"I learned a ton of new information. They brought some great people in. It was a great experience," he said. "My biggest takeaway is I just have to keep my head on right, keep doing what I have to do to get there and just surround myself with the best people possible. I think I have that here at K-State."
Wade, who brought K-State director of basketball operations Drew Speraw with him for the event, roomed with Missouri State's Alize Johnson, a 6-foot-9 senior. He also interacted with players such as Udoka Azubuike (Kansas), Jevon Carter (West Virginia), Tyus Battle (Syracuse), Ethan Happ (Wisconsin) and Allonzo Trier (Arizona), among others.
"I met some of the best players in the country. A couple of them we're going to play, so I tried to get that early season scouting report," Wade joked. "It was good just getting to know those guys."
The three-day experience included many speakers, from former NBA executives and scouts to ex-NCAA/NBA players and even the NCAA enforcement staff. These speakers covered topics such as loss of value and disability insurance, the process of choosing an agent, what NBA teams look for in prospects, financial awareness, the impact social media can have on a player's draft stock, entering the NBA Draft while maintaining NCAA eligibility and post-playing career planning.
Overall, Wade said he gained much more from the experience than he anticipated.
"I went to it with, not a bad attitude, but not a great attitude. I was, like, 'Man, I have to go sit through some talkers. I don't want to sit down all day,' but it turned out that it was actually a really, really good experience," he said. "I haven't talked to anybody like that in my life, nothing like that. Being around all of those big-name guys from Arizona, Louisville, KU, it was kind of like, 'OK, I understand what's going on now.'"
The St. John native said every speaker said something that jumped out at him. Wade added that the symposium's keynote speaker, Derek Anderson, ended the event on a "high note."
"He just said make your brand, your name, as big and as powerful as you can make it just by making the right decisions and surrounding yourself with great people," Wade said. "I took a lot from his speech."
Coming off a sophomore season that included starting all 35 games and averaging 9.3 points on nearly 50 percent shooting, Wade looks to implement what he learned from the symposium into his third year at K-State.
"The scouts kind of told us what they're looking for in a player, so I'm going to try and take everything they said and put it in my game and hopefully they notice me," said Wade, whose former teammate Wesley Iwundu was drafted in the second round of this year's NBA Draft. "Hopefully I can wow a few people and get an opportunity."
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