So it has come to this for Paul McPherson: Streetball. A one-on-one tournament at Seward Park to crown the Chicago playground king. The winner gets bragging rights. And a $10,000 check, courtesy of Nike.

McPherson thought he'd left his playground days behind. And he did, for a time. But he messed up. How many chances should a young man get? McPherson wants one more. Just one.

"I want to make it back to the NBA,'' he said. "My own stupidity is the only reason I'm not still there.''

He spent one year at DePaul before leaving to chase his NBA dream. He caught it, signing with the Phoenix Suns as an undrafted free agent in 2000. He thought he had it made. He did. But he blew it.

"I've learned a lot,'' he said. "I'm a lot smarter now. I'm a lot more mature. The reason why I'm not in the NBA has nothing to do with basketball. It's about off-court issues.''