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for a cheesesteak, getting water ices and chatting at outdoor cafes pointed and mur- mured when he passed, while others called his name from the windows of passing cars. Surrounded by friends, Waiters ordered a quesadilla at the South Street Diner. The crew – which now included photographer Michael Lewis, doing a documentary on Waiters' journey – held court for a couple hours talking Air Jordans, the Phillies, Meek Mill and Floyd Mayweather (A month later, Dion would visit Mayweather at his gym and attend his fight against Miguel Cotto.). They would eventually be joined in the booth by another neighborhood baller, Vil- lanova guard Maalik Wayns, who had also recently declared for the draft. "It's a Philly connection, you know?" Wait- ers said. "Before Syracuse and Villanova, I knew Maalik in seventh grade, before anyone knew he'd blow up and become the person and player he is today. He was chubby back then." Dion laughed, then admitted, "And I was chubby too. And we've always just had a connection. "You love to see someone else do good coming from the same circumstances you come from." He knows there are people who still don't know the real Dion, but he's come to learn to always stay true to himself, both on and off the court, and things will work themselves out. "People see me sometimes and maybe I'm not smiling, and they form ideas. But they don't know what I'm thinking about, wheth- er there's something I'm working through." "Y OU KNOW, YOU CAN'T BE- LIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ," WAITERS SAID, AN- SWERING A QUESTION I HADN'T ASKED. We sat on a landing that stretched out over the Delaware River separating Philly from New Jersey and beyond. He looked over at Maalik, Chris and the rest of his crew, jok- ing around and messing with their phones as we talked. It was well publicized that Dion had issues during his freshman year at Syracuse, and with that came unfounded reports he would transfer. People developed opinions without taking into consideration the personal trag- edies still weighing heavily on a teenager's mind. And virtually nobody knew, except those closest to him, that one of his best friends had come on hard times and lost his home, and that Waiters was doing what he could to help him get back on his feet. "When he gets quiet or stays to himself, Dion could be thinking about one of his friends who got murdered. He could be thinking about his friend having to live on the street and where he's going to sleep that night," Clayton said later. "I honestly think he plays so hard and so passionately because that's when he has clarity, on the court." Waiters' mom bolstered his confidence dur- ing that first difficult year with frequent calls to tell him to stay strong, to "never let anybody win." His relationship with his father, a strict disciplinarian, grew stronger than ever. The summer after his freshman year, Waiters worked out like a demon, returning in the fall with a completely overhauled body and mentality. One thing hadn't changed: Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim insisted on using Waiters as the sixth man, despite being arguably the Orange's best player. As a freshman, coming off the bench had been difficult to accept. Waiters grew up accustomed to handling his own business, and he never wants to come out of games. But as a sophomore, Dion says, he stopped questioning his coach and let the game come to him. The two bonded. And after the season-ending loss to Ohio St. in the Elite 8, Boeheim personally told Waiters he thought he was ready to go pro. "It's just a great feeling, getting ready like this for things you've lived your whole life for," Dion said. "But it doesn't stop here. This is just the beginning, just another chapter in life. I'm going to continue to work extremely hard at the next level. Be- cause I know sometimes, there are times you have to wait your turn." He knows there are people who still don't know the real Dion, but he's come to learn to always stay true to himself, both on and off the court, and things will work them- selves out. "I have a really nice smile. I just need to use it more," Waiters says with a grin. He pauses for a moment. "I want to show people you can't judge a book by its cover until you open it up and read it." i i I put sugar on my lasagna. I'm just telling you that right now because every time I do that, people say, "You put sugar on that?" I put sugar on everything. I gotta eat it with every pasta. I started when I was a young kid, maybe four or five years old. Then on game days, I'll eat broccoli with cheese and chicken breasts. i i I'm a Madden expert. I don't want to sound cocky but I'm really good in that game so I feel as though I can do it all. I call myself the young Peyton Manning. I call audibles at the line. I do all the hot routes. I do all of that. 50 i i I think Allen Iverson influenced all of the Philly guards growing up, and even more because he expanded all over. I think a lot of guys now in the NBA that where No. 3 do it because of AI. I really believe that. A lot of people will tell you they looked up to AI. He was a big role model to me and had a big impact on my life. He made me really want to play basketball more. I used to walk around with all Iverson sneakers. I even had the arm sleeve, the finger slip and I was 12 or 11 years old. i i With my predicted status in the draft, I just knew once I was able to show people what I really could do, it was going to change and I would rise up the draft boards. I really felt that in my mind. For a while, they had me at like 20 and all that. But that really doesn't matter. It's about what you do when the people are there. I think I'm starting to show people that I'm versatile in many ways.