ormer University of Massachusetts basketball player Gary Forbes' chance of the making it to the NBA got a significant boost during the weekend when the 6-foot-7 forward stood out at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament.

Portsmouth is an all-star tournament in Virginia designed to give college seniors a chance to showcase themselves for NBA and other professional scouts. Former Minuteman Stephane Lasme's strong play at the 2007 Portsmouth Tournament helped earn him a spot in the NBA's predraft camp in Orlando, Fla.

Forbes averaged 15.7 points, seven rebounds and an event-best 8.67 assists in the three games, earning him a spot on the all-tournament team.

"I'm pretty pleased. I was able to show different aspects of my game and draw interest from different NBA teams," said Forbes, who was the Atlantic 10 player of the year as a senior. "I was trying to be unselfish and try to get other players in the game, which showed by me leading the whole tournament in assists."

Forbes said he tried to display his versatility.

"I went in there trying to play multiple positions," he added. "The coach let me play point guard in the last game of the tournament. I was able to show I can not only score, but run a team.

"There's so many guys that are 6-foot-6 that can shoot or can get to the basket and score," Forbes continued. "Not many guys can do what I do, score, get to the basket, pass the basketball and shoot. I thought that might be the best way to get to the next level."

Draftexpress.com, a Web site devoted to evaluating NBA draft prospects, reported that Forbes helped himself considerably in this evaluation of his weekend play:

"Forbes has probably established himself as the second-best prospect in attendance, playing an instrumental role in everything his team did. He started off very unselfishly - something that was a question mark we had about him going into this camp - showing great court vision threading the needle in transition or finding the open man on the drive and dish ... A good athlete at this level (although not a freak for the NBA), he is extremely shifty with his hesitation moves and spins, able to go left or right equally effectively and getting to the rim repeatedly thanks to his strength, sharp crossover and aggressive slashing mentality.

"He is very advanced operating out of the triple-threat, and did a good job finding the open man on the pick and roll as well ... Forbes has done a good job convincing people that he may be able to carve out a niche for himself in the NBA down the road with his prolific scoring ability, particularly at his size. He should be considered a lock to be invited to Orlando now, and could end up being drafted if he plays well there."

Forbes will not hear about an invitation to Orlando for another two weeks, but is optimistic. He had enough credits to graduate in December and remained enrolled at UMass only to finish the basketball season.

He is moving to Houston today because his agent, veteran NBA representative Bill Strickland, has connected him with John Lucas, the former NBA coach and player who helps players prepare for the Orlando camp.

"There should be anywhere from seven to 12 guys there so I should be able to get a lot of individual work in," Forbes said. "It goes from seven in the morning to five or six in the evening. I'm still trying to prove myself so I'm excited to learn as much as possible from Coach Lucas.

"I'm going to absorb as much as I can from him and when I go to Orlando I'll be much better than I was out here ... If I work hard with him he'll be able to tell a lot of NBA general managers about my play and my hard work."

IF YOU CAN'T BEAT 'EM? - Former Florida forward Jonathan Mitchell has announced he's transferring and told the Journal News in New York that UMass, which beat the Gators April 1 in the National Invitation Tournament semifinals, is a possible destination. Mitchell, a sophomore, was a high school teammate of UMass point guard Chris Lowe at Mount Vernon (N.Y.) High school.

"You never know," Mitchell told the Journal News. "I got a real good look at them because they just beat us (in the NIT). We'll just see what happens."

He also is looking at Rutgers and other schools in the Northeast.

UMass would need at least one current player to transfer to open a scholarship for Mitchell.

Matt Vautour can be reached at [email protected]. For more UMass coverage, including a UMass sports blog, go to www.dailyhampshiregazette.com/umsports.