LAWRENCE, Kan. -- One is from Oakland. The other is from Iowa. And they couldn't be more alike.

When Nick Collison moves, Drew Gooden reacts. When Gooden shoots, Collison is ready for a rebound. When Collison scores, Gooden is likely to follow with a hoop on the next trip down court. And when Gooden is in position for a defensive stop, Collison is usually right there to help.

	Kansas' big men know how to shoot, but Drew Gooden can get out and finish on the fast break ...

Gooden and Collison -- shooting big men who can put the ball on the court and drive -- are the new wave power forwards. And Kansas has the pair of juniors for at least one more season, reason enough to believe the Jayhawks are a Final Four contender.

"We're like Tim Thomas in our skills," Gooden said. "Nick always impressed me with his ballhandling and how tough he is. We're two guys who can post up and play the three position. It's tough because we're quick, we can shoot 3s and we can get to the basket.

"Me and him have a second nature down in the post with our passing. If you zone us, we'll go high and low, spin off you and work the lob. If you go big, we'll use quickness to get to the basket. If you go small, we'll post you up and bang."

Gone are the days when a team needs one, let alone two traditional 7-foot or 6-11 centers. Instead, the 6-9 Collison (14 ppg, 6.7 rpg) and 6-10 Gooden (15.8 ppg, 8.4 rpg) are the new wave of versatile, inside-out bookend forwards who make defending each on the perimeter nearly as hard as trying to contain them inside.

"They can both play outside and have those NBA bodies," Kansas State coach Jim Wooldridge said. "They might be the most difficult tandem to guard because you don't see players with that kind of size, skill and scoring ability every night. They're a one-two punch and you can't just think you're going to guard them either inside or out."

And get this, now that 7-1 center Eric Chenowith has graduated, Gooden and Collison might be even more effective.

	... or, as fellow forward Nick Collison has proven, score on a drive to the basket.

Both said they were slowed down by having to play on the side of Chenowith. He didn't run as fast as they did on a fastbreak. He didn't get out of the way in the post. Whether it's a fair to Chenowith or not, these two are pleased they've got the freedom to do their thing without him this season.

What that means is both preseason Wooden Award candidates will likely be more in concert on the court. When one goes to the free-throw line, the other might slide inside. When one shifts in the post, the other will get in position for an offensive rebound or a pass. They are like a dance team, without having to choreograph every move.

"I'll be honest, not having Eric gives us room to operate now," said Gooden, whose specialty is a baby hook. "Last year we couldn't see each other with Eric in there. He was my teammate for two years, but it was tough on Eric. We did a lot of running up and down it was hard for him to get a feel for that. Me and Nick can run. We can run with the guards and beat the players guarding us down court."

Teammate and classmate Kirk Hinrich is on the same page with his forwards. The junior point said Chenowith slowed the team down on the fast break when he got the ball at the top of the free-throw line. Hinrich, who will share the perimeter with Jeff Boschee and Aaron Miles to start, expects the Jayhawks' transition game to be even quicker.

Gooden and Collison also figure to make coaching a bit easier for Roy Williams. They get along better than most teammates, largely because their success depends on it. Williams said he isn't surprised because they are genuinely friends and respect each other. He said they "have a great sense of humor and really enjoy being in college and playing with each other."

Coming out of high school, it was Collison who grab national attention. A Parade second-team All-American, he shared Iowa's Mr. Basketball honor in 1999 with Hinrich after averaging 21.7 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.5 blocks at Iowa Falls High School. Gooden, meanwhile, came out of California's El Cerrito High School as an all-state performer who averaged 18.5 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks a game. He wasn't totally unknown, however, earning third-team honors by Parade and a feature on ESPN's Scholastic Sports America's Honor Roll Student-Athlete of the Week.

	DOUBLE TROUBLE
	Nick Collison and Drew Gooden combined to lead Kansas in scoring in 17 of 33 games last season: Nick Collison
	Game	Pts.
	Dec. 12 at DePaul	23
	Dec. 30 vs. SWMS	17
	Jan. 20 at Texas A&M	19
	Feb. 21 vs. Colorado	26
	Feb. 25 at Nebraska	22
	March 16 vs.Northridge	23
	March 23 vs. Illinois	23
	Drew Gooden
	Game	Pts.
	Nov. 10 vs. St. John's	22
	Nov. 3 vs. Illinois St.	17
	Dec. 7 at Wake Forest	13
	Jan. 6 at Texas Tech	23
	Jan. 20 at Texas A&M	19
	Jan. 29 at Missouri	19
	Feb. 3 vs. Texas	19
	Feb. 5 vs. Iowa St.	14
	Feb. 28 at Kansas St.	17
	March 4 vs. Missouri	19
	March 18 vs. Syracuse	17

Collison, however, said Gooden never took issue with Collison getting more hype in the '99 recruiting class.

"The biggest thing is that we never let any of that ego stuff get involved in our game," Collison said. "I had a lot more hype than Drew did out of high school for some reason. I was a McDonald's All-American and for whatever reason he wasn't ranked as high as me. I always knew he could play. We never had friction.

"Now his stats are higher. We like to see each other do well. When there are two guys like us on a team, sometimes there is friction, but it's never been like that."

Hinrich said Gooden is the more flamboyant of the two, which might be one of the few differences.

"It's almost weird how they always know where the other one is," Hinrich said. "They see things real well and recognize things so they can play off each other well."

Don't expect either to be out of Kansas games unless injuries or foul problems are a factor. The Jayhawks aren't too deep inside with 6-9 freshman Wayne Simien, seldom-used 6-10 senior Jeff Carey (1.6 ppg, 1.7 rpg) and 6-6 sophomore Bryant Nash (0.7 ppg, 1.2 rpg) as the few options off the bench unless Williams wants to go smaller with 6-4 freshman Keith Langford as a small forward.

"If we do this the right way, then we'll be one of the toughest teams to guard," Collison said. "We can both drive and kick to the shooters. We can be good in transition. All of us on the court can but the ball on the floor and drive."

Baylor coach Dave Bliss said beating Kansas is going to have to mean somehow containing Gooden and Collison.

"It's not easy because they've got such physical strength and toughness about them," Nebraska coach Barry Collier said. "They've both got excellent hands. I don't think you can guard them one-on-one."

Big 12 coaches may not have to worry about guarding both Collison and Gooden after this season. Gooden will likely declare for the 2002 NBA draft if he mimics his sophomore season.

"I'm not thinking about it right now," Gooden said. "But I'd be lying if I said I didn't over the summer. The reason I didn't (enter the 2001 draft) was that I had things to work on and had to get stronger in the weight room. I was thinking about it, but now the season is here and it's time to do what's best for the team."

Collison could follow, but isn't as much of a lock. Syracuse coach Jim Boheim, who coached Collison the past two summers on the U.S. national team at the World Championships for Young Men, said Collison still hasn't realized how good he can be. It might take him another season to max his college potential, not to mention professional value.

"I know Drew will have the opportunity and I might too," Collison said. "It's something to look at then, but not in October. We know it's a good shot that Drew might leave, but he might not. We can't worry about that now."

No, the only concern anyone should have is whether or not they can put a stop to these two in the paint, on the perimeter or wherever they decide to travel on the court this season.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.