Here are the two career choices most college basketball players have during the summer months:

Find a summer job, or work on their games.

	Erwin Dudley worked on his SEC player of the year skills close to home during the summer.

They usually choose the latter, with few, if any, actually taking a summer internship or part-time job downtown. And, there's no harm in choosing to stay on the court rather than sit in an office. Ultimately, the extra work spent on their games during the offseason turns into an internship. And in the end, it could mean the difference between getting the real job they wanted all along -- a roster spot in the NBA.

A summer spent playing basketball is about working on individual aspects of the game, something players don't have much time to do during the school year. Sure, the NCAA lets college basketball coaches spend a few hours a week with players on individual instruction. But they've also got the other aspects of school -- like going to class and homework -- to keep them occupied.

No, the summer is the time when Division I players can get in hundreds of shots in the gym, work on their ballhandling and quickness, and pump plenty of iron to get stronger for the long season ahead.

There were plenty of ways for players to stay active indoors. A few specialty camps this summer, like the one headed by former NBA assistant Tim Grgurich in Las Vegas or Jordan's camp in Santa Barbara, Calif, saw plenty of familiar names in attendance. And being a camp counselor at the Nike or adidas ABCD camp gave college players a chance to work with NBA sponsored teachers of the game, let alone get in a quality run. USA Basketball, however, went younger this summer, filling its qualifying team for the World Championships for Young Men with 15- to 18-year-olds, which meant the options were limited and more college players spent the summer staying on campus.

Alabama's Erwin Dudley played on the U.S. World University Games team last summer and few knew it because the team was playing in China, and Dudley wasn't a featured player. Dudley went on to win the 2002 SEC player of the year award in leading Alabama to the NCAA Tournament, but most of the talk concerning Tide hoops was about the departure of Rod Grizzard.

So, when Dudley chose to spend the summer working on his game in Tuscaloosa, Ala., rather than making cameos at a Nike or adidas or Jordan camp, few people outside of the basketball office at Alabama took notice. Dudley, however, didn't mind doing his work this summer in obscurity. It's been his domain for the previous three years.

"There's no question that he's under-appreciated," Alabama coach Mark Gottfried said. "He's way under the radar screen."

For those not paying attention to the 6-foot-8, 240-pound senior-to-be, Dudley averaged 15.2 points and 8.9 rebounds, and made 55.6 percent of his shots. But that's mostly with his back-to-the basket. Dudley had to improve his face-the-basket game, his mid-range jumper and, who knows, maybe an occasional 3-pointer.

"I had to work on my legs because that was my downfall," Dudley said. "I didn't pay attention to my lower body. I need my legs to get stronger to get better position underneath the basket and to get my legs under me with my shot. I've got to leave the floor quicker."

Dudley has come a long way in his tenure with the Tide. Gottfried is pushing him to be an academic all-American after Dudley got his GPA over a 3.0. While Gerald Wallace and Grizzard split, Dudley has stayed and become a more complete student athlete.

"When I stepped on this campus I said I wanted to get a degree and now I'm just a few hours away," Dudley said. "I'm not going to stop now. A lot of players talk about graduating, but drop out right before (graduating) and never finish up. They don't think it's a big deal, but it will mean a lot down the road."

Gottfried said Dudley knows becoming a two-time SEC player of the year isn't a done deal. He probably needs an even better senior season to convince the coaches and media in the league that he should get the award again. And, of course, Alabama has to be just as good, if not better, than the squad that won the SEC West Division and finished 27-8.

That's why staying home and ensuring that he's on track to graduate by year's end, working on his lower body, his face-up game and meshing even more with rising sophomore point Mo Williams could be paramount to the Tide's success this season.

But Dudley was far from alone in this endeavor the past few months. Here's a look at what nine other key players in 2002-03 did this summer to improve their games come November.

Chris Duhon, Duke
Junior, 6-1, PG
2001-02: 8.9 ppg | 3.1 rpg | 5.9 apg | 41% FG | 34% 3-PT | 71.1% FT

	Duhon stayed in Durham to help the young Blue Devils bond this summer.

OK, so maybe we got a little bit overzealous a year ago with Duhon, touting him as a first-team all-American with his backcourt mate Jason (Jay)Williams. Duhon didn't have a down year, but just wasn't as featured as much as Williams, Carlos Boozer and Mike Dunleavy. He will be now. This is his team from Day One to potentially the Final Four. The six freshmen will be looking to Duhon for guidance and inspiration and that's why he stayed on campus throughout the summer, to not only work on his game, but also to instill confidence in his game with the newcomers. "He wanted to put a stamp that this is his team," Duke assistant coach Steve Wojciechowski said. "He's done a great job of that this summer. We're expecting him to have a terrific season." Duhon didn't need to work on any one aspect of his game, but simply needed games to become more aggressive with his shot and to take more chances. Duhon was sensational in leading the U.S. to the gold medal in the World Championships for Young Men in 2001. He'll be counted on to do something similar for Duke -- taking over a retooled lineup with newcomers sprinkled around him, senior-to-be Dahntay Jones and rising sophomore Daniel Ewing.

Carl English, Hawaii
Junior, 6-5, SG
2001-02: 15.1 ppg | 5.1 rpg | 3.3 apg | 47.6% FG | 39.9% 3-PT | 64.3% FT
English passed on playing for the Canadian National team this summer, instead spending the time working on his game on his outdoor rim in his native Newfoundland, fishing and getting rest. Patrick's Cove, with a population of 36, had its favorite son home for the summer and for any tourists driving by they could have seen him working out at 7 a.m. on his hoop. "It's right by the highway," said Hawaii coach Riley Wallace, who spent a week with his wife in Newfoundland visiting with English and his family. "What he needed to do is something you can't really work on and that's becoming a better defensive player," Wallace adds. "He's got to elevate more on his shot and improve his first step." English, who will enter the WAC as a co-preseason player of the year candidate with Tulsa's Kevin Johnson, might take Predrag Savovic's spot on the court and become more of a small forward next season. Wallace wants him moving without the ball more and score in a variety of ways, whether it's driving to the hoop or stepping out and popping a jumper or 3-pointer. "His size makes him one of the better rebounding guards and tough to keep away from the board," Wallace said.

Brandon Fuss-Cheatham, Ohio State
Sophomore, 6-1, PG
2001-02: 1.2 ppg | 0.8 rpg | 1.1 apg | 21.7% FG | 11.1% 3-PT | 60% FT
OK, so the question is why is Fuss-Cheatham on this list? The answer is simple. For Ohio State to be a contender in the Big Ten again, Fuss-Cheatham needs a breakthrough season. That became even more apparent when Ohio State's incoming freshman point Ricardo Billings failed to get eligible. That means Fuss-Cheatham and recently added JC point Emonte Jernigan (formerly of Oregon State) have to become impact point guards for the Buckeyes. "Without Billings we're going to need Fuss-Cheatham even more," Ohio State assistant coach Paul Biancardi said. The staff is raving about Fuss-Cheatham's work ethic this summer, playing in a local summer league. He has accepted the responsibility of becoming their go-to point and is working on his overall offensive game. The Buckeyes will be a work in progress and the muscle toned down Terrence Dials helps give Fuss-Cheatham a target in the lane. Having Brent Darby as a running mate in the backcourt will help ease his transition, too. But Fuss-Cheatham needed games this summer. Whether or not that translates into a point guard who can handle the rigors of the Big Ten will be determined early when the Buckeyes go against Duhon and Duke in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

Reece Gaines, Louisville
Senior, 6-6, SG
2001-02: 21.0 ppg | 3.9 rpg | 3.6 apg | 45.6% FG | 37.8% 3-PT | 80% FT

	Gaines gained 15 pounds of muscle working out in Louisville.

Gaines stayed in Louisville throughout the summer. His goals were to get stronger, something he'll have to do if he wants to play the wing in the NBA. He increased his weight from 190 to 205, but after fall conditioning is expected to get down to a more comfortable 200. The Cardinal staff wanted him to take on the muscle so he could take more punishment and be more durable during the season. Considered one of the best-kept secrets in college basketball next season, Gaines can play either the point or shooting guard and is one of the team's best defenders. "He'll need to get stronger to dominate games more," Louisville assistant Mick Cronin said. "Offensively he's polished. He's such a good scorer, but we'll be happy if our wins go up and his average goes down." Gaines flourished under Rick Pitino last season and enters Conference USA as the preseason player of the year co-favorite with Marquette's Dwyane Wade.

Jason Kapono, UCLA
Senior, 6-7, SF
2001-02: 16.0 ppg | 5.0 rpg | 2.1 apg | 45.9% FG | 45.3% 3-PT | 85.6% FT
Kapono spent most of the summer in Northern California playing with the Sacramento Kings and working out at Bay Area colleges. Kapono had to work on his quickness, shooting off the dribble and finishing in traffic. "He's the best player with his feet underneath him, but he needs to learn to stay balanced in traffic because he rushes too much," UCLA assistant coach Jim Saia said. The Bruins are going to alter their offense to feature Kapono. The Bruins were more catch-and-shoot last season, but they want to open up the offense. If that's the case, Kapono could get more touches but will need to create more off the dribble. "Sometimes he floats too much and rushes his shot," Saia said. "He needs to improve his shot fake and quickness when he decides to put the ball on the floor." The Bruins are banking that Kapono will get rewarded for sticking it out for four years by having a banner senior season. And, for him, possibly becoming a first-round pick in 2003.

Kyle Korver, Creighton
Senior, 6-7, SF
2001-02: 15.1 ppg | 5.5 rpg | 3.3 apg | 47.8% FG | 42.9% 3-PT | 89% FT Korver was with Notre Dame's Chris Thomas and a few other elite players at the Nike camp in Indianapolis before returning to Creighton's campus for the rest of the summer. The goal in Indy, as well as Omaha, was to get his own shot off without the help of an offense. Korver was a product of the Blue Jays offense and that will likely change with the departure of Terrell Taylor. Defenses are going to focus more on Korver within the structured offense, meaning he's going to have to find ways to score on his own. "He needed to put the ball on the floor," Creighton coach Dana Altman said. "Terrell was a proven scorer and took some of the defensive pressure off him, too. They'll look at Kyle more and it means there will be more pressure on him." Korver made a name for himself as a freshman off the bench and gradually elevated his game to lead the Jays in both scoring and rebounding last season as the best player in the Missouri Valley. "But he's mature enough to handle the added pressure and has worked hard to get ready for this stage," Altman said.

Hollis Price, Oklahoma
Senior, 6-1, SG
2001-02: 16.5 ppg | 3.1 rpg | 2.6 apg | 45.5& FG | 38.2% 3-PT | 83.8% FT

	Hollis Price had surgery for the second straight summer in Oklahoma.

Price had surgery in early June after calcium deposits were found in his right ankle. Coach Kelvin Sampson said a ligament was torn and there was some tendon tearing away from the bone. It bothered Price toward the end of the season, although you wouldn't have known it from his play during the Sooners' run to the Final Four. Price, however, stayed off the ankle for 10 days in May, then surgery was required when he had an MRI in June. Price had major elbow surgery a year ago and recovered from that to lead the Sooners to the Big 12 tournament title and Atlanta. The same is expected from him this season. Once he mended, Sampson needed Price to work on his strength this summer. His body takes a beating during games when he's willing to throw himself into the scrum in the middle of the lane. But getting his drive game down the past month has been a primary concern, too. "Breaking people down off the dribble is something he needed to work on," Sampson said. "He has to use that more to set up his jump shot. I want him to get more assists and draw more fouls by creating havoc with his quickness to get to the rim." Price is quick laterally, but had to improve his quickness going straight ahead, something the surgery could help if he's pain free.

Romain Sato, Xavier
Junior, 6-4, SG
2001-02: 16.1 ppg | 6.6 rpg | 1.8 apg | 46.2% FG | 41.5% 3-PT | 68.8% FT
You know all about David West, but the Musketeers weren't and won't be a one-man team in 2002-03. Sato was the MVP of the Deveroes Summer League in Cincinnati, which includes present and past Cincinnati and Xavier players, as well as some from other Ohio schools like Dayton. The staff wouldn't be surprised if Sato ultimately becomes the most productive player on the team and that includes the all-American power forward West. Sato, who scored 28 points on Oklahoma in the NCAA second-round loss to the Sooners, had to concentrate on his ballhandling skills this summer. He's a shooter and doesn't mind taking 500 shots in a workout session. "He hurt them just as much as Dave did," Xavier assistant coach Sean Miller said. "He plays so hard and does a good job on defense, too. If he could put it down on the court then he'll be ridiculous." That's in ridiculously talented. The 6-4 Sato is a tough matchup because he's so strong and tough to keep away from the ball. When he gets it he'll knock down a high percentage of 3s. Improving his free-throw shooting was also on his list.

Chris Thomas, Notre Dame
Sophomore, 6-1, PG
2001-02: 15.6 ppg | 3.5 rpg | 7.6 apg | 38.7% FG | 36.9% 3-PT | 88.9% FT
Thomas was busy this summer, working out at the Nike all-American camp in Indianapolis and the Jordan camp in Santa Barbara, Calif. In between, he was on campus, getting three of the four incoming freshmen acclimated to his crisp passes and ensuring they won't be shocked when the season starts and he threads a bullet pass to them on the break. The goal was to get stronger, especially his upper body. "You could see in the Duke game (a loss in the second-round of the NCAA Tournament) that he had to hold people off and bang with the likes of Jason Williams," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. "He's probably put on 8-10 pounds in his upper body." Brey said he wants to hear Thomas' voice more than anything this offseason. Thomas will need to be more vocal on the court with the departures of Ryan Humphrey, David Graves and Harold Swanagan. "Chris got more confident speaking up, but as a sophomore he'll need to be even more of a leader," Brey said. Thomas' assertiveness at the point could be the difference between a third straight NCAA appearance for Brey or a side trip to the NIT.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.