Rashad Phillips is the NBDL's version of Allen Iverson. A lofty comparison? Yes. One he's unfamiliar with? No.

Though he doesn't necessarily pattern his game after the NBA's reigning Most Valuable Player, it's hard not to notice the similarities. At a shade under 5-10, Phillips is considered undersized to play point guard just as Iverson (6-0) frequently lines up at shooting guard against taller foes. Both are exceptionally quick and possess a scorer's mentality. Heck, the two could probably pass for brothers based on facial features alone.

Phillips begins his professional basketball career as the starting point guard for the Mobile Revelers, who face off against the Roanoke Dazzle Saturday. The game, which will take place in Roanoke, will air live on Fox Sports Net South at 6 p.m. EST.

As a senior at Detroit, Phillips averaged 22.4 ppg and won the 2001 Francis Pomeroy Naismith Award as the nation's top player under 6-0. He was then named MVP of the Portsmouth Invitational Pre-Draft camp and figured he hear his name called on draft night this past June.

The NBDL provides a chance for him to show scouts he can do more than score. Mobile coach Sam Vincent would like to see Phillips push the ball and distribute to the likes of Isaac Fontaine, who was in Veteran Camp with the Los Angeles Lakers, and Jamario Moon, who played on the Milwaukee Bucks Summer League Team.

Roanoke, coached by Kent Davison, is probably the biggest team in the league, with a roster consisting of Thomas Hamilton (7-2), Lorenzo Coleman (7-0) and Keil Zepernick (6-11). Former UCLA standout JaRon Rush will be on the wing, and Ricky Moore, who helped lead Connecticut to a National Championship in 1999, will help guide the ship at point guard.

For Roanoke, Rush (Seattle SuperSonics), Moore (Charlotte Hornets), Coleman (Charlotte), Danny Earl (New Jersey Nets) and Thomas Hamilton (Washington Wizards) were all with NBA teams at some point prior to the season. For Mobile, in addition to Fontaine and Moon, Mike Wilks made it to Veteran Camp with the Sacramento Kings and Derek Hood spent time with the Phoenix Suns.