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Former Tech guards Jamon Gordon (right) and Zabian Dowdell have peddled their wares to NBA teams from coast to coast.

Best friends Zabian Dowdell and Jamon Gordon have been backcourt mates and roommates for the past four years, but they have gone their separate ways in search of an NBA future.

The former Virginia Tech standouts have been traveling the country this month to work out for NBA teams in hopes of getting picked in Thursday's NBA draft.

Dowdell, an All-ACC first-team pick last season, has worked out for the Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets, Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers and Dallas Mavericks. The Spurs brought him back for a second workout.

"The teams, they treat you pretty nice. They put you up in the nicest hotels," Dowdell said. "It's probably the most room service I've ordered my whole life. I ordered room service everywhere I went."

Gordon, last season's ACC defensive player of the year, worked out for the Trail Blazers, Mavericks, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks and Houston Rockets. The Mavericks brought him back a second time.

"It's exciting that you're playing in front of an NBA team, but it's really a business trip," Gordon said. "You've got to go in and perform well. [The draft] is something you've been waiting for your whole life."

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound Dowdell averaged 17.6 points and 3.1 assists as Tech's point guard this season.

NBA scouting director Marty Blake said Dowdell could be drafted in the second round of the two-round draft. He expects him to be signed by an NBA team for its summer-league squad if he isn't drafted, giving him the chance to advance to preseason camp.

"Dowdell is a very unique-type player who should be able to play in the NBA," Blake said. "He reminds me of [Texas A&M's] Acie Law because there's times when Dowdell dominates. He's got great speed and he's somewhat of a scary shooter. He's very physical. ... If he can't make it this year, he should go in the D-League because he definitely has an NBA future."

In April, Dowdell and Gordon auditioned for NBA scouts at the Portsmouth Invitational. Dowdell also was invited to the NBA's pre-draft camp, which was held May 29-June 1 in Orlando, Fla.

Although he played point guard for three of his four years at Tech, Dowdell is considered by some in the NBA to be a work in progress as a floor general.

"Dowdell was such an explosive scorer in school," said an NBA executive who asked to remain anonymous. "He has to prove that he can play some point guard at his size. That's a difficult adjustment. ... He projects maybe to get there at some point, but he's going to need to evolve a little bit in that way."

In Orlando, Dowdell's wingspan was measured at 6-10 -- impressing NBA teams.

"He's really long for a point guard, and that's an advantage to us," said an NBA assistant coach who asked to remain anonymous. "With his length, he should be able to play the point. ... He didn't look as comfortable as a distributing point guard, which is probably what he'd have to be to break into the NBA.

"He's definitely a talented enough kid to get drafted, but he's also someone who could slide through and not get drafted and end up making a team [as a free agent]."

The assistant not only saw Dowdell in Orlando but also at one of his workouts.

"He's very good in the pick-and-roll, which is an NBA skill," the assistant said.

"He has the ability to score, make plays for himself. He didn't have great speed in the open court; it seemed like he has better quickness than speed. ... He's got great hands, too, as a guy who can get deflections and steals. You saw that some in Orlando."

Gordon and Dowdell ranked 1-2 in the ACC in steals, with Gordon averaging 2.8 per game and Dowdell 2.1.

Gordon hopes to be drafted but expects to be signed by an NBA team if he isn't taken. He averaged 11.4 points and 4.5 assists this season, when he made the All-ACC third team.

At 6-3, Gordon is considered too short to be a shooting guard in the NBA and thus is being auditioned as a point guard. He did spend his junior season as the Hokies' point guard before moving back to off-guard this year.

"He's got a good, strong body," said the executive who requested anonymity. "I just worry that he doesn't shoot it well enough yet. He's going to need to get some polish, maybe in the D-League."

Blake also said Gordon could wind up in the NBA Development League next season.

Since Gordon and Dowdell graduated last month, they have been training in different states. Gordon has been working on improving his shooting in Houston under the supervision of former Houston Rockets star Calvin Murphy.

Dowdell has been practicing and training with Virginia's J.R. Reynolds, Ohio State's Ron Lewis and others at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

"I'm still trying to get used to knowing where the [NBA 3-point] line is, but I don't think I'll have a problem knocking that shot down consistently," Dowdell said.

While the Portsmouth and Orlando showcases featured plenty of games, the workouts for NBA teams gave Dowdell and Gordon a chance to show what they could do in shooting drills and in one-on-one and two-on-two showdowns.

When Dowdell and Gordon went to a workout, there were usually three or four other guards there -- such as Law, Georgia Tech's Javaris Crittenton, Maryland's D.J. Strawberry or Arizona's Mustafa Shakur -- so the NBA team's coaches, scouts and executives could compare the players.

"It's basketball -- you've been doing it your whole life, so it's kind of easy for me," Gordon said.

Dowdell also enjoyed the competition.

"The basketball part, that's the time to get away ... from thinking about the draft," Dowdell said.

"That's the best part of it all, the workout."

Dowdell and Gordon were never at the same workout, so they didn't square off against each other.