When basketball fans hear the whistling theme of the Harlem Globetrotters, they begin to envision skilled athletes in red, white and blue uniforms hitting a half-court shot, executing behind the back passes or slamming a 12-foot high dunk.

The team of top basketball players that formed in 1927 has traveled the world entertaining fans young and old with their trickery. Now, 80 years later, the group has held an inaugural draft to give five players a chance to tryout and join the famed team.

One of those was University of Montevallo all-time leading scorer, Marcus Kennedy, who said he was completely in the dark about the honor.

&8220;It caught me off guard,&8221; Kennedy said. &8220;When I heard it, I was like, &8216;What, the Globetrotters, are you serious?&8217; I remember watching them as a kid.&8221;

Four months ago Kennedy caused an eruption inside Montevallo&8217;s Peoples Bank and Trust Arena as he drained a half-court shot at the buzzer to send the Montevallo Falcons to

their second-consecutive NCAA Division II Elite Eight.

The Globetrotter-like shot fired its way through the cylinder and through the channels to be dubbed an ESPN &8220;Sports Center&8221; Top 10 play of the night on March 13.

&8220;I definitely think that may have had something to do with it, especially the kind of ball the Globetrotters play,&8221; said Kennedy of his selection by the team. &8220;I really have no idea how they could have found me.&8221;

While Kennedy believes the selection is a big honor, he says he is not interested in the tryout. He continues to work out twice a day, five to six days a week, in Indianapolis with hopes of a professional career.

&8220;I&8217;m just trying to go the overseas route right now. My agent seems to be real confident that he&8217;s going to be able to get me a good job soon,&8221; Kennedy said.

Kennedy was one of two NCAA Division II players to receive the invitation by the Globetrotters, along with Anthony &8220;Ant&8221; Atkinson who was selected No. 1. Ant gained national attention when he scored 10 points in the final 40 seconds of the D-II national championship to lead his Barton College team to a come-from-behind 77-75 win over previously unbeaten Winona College.

Also selected were Sun Ming Ming of China, Georgia Tech&8217;s Mario West and Michigan&8217;s Brent Petway