Better catch Revue while it's still here

Most people wouldn't consider a sweaty towel a treasure.

But for Michael Puentes a sweaty, white towel was valuable beyond words because of who threw it to him — Jazz back-up point guard Dee Brown.

"Derek Fisher used to be my favorite, but now he's a Laker," the 11-year-old said cradling the towel like it might break with any sudden movement. "So my favorite is Dee Brown now."

Puentes will have memories that he wouldn't have were it not for the Rocky Mountain Revue. The summer league features new draft picks, guys trying to earn roster spots and second and third year players that coaches want to further develop with a little more playing time than they saw during the regular season. For the price of a combo meal, a basketball junkie can see future stars up close and personal — before millions of dollars and thousands of fans move them into a universe most of us can't comprehend.

The players still relate to a kid like Puentes. They might have run up and down a sideline hoping to catch a wave — or a towel — themselves.

The Revue is for basketball fanatics. It's for those die-hard Jazz fans or college basketball aficionados who want to say they saw Morris Almond BEFORE he made it.

The Revue is for people like Joseph Brousseau, his two sons and his soon-to-be 15 grandchildren. The native of Vermont wears a worn Jazz T-shirt and hopes that coming to the summer league to see emerging players will become a tradition for him and his sons, Mike and Mark.

"I love being able to see the players we saw in the NCAA tournament," said Mark. "It's a great opportunity for young kids to learn to love basketball, and it's right here in our back yard."

The really fun part is naming some of those players who've toiled in our back yard at the Revue's home, Salt Lake Community College. Tim Duncan, Carmello Anthony, Amare Stoudamyre and Dirk Nowitzki, just to name a few. You just don't know, but you can imagine, you're watching the next MVP run up and down the Bruins' court.

My fear is that someone wants to steal what's in our back yard. Actually, the NBA and Las Vegas might have already stolen it.

In 2004, the Rocky Mountain Revue was at its healthiest with 11 teams. That was the same summer Las Vegas started a league of its own. Three years later, in 2007, the NBA has taken over that league and is now calling it the NBA Summer League. This year Las Vegas hosted 21 NBA teams and the Chinese National Team. Every Western Conference team but Utah was there, and that's why I'm worried.