If you want to put what happened to Darrell Arthur into some sort of frenetic context, if you want a brief description of the twists and turns his life took on draft night, here it is:

The former South Oak Cliff, Texas, star was selected by New Orleans, left Madison Square Garden as property of the Portland Trail Blazers and became a Houston Rocket on the drive back to his Manhattan hotel. By the time he opened the door to his room and turned on the TV, he was with the Memphis Grizzlies.

"It was a crazy night for me," Arthur said.

Arthur laughed Friday when discussing his welcome to the NBA. Two hours of sleep and an early-morning flight to yet another city will do that to a person.

But his laughter wasn't designed to mask the disappointment of lasting until the 27th pick or the insanity that ensued. Arthur realizes precious few athletes get this opportunity, and he wants to enjoy the moment.

"I was just relieved I got picked," Arthur said by phone after he and USC guard O.J. Mayo held an introductory news conference in Memphis. "It has always been a dream to be in the NBA since I was a freshman in high school. I've been pushed by my coaches to make it to this point today.

"It was a great honor. I'm loving it. I'm loving the feel right now."

Arthur arrived at Madison Square Garden believing he would be taken somewhere between No. 9 and No. 20. He tried to remain calm as the picks went by — 21, 22, 23, 24 — and his name still had not been called.

The further he drifted, the more he knew teams were concerned about his kidneys.

One of the tests Arthur took in the Orlando predraft camp showed an elevated reading. He had been taking Claritin for his allergies along with Advil and some other anti-inflammatory pills. The Kansas forward was told that was probably the reason his readings were high.

Arthur didn't think much of it. He said the first few teams he worked out for didn't even ask about it. When some teams began to inquire, he let them know he would have his blood work done a few days before the draft.

Arthur worked out for 11 teams. A bad back limited what he was able to do in Seattle and Phoenix, a condition Arthur blames to travel in a small plane that forced him to sit slumped over for an extended period. But it was the kidneys that had teams concerned.

Arthur had the blood work done again, and on the eve of the draft, he presented Washington and other teams with the information that everything was fine. It was too late.

"The word spread that I had bad kidneys," Arthur said.

So he waited and waited until commissioner David Stern called his name at No. 27.

Arthur was surprised the Hornets took him because he never worked out for the club. He didn't work out for the Trail Blazers or Rockets, either. But the workout for Memphis was one of his best during the process.

The Grizzlies also afford him an opportunity to get some meaningful minutes as a rookie, something that would have been hard to come by in New Orleans, Portland or Houston.

"Oh yeah, no doubt," Arthur said before returning to Dallas on Friday night to celebrate with his family. "This is the better option for me. This is a young, up-and-coming team.

"Everything works out for the best."

It didn't appear that way for the first few hours of Thursday's draft. But he's happy to land in Memphis and acknowledged the slide gives him a motivational edge.

"I always have a chip on my shoulder," Arthur said. "I'm a competitor. I'm going to go out there and work hard. I want to show people I can play, that I have game.

"This is something I will look back on five years from now and laugh and joke about."

The laughter has already started. As Arthur said, "he's loving the feel right now."