WILKES BARRE, Pa. – Darius Rice was a projected lottery pick coming out of high school in Mississippi. He had the reputation, the shot, the size at 6-foot-10.

And he had the genes – his uncle is Jerry Rice, football’s greatest receiver.

But Darius Rice, whose high-school contemporaries included Darius Miles and DeShawn Stevenson, sidestepped the jump to the pros and enrolled at the University of Miami. A college degree is, after all, a college degree. But instead of soaring, Rice’s stock plunged. After a four-year college career, he wasn’t even drafted. But he insists there are no regrets.

“I take it as a positive,” said Rice, who is trying to stick with the Nets.

“I learned a lot of basketball. I accomplished a lot at the University of Miami. I met a lot of people for business opportunities. My time at Miami wasn’t wasted. I’m just 21 years old. I’m still young. I’ll just take the best of my chance.”

Rice is a shooter, something the Nets have needed for eons. So they’ll give him every chance, but admit there are other areas in which Rice must improve.

“He can obviously shoot the ball, and now we’re going to have to see the other areas of his game in context of the team – understanding what we’re doing on the offensive end, defensively being committed,” said coach Lawrence Frank. “He’s worked extremely hard and he does everything we’ve asked. He’s made good progress.”

So what happened during those four years at Miami where he averaged 16.1 points, but barely shot 40 percent? Shot selection.

“I saw him play numerous times – his shot selection wasn’t what it should have been,” said GM Ed Stefanski, who scouted Rice extensively. “But we believe with our coaches and our system, he’ll have a better understanding of that.”

Rice, a management and finance major, sounds resolute about making the team. It’s an attitude he learned from Uncle Jerry.

“Me and him talk like brothers, so it’s regular conversations, but the main thing he always tells me is, ‘Just keep working hard,’ ” said Rice.

“He just says keep working and everything else will take care of itself.”