The compliment was so foreign to his ears that Demetri McCamey at first thought Illinois coach Bruce Weber had intended the comment for one of his teammates.

The kind words were in reference to the Illini junior's defense, an area of weakness that was partly responsible for his inability to earn a starting job early last season.

It's one of many areas where McCamey didn't grasp, even fought, what the coaches were emphasizing, more typically drawing their ire.

"Coach gave me some praise the other day," McCamey said as the Illini were starting preseason practice. "It was very rare. I was really surprised. At first I thought he was talking to D.J. (Richardson)."

Communication between coach and point guard has improved dramatically since last season, and Weber is hopeful that McCamey's attitude adjustment will allow him to become an elite player starting with tonight's season opener against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

McCamey led a balanced lineup in scoring with an 11.5 average and was second in assists and steals last season, when Illinois reached the NCAA Tournament.

But intangibles kept him from becoming the caliber of player everyone expected when he arrived, drawing comparisons to former Illinois guard Deron Williams. Weber believes a hurdle has been cleared.

"He actually told one of our media whose team it is — Coach Weber's," Weber said. "That's a big stride. I don't think he knew I was the coach before. I want to be cautious on it because he hasn't done it consistently, but he's shown some signs of becoming the player everybody envisioned."

Weber then interjected the reason that McCamey's transformation is No. 1 on his wish list.

"It's the key to our season, there's no doubt in my mind," he said.

McCamey has performed in bursts his first two seasons. A notable example was last year's win over Missouri, when he scored 20 points in the first half and two in the second.

He made a game-winning shot at Northwestern in the waning seconds. But he seemed indecisive and was unable to make a play with the game on the line against Clemson.

But more than his on-the-court inconsistencies, McCamey acknowledged that he was not in tune with Weber. And he admitted he was guilty of being lazy as charged.

"I probably was less coachable, talking back and thinking my suggestion was a little bit better," he said. "In this business you can't do that. But now I'm willing to listen to Coach. You have to listen to the boss. And that happens when you start to see things different and recognize things you didn't when you were young."

One of McCamey's first steps toward a new level of maturity came during the offseason. He decided along with the coaches that an extreme makeover was needed. McCamey went about shedding nearly 20 pounds after nearing the 220-pound mark.

He dropped fried foods and added more running to his regimen, spending considerable time working out with his brother, DeAndre, who is recovering from a knee injury.

"I just feel a lot quicker," he said. "I'm jumping better and just having more fun. I'm not breathing heavy and sweating as much. I can bump for 90 feet and not be as tired as I was last season."

That type of dedication has allowed Weber to take a calmer approach. For two years, he rode McCamey incessantly and constantly looked for ways to motivate the 6-foot-3 guard from Chicago.

"Before, I had to blow up on him," Weber said. "Now I'm consistently pushing him. He's doing what I'm asking, but I'm trying to get him to do it even more consistently."

Weber challenged McCamey to win every quarter last month in the team's orange and blue scrimmage. The teams were altered for every quarter and McCamey's team won three of four.

Weber let McCamey know he should have won them all.

"He's a straightforward guy and calls it like he sees it," McCamey said. "He pushed Deron, Luther (Head) and Dee (Brown) to be tremendous, and hopefully I'm going to reach their level. But you have to be coachable. Knowing he helped guys like that, he knows what he's talking about."