Novak played for his father, Mike, at Brown Deer High School, and three times was named the Parkland Conference Player of the Year. He earned a scholarship to Marquette University where he drained 55 3-pointers as a freshman and helped Dwyane Wade and the Golden Eagles advance to the Final Four. As a senior, Novak made Marquette’s Big East debut a memorable one, by scoring a career-high 41 points to lead his team to a victory over No. 2 Connecticut.

The question on draft night was, "Would that be enough?" Would the 6-foot-10, 220-pounder be continuing his basketball career in the NBA or would he be forced to play overseas? Prior to the draft, Novak and his future fiancée, Christina Canino, each had massages to relax. Canino jokes that the massages were more for her than for him. "You would never have known that his life was being determined for him that night," she says. "I was a wreck; he was cool as a cucumber."

After watching the first portion of the draft at his apartment, the couple met family and friends for a viewing party at Mo’s Irish Pub. The suspense came to an end when the Houston Rockets selected Novak in the second round, as the 32nd overall pick.

And just like that, the next chapter of Novak’s basketball odyssey had begun.

"I had never been to Houston before," he says. "All I knew about the Rockets was from a fan’s standpoint. I knew about their past championships and players like Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady."

Of course, life can be precarious for second-round picks. There was no guarantee that just being drafted meant Novak would be wearing a Rockets uniform when they opened the season Nov. 1 against the Utah Jazz.

"It’s not an easy path for second-round picks," Houston coach Jeff Van Gundy acknowledges. "You have to stick with it."

Novak acquitted himself well by averaging 16 points per game on the Rockets’ summer league team. Although Novak’s dream of playing in the NBA was getting closer, basketball was far from the only thing on his mind.

Novak had been dating Canino since they met in 2003 when she drove to New Orleans to watch Marquette play in the Final Four. They were in the same freshman communication class all season, but the first time they talked was in New Orleans.

The 5-foot-1 Canino and Novak were an instant match despite the differences in their heights and backgrounds. Canino grew up in the Chicago suburbs and was proud of her city, while Novak never missed a chance to talk up Brown Deer and Milwaukee. With both families in attendance, Novak proposed to Canino on Aug. 11 following a Chicago White Sox game. They will be married July 28 in Chicago.

After the engagement, Novak moved to Houston and began the process of finding a place to live and getting acclimated to the city. His silky-smooth shooting ability needed no acclimation. McGrady, one of the NBA’s best players, called Novak "the best shooter I’ve ever seen" following an Oct. 5 practice. "Coming from him, that was just unbelievable," Novak says. "I know the reason I get open looks is because of what he’s doing."

During the first part of the season, Novak has averaged about 1.5 points in six minutes per game. For the first time since he stepped on a basketball court, he is not one of his team’s go-to players. This has taken some getting used to and drives Novak to work even harder to earn more playing time.

Van Gundy has challenged Novak to improve his quickness, strength and play on defense. "He’s got one great skill, his shooting," Van Gundy says. "He’s got to add other dimensions to his game to get on the floor. He was well-coached in college and he has a head start that way. He’s a superior guy."

McGrady says he believes that Novak’s playing time will increase as he adjusts to the NBA game. "I think anybody who can shoot the ball extremely well, especially at his size, can have longevity in this league," he says. "He’s a rookie right now, but I know his potential. As he gets an opportunity to play in the future, he can help us win."

Novak already has made an impression on the Houston fans. They have been known to yell at Van Gundy to "put in Novak." "Marquette has such unbelievable fans, and it’s been the same thing in Houston," Novak says. "To hear them chant my name every once in a while is really neat."

Canino has a theory as to why her fiancé is so popular with Rockets supporters. "He’s a normal person," she says. "He’s one of the most humble people out there. If he were a couple inches shorter, you would never think he was an NBA basketball player."

Although Novak did not see any action, the Rockets’ Nov. 8 game in Milwaukee was extra special. For the first time, he was able to return to the Bradley Center, the site of so many of his best college memories, as a professional basketball player. "It was always a dream of mine to play in the NBA," Novak says. "The Bucks were the team I always followed. They were the team I grew up watching. It was disappointing that I didn’t get to play, but there are a lot of years ahead."

Although he is now getting paid to play, Novak retains his passion for the game. "It’s much more of a business than in college," he says. "But when it comes to being on the court, basketball is basketball. Guys are ahead of me, but I’ll keep working my butt off. I know that if I continue to work, I’ll (prove) that I definitely belong here."

And even though he plays in Houston, there’s no doubt about where he feels most comfortable. "I’ll go to Milwaukee every chance I get," he says. "Milwaukee will always be home."