Through it all, Robert Vaden’s primary objective was to make it to the NBA.

Thursday night, his dream came true when he was selected 54th overall by Charlotte. Minutes later, Oklahoma City paid cash to the Bobcats to acquire the rights to Vaden.

Looking back, the former Cathedral, Pike and Indiana University basketball standout realizes he took the road less traveled to the NBA. But the only thing that matters to Vaden is that he now has a good chance to make an NBA roster.

“When I look back, I made sure that I would never regret the decisions that I made and I was certain they were right for me,‘’ Vaden said. "And when I was drafted, I was sure that they were the right decisions. It wasn’t exactly where I wanted to go, but being able to see your name on TV and hearing your name get called is really special.

“But I wouldn’t change anything that I did. I made all of the decisions myself and I always had people in my corner who I knew would be there for me.’’

Vaden played two years of high school at Cathedral, then transferred to Pike for a year and later to prep school at Bridgton (Maine) Academy for his senior season. As a high school freshman, he committed to play at Purdue but later changed his mind and played for coach Mike Davis at IU.

After two years with the Hoosiers, Vaden decided to follow Davis to Alabama-Birmingham. After sitting out one season, Vaden played his last two years at UAB, where he averaged 21.1 points as a junior and 17.6 as a senior.

At UAB, Vaden played shooting guard. At IU, the 6-5 Vaden was primarily a forward.

“I played on the perimeter at Indiana, but I was guarding (power forwards) on the defensive end,‘’ Vaden said. "At UAB, opponents were double-teaming me and designing gimmick defenses to stop me. I think that experience is really going to help in the NBA because I’m used to having hands in my face and people all over me.’’

Davis, who spent six seasons at IU and has been at UAB the past three years, said Vaden’s ability to shoot the ball will give him a good shot at making it with the Thunder.

“He can shoot it with the best of them,’’ Davis said.

Former Pike coach Larry Bullington, who coached Vaden for one year, has seen three former Pike players drafted the past two seasons. Courtney Lee was drafted by Orlando in 2008 and was recently traded to New Jersey. Jeff Teague was drafted by Atlanta in the first round this season.

“The thing about Robert is that he just really has a high basketball IQ,‘’ Bullington said. "He understands the word ’team.’ I know he’s a great shooter, but there’s other things that he can do out there on the court that I think will really help that team in Oklahoma City.’’

Vaden was introduced to the fans and media in Oklahoma City on Saturday and will begin working out with the Thunder today. He’ll get help in making the transition, because D.J. White, his former roommate at IU, is also on the Thunder roster.

“I got to chill with him a little bit on Saturday when he came to the press conference, and it’s just going to be really good to be reunited with D.J. again,‘’ Vaden said. "We know each other so well. It feels good to be back with him, to see a familiar face, and just know you have a friend in your corner.’’

For second-round draft picks in the NBA, there are few guarantees, but Vaden is confident about his situation.

“I just wanted a team to draft me that I can go down there and show them how much I can help them be a successful team,‘’ Vaden said. "I think Oklahoma City is the perfect situation for me. We’re young but we have a lot of talent, and I’m looking forward to getting after it.’’