Three months ago, DeJuan Blair didn't look like a first-round draft pick.

After Blair finished his sophomore season at Pittsburgh, his weight ballooned from 280 pounds to 315, thanks to a fast-food diet and the fact he wasn't working out while resting a sore knee.

Now, however, everything has changed.

Blair began eating more responsibly and exercising regularly. His weight dropped to 270 pounds and, on Thursday night, an NBA team will likely draft the 6-foot-7 power forward in the middle of the first round.

"His upside is very good because he's got huge hands and he's got soft hands," said Walt Perrin, Utah Jazz vice president of player personnel.

"He's a wide body. He can rebound. He's tough to move. ... He's got a lot of attributes that you like to see in a player."

Blair was one of six players who worked out for the Jazz on Monday morning.

The group also included George Tech forward Alade Aminu, French forward Nando DeColo, Marquette guard Wesley Matthews, Michigan State center Goran Suton and NAIA Player of the Year Geoff Payne, a forward from Westminster College.

Blair is the only one of the six considered to be a first-rounder. His goal is to be the 2009-10 Rookie of the Year.

"That's what I'm shooting for," he said. "If a team gives me the opportunity, I'm going to drive for that."

Although many expect Blair will be off the board when the Jazz pick, he didn't sound discouraged

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if lingering questions about his knees cause him to slide to No. 20.

"If I land in Utah," he said, "that's just going to make Utah that much better because they're not going to get another slouch. They are going to get a workhorse -- somebody who loves the game and will do everything they need him to do."

Blair averaged 15.7 points and 12.3 rebounds last season, when he was a first-team All-American. Blair played inside at Pitt but, in his workout with the Jazz, he flashed a midrange jumper that will be needed in the NBA.

Still, Blair's rebounding and physical presence are the most marketable aspects of his game.

"That's what every NBA team needs -- a rebounder and a guy that's just tough -- and that's me," Blair said. "If I could cut my body in half, I think every team would take a little piece of me."

Confidence is not a problem.

"That's me," Blair said. "... That's how my whole life has been. They say I'm not tall enough or my knee's too bad or I'm too big. But I just smile at it, laugh at it and do what I can."

While Perrin says the Jazz are "a little concerned" about Blair's knees -- he tore both ACLs in high school -- team doctors examined him Monday afternoon. If they give the go-ahead, Blair will likely be on the list of players Utah will consider in the first round.

luhm@sltrib.com