While much of the talk of the Nuggets’ free-agent camp Saturday focused on how much weight Shawn Kemp has lost, another familiar frame stood out for the opposite reason.
No one will confuse Ricky Sanchez’s body with Kemp’s quite yet. But the forward, a 2005 second-round pick of the Nuggets, no longer resembles a dandelion, either.
After averaging eight points and 3.6 rebounds in his first professional season with the CBA’s Idaho Stampede, Sanchez returned to his native Puerto Rico for a month of weight lifting. As a result of his in-season and offseason work, Sanchez said he weighs 245 pounds – though the Nuggets list him at 215.
Nuggets coach George Karl said he hopes Sanchez will spend as much time as he can in Denver to prepare for summer league next month.
Karl said he would reserve judgment on Sanchez’s progress for a few weeks, but said of his first day back, “Ricky looked like he could make some shots. He looks more like a pro than a young kid playing basketball. We’ll have Ricky all summer long so we don’t have to rush anything.”
Still a month from 19, the 6-foot-11 forward credits his year in the CBA with changing his game, despite the ups and downs that are to be anticipated for such a young player playing far from home.
“I’m still a young boy but I played against men. … Last year I was a one-dimensional guy, just shooting the ball,” he said. “I’ve got to get started in going in for rebounds, getting my teammates involved, go post up a little more, just do more things than shooting.”
Whether Sanchez returns to Boise or heads to Europe and plays in another minor league remains to be seen. His chances of earning a roster spot in Denver appear slim.
“Definitely I want to be here,” he said.
Footnotes
Other notables working out in the Nuggets’ free-agent camp include guards John Lucas and Kelenna Azubuike and centers Jerome Moiso and Eric Chenowith, who nearly made the roster as a free agent last fall. … The Nuggets will work out four draft prospects today, including a local player, Antoine Hood of Air Force. Also invited are Syracuse’s Gerry McNamara, Brandon Heath of San Diego State and Chris Hernandez of Stanford. … Karl said he will make an appearance at the NBA’s predraft camp this week in Orlando, Fla., but only because his son, Coby Karl of Boise State, will participate. …
Karl said he would not lobby to bring coach Joe Wolf from the Stampede to coach Denver’s new minor-league affiliate, the Colorado 14ers. “I’d feel uncomfortable asking because I respect the people at Idaho,” said Karl, who recently sold an ownership stake in the Stampede. “I think he’s under contract for another year.”
Adam Thompson can be reached at 303-820-5447 or athompson@denverpost.com.
