Padgett keen on Reno

KU freshman eager for trip to hometown

David Padgett’s hometown of Reno, Nev., is known as a mecca for skiing, hiking, biking and fishing.

Oh, and one other thing.

“Casinos,” said Padgett, Kansas University’s 6-foot-11 freshman basketball player who hails from Reno — the “biggest little city in the world” — site of the Wolf Pack Classic, set for Saturday and Sunday at 11,200-seat Lawlor Events Center.

“It’s a big place for tourism. The whole town revolves around it. It’s definitely a big tourist town,” Padgett said.

Reno, population 180,480, attracts about five million tourists a year.

Tourists enjoy 18 world-class ski resorts in the Reno-Sparks-Lake Tahoe area 4,400 feet above sea level … and the 60 gaming locations in the area.

“The weather is very similar to here, actually,” Padgett said. “It snows pretty hard sometimes. It’s just a good place.”

Reno, in fact, gets more than 23 inches of snow annually, though the snow usually melts by midafternoon in the valley. The white stuff sticks in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

The city figures to attract at least 2,000 KU fans this weekend for the Jayhawks’ games against 5-2 UC Santa Barbara (7 p.m. Saturday) and 3-3 University of Nevada (9:30 p.m. Sunday).

<i>” border=”0″/> 6Sports video: Wayne Simien’s durability to be tested</a><a href=</i>” border=”0″/> 6Sports video: Jeff Graves shows improvement</a></td> </tr> </table> </div> </div> <p>Home of the Wolf Pack, Reno is also a good college sports town.</p> <p>“They obviously don’t take basketball as seriously as they do here,” Padgett said, “but it is a big deal there, too. The team is well supported.</p> <p>“We’ll be the biggest team to play there in 10 years or more. It’ll be interesting to see how they react to us coming to play. I’m glad to be going back. It’s going to be fun going home. I’m just glad I have the opportunity to go back. I haven’t been home in four months.”</p> <p>A McDonald’s All-American, Padgett never considered playing ball at Nevada, which was known as Nevada-Reno when David’s dad, Pete, played for the Wolf Pack. Pete, coincidentally, also has ties to UC Santa Barbara, working as an assistant coach for the Gauchos during David’s sophomore year of high school.</p> <h3>KU easy choice</h3> <p>David Padgett was destined to play ball at one of the country’s top hoops programs, choosing KU over North Carolina, Arizona, Stanford and many others.</p> <p>“There’s no better place to play than Allen Fieldhouse,” Padgett said. “I saw it last year and after playing in it I know it’s definitely true.”</p> <p>He experienced KU tradition firsthand early on.</p> <p>Last summer, while attending the first session of summer school, Padgett scrimmaged against ex-Jayhawk big men Danny Manning, Scot Pollard, Drew Gooden, Nick Collison and others.</p> <p>“Playing against Nick and Drew every night this summer … it did not compare to anything I’d done before,” said Padgett. “It does nothing but make you better.</p> <p>“Drew playing three years of college ball now is starting in the NBA for the Magic. Danny Manning .. I mean, he spent 15 years in the league. When I can get a pointer or two from guys like that, it’s got to help.”</p> <p>Padgett hasn’t letup, competing against Wayne Simien and Jeff Graves at practice.</p> <p>“I don’t think it will ever let up,” Padgett said of facing tough inside competition. “I think, personally, the Big 12 is the best conference in the country and every night it will be a war. I won’t get any nights off.”</p> <p>He’s been prepping for his first Big 12 season by having mixed results in nonconference play. Padgett averages 8.0 points and 5.3 boards heading into the two games in his hometown.</p> <p>“I think I’m a lot better player than I was last year,” said Padgett. “I’ve gotten stronger and need to get even stronger. I’m just trying to get better every day.”</p> <h3>Ready to excel</h3> <p>Padgett, who weighs 230, realizes he needs to mature physically to reach his full potential in college.</p> <p>“I’m hoping to put on 10, 15 pounds by the end of my career,” Padgett said. “It’ll come. It’s a slow process.”</p> <p>KU coach Bill Self said Padgett already had come a long way, and predicts greatness for the Nevadan simply because of his work ethic.</p> <p>“The thing about David is he wants to be a player. He is a sponge,” Self said. “He is learning at an accelerated rate. He wants it bad.</p> <p>“It’ll be an interesting weekend to see David going home (to play games) at such a young age. I think he’ll respond favorably.”</p> <p>Off the court, the KU newcomer isn’t planning to show his teammates the Reno nightlife.</p> <p>“No, I mean all there is pretty much to do is gamble. Only a few guys on our team are old enough to do that,” Padgett said.</p> <h3>Home on the Reno</h3> <p>Not yet legal gambling age of 21, Padgett never has gambled, though he does know the casinos well.</p> <p>“I mean, you can walk through them,” he said. “I’ve never dropped in a quarter. They have pretty high security. There’s a lot of good restaurants in casinos. I’ve seen them all and am familiar with them.”</p> <p>He has taken advantage of outdoors fun in Tahoe.</p> <p>“It’s beautiful. A lot of my friends have boats. I spend time there on the lake in the summer,” he said.</p> <p>While the Jayhawks don’t figure to make it to Tahoe — “we will be there three days and have two games. We’ll be pretty busy,” Padgett said — they want to make sure Padgett has a fun trip.</p> <p>“We’ll try to make sure he doesn’t put too much pressure on himself, just play the way he can,” said Padgett’s roommate and former AAU teammate, Omar Wilkes.</p> <p>“We’ll talk to him about trying too hard,” Self said. “When you try too hard, it’s when you mess up. He needs to relax and have fun.”</p> <script type=