After being named a McDonald’s All-American as a senior at Cardinal Ritter High School in St. Louis and leading his team to back-to-back State 2A Championships, Woods entered Wake Forest University in 1996 as part of a powerful frontcourt with National Player of the Year Tim Duncan. A successful freshman campaign resulted in him being named ACC Rookie of the Week on three occasions, but after his second season with the Demon Deacons, Woods transferred to the University of Arizona.

“When I went to Wake Forest, it was a great school and I had a great time there,” said Woods after a recent mini-camp practice. “I didn’t have a problem with the school. I just needed to go to a program that fit me better.”

The 7-2, 261-pound center was an Honorable Mention All-America selection by the Associated Press as both a junior and senior at Arizona. He was named to the All-Final Four Team in 2001 when he led the Wildcats to the NCAA Championship game in Minneapolis.

Woods began his professional career with the Minnesota Timberwolves after he was selected in the second round of the 2001 NBA Draft with the 46th overall pick. He appeared in 98 games over two seasons with Minnesota before signing with the Miami Heat as a free agent in August 2003.

In his only season with Miami, Woods averaged 3.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 13.3 minutes in 38 games played. He became an unrestricted free agent when the Bobcats selected him in the Charlotte Expansion Selection on June 22, but he chose to join the team as soon as possible for summer league activities.

“Coach (Bernie) Bickerstaff showed interest in me and wanted me to come here and work out for the summer,” said Woods. “I know I’m a free agent, but I’m really not looking to go anywhere -- right here is a great place. With a new organization, I have a clean slate.”

Woods’ performance for the Bobcats in the Minnesota Summer League was quite impressive. He led the team with 9.4 rebounds per game and finished second on the club in scoring (10.0 ppg). His best performance came in the final game of the event when he posted a double-double with 16 points and 16 rebounds against the Detroit Pistons.

“It’s a great group here in Charlotte,” said Woods. “Everybody has such a great attitude. Even in the short amount of time we’ve been together, we enjoy being around each other and playing with each other. Everybody’s out there competing hard and having fun.”

Should he make the opening day roster, Woods would provide the Bobcats with a true center who has a soft touch around the basket, but has recently added power to his game.

“I’m a natural center,” said Woods. “I guess everybody thinks of Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal) as the prototypical center, but there’s only one Shaq. All the other centers are tall and thin. I can shoot it, but recently I’ve added power to my game so I can make contact better around the basket. That’s all I worked on last summer. This summer I worked on my legs and my core, so I can accept all the torture that I’m going to take down there.”

Woods also has the ability to run the floor as a big man and get baskets in transition.

“My high school coach always told me to run the floor because that’s the way to get easy baskets,” said Woods. “If the other center was tired, I could get an easy post up on smaller guys or I could get lay ups. Ever since then, I’ve been running the floor.”

Bickerstaff believes this is a good opportunity for Woods to prove himself in the NBA.

“It’s a good opportunity and a good fit for him,” said Bickerstaff. “With that kind of size and athleticism, you can impact the game. He just needs to get stronger. Loren knows how to play the game, that’s never been a question.”

Woods looks forward to returning to basketball country in the Carolinas where he still has family and many friends from his time at Wake Forest.

“I’ve got a lot of old fans and a lot of family members in Winston-Salem and a lot of people around Charlotte,” said Woods. “It’s weird because it almost feels like I didn’t leave. It feels like home. I know that the fans in Charlotte are great basketball fans. If they know that I can play and help the Bobcats win, they’re going to be excited for me.”

by Bo Hussey, BobcatsBasketball.com
Posted: July 13, 2004