By Tim Gelt
Q: Did you have any idea before the Draft in 1991 that Denver was a possible landing spot for you?
A: I thought Denver was after me.
I was already excited. Denver was not going to pass me because I was the player they were looking for.
Q: Did you workout for the Nuggets prior to the draft?
A: No, I didn’t. They had already watched me enough. I think Bernie Bickerstaff and the management team had done good research on me and to know where I was coming from and what my goals and objectives were, so I didn’t really have to workout for the Nuggets. They knew what kind of player I was going to be because of the institution that I came from.
Q: What were your first impressions of the city of Denver?
A: I knew about Denver just from what people had told me and how wonderful they said it was. My lawyer was telling me so much about how beautiful a city it was and that I would be happy there.
Dikembe Mutombo blocked a franchise-record 1,486 shots, while averaging a double-double of 12.9 points and 12.3 rebounds.
Q: Take me through that night when you heard David Stern announce that you had been picked by the Denver Nuggets. What was going through your mind?
A: Ohhhh… It’s hard to put into words, but if could it would take me 20 pages. It was unbelievable.
Q: You were known for having so much Nuggets pride when you played. When did that develop? Right away or did that take some time?
A: It started with the warm reception that I was given by the ownership, the management, by the city, Dan Issel and the fans. Denver was known for being a football city for so long. When I came things changed.
I talk to my children everyday about those wonderful memories because they didn’t get a chance to live it. Sometimes we go to YouTube to see everything people were saying about Daddy when he was in Denver.
Q: There is a very iconic rookie basketball card of you standing in front of the Denver skyline. How did that get set up? What do you remember about that?
A: Oh yeah it was a great photoshoot that was taken downtown on a building down by the Convention Center. I was there for the press conference for the Nuggets just before I left the city to join the team in Colorado Springs after I took my physical. I spoke to the media and after that Upper Deck asked me if I could take the picture. It was a great location with the skyline of the city of Denver.