Dakota Wizards coach Duane Ticknor figured he wasn't going to have the services of Blake Ahearn very long this season. He just didn't know last year's D-League rookie of the year, who was called up by the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, wouldn't even be in Bismarck until the season-opener.

"What's amazing about that is I talked to four teams about Blake on Thursday and Friday, and the Spurs weren't one of them,"Ticknor said.

Ticknor said Ahearn has a good chance at staying with San Antonio for awhile. If the Wizards do get Ahearn back at some point this season, it may not be on a permanent basis.

"We're happy for him, and we're proud of him," Ticknor said. "Even when he comes back, he may be the Bobby Jones of this year, the guy that's going to go up and down a lot.We hope that he sticks."

Ticknor said the draft night trade of Dontell Jefferson to Utah for the first-round draft pick used to pick Denham Brown was made with an eye on potential NBA call-ups.

"Denham was a good insurance policy for him and Renaldo (Major),"Ticknor said. "We knew Blake wasn't going to be here. We just didn't know it would be this soon."

n LOOKING GOOD:The Wizards had 15 players for Monday's first official day of practice. The only one who hadn't arrived yet is Brown, who is expected today.

So far Ticknor likes what he sees.

"I was real impressed with the conditioning of our guys,"Ticknor said. "Of all the years I've been doing it, this as good a condition as an overall group that we've had. I'm really happy with that part of it.

"And the effort level has been really high, which you expect in camp, with everybody fighting for jobs," Ticknor added. "Our veterans this year, are such competitors, that it makes camp better. They're not coasting just because they know they're on the team. They're trying to make everyone around them better."

Ticknor praised returning big man Wil Frisby, who has dropped 15 pounds.

"He's moving well, and he's got that little bounce in his step where he knows that this is a chance for him to have a breakout year," Ticknor said."We're expecting big things from him, and so far, he's produced."

Of the newcomers, 6-foot-4 rookie guard Jawaan McClellan caught Ticknor's eye.

"He played at Arizona, so you're not intimidated by anybody,"Ticknor said. "I really like that part of what he's brought to the table for us."

n GETTING DEFENSIVE:Ticknor said the Wizards are focusing on the defensive side of the ball early in training camp. Assistant coach Kevin Rice - a former CBA defensive player of the year award winner for the Wizards - is spearheading the effort.

"We've made a concentrated effort the first few practices here to really focus at the defensive end," Ticknor said. "Last year we were focused on installing our system, but a lot of the guys know it now.

"We felt we were a little bit behind defensively last year at this time, so we're trying to get a step ahead. Kevin's done a great job with that.We just turned it over to him, and he's done a defensive job."

n TRIALRUN:The Wizards will be playing one preseason game this year. Dakota will travel to Tea, S.D., to play the Sioux Falls Skyforce on Saturday. Game time is 7 p.m.

Tickets are available at the Tea Area High School or through the Skyforce office.

n CUTTING DOWN:The Wizards will have to cut down to 12 men by Thursday and the D-League roster limit of 10 by next Wednesday.

n D-LEAGUECARES:As part of the D-League Cares program, the Wizards will host more than 400 elementary school children from the Bismarck and Mandan Public schools on Thursday afternoon.

The players interact with the students at various stations, including reading, art, math and basketball.