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Albuquerque Thunderbirds General Manager Billy Widner says he's "99 percent sure" the NBA-Development League will send his team to China for a weeklong preseason tournament.

The Thunderbirds, the 2005-06 D-League champion in its first season as part of the league, will play two games against the Chinese National Team that's preparing for the Asian Games.

Widner said he's conducted numerous conference calls with the NBA, which has indicated his team should leave Nov. 13 and stay until Nov. 20.

Widner said the Chinese government is funding the trip.

"It's great for us," he said. "That means we can start training camp earlier than other teams and separate the team from any other distractions. We'll play against a good team. We get to measure ourselves without anybody else seeing what we're doing."

Training camp normally starts Nov. 11, but Widner said the trip allows the T-Birds to begin next Monday or Tuesday.

The team will play one game in Beijing and another in an as-yet undetermined Chinese city.

Meanwhile, head coach Michael Cooper and the T-Birds are preparing for the D-League draft by holding a draft party Thursday at Kelly's Brew Pub, 3222 Central Ave. S.E.

The 10-round draft will be conducted via conference call from the 12 D-League team cities. It begins at 7 p.m.

The T-Birds have the last pick of the first round because they won last season's championship.

The Thunderbirds are seeking ball kids (ages 9-17) for the coming season. Those interested can find more information at the draft party (bring a parent).