Tony Danridge won’t have to go far for his rookie season as a professional basketball player.

The former University of New Mexico star signed a contract with the NBA Development League’s Albuquerque Thunderbirds on Wednesday, making him one of 15 players taking part in the team’s preseason training camp scheduled to start Nov. 14.

Danridge, who has spent recent weeks working out on his own in El Paso, could be one of two ex-Lobos from last year’s Mountain West Conference championship team on the T-Birds roster. Shooting guard Chad Toppert is a likely target in tonight’s D-League draft.

Albuquerque has the top pick in the draft — and eight overall. Coach John Coffino said he’s eyeing a big man, but also said he’d be quick to take Toppert in the early to middle rounds if his name is still on the board.

“Chad can play at this level,” Coffino said. “And Danridge has electrifying NBA-like athletic ability.”

One ex-Lobo not coming back is Mark Walters. The Highland graduate and four-year UNM veteran was on the T-Birds roster last year but was not invited to preseason camp.

Having at least one familiar face on the roster is common practice in the D-League. The Utah Flash recently signed ex-Brigham Young star Lee Cummard and former Utah center Luke Nevill, while other clubs tend to carry at least one player with local ties.

Doing so allows D-League franchises to generate interest within their own communities. What Coffino expects from Danridge and Toppert, however, is a little more involved than having them keep the turnstiles whirring.

“With the shooters we’ve got already, I think we have the potential of being a really, really good team from the outside,” the coach said.

Now all the T-Birds need is some size. Coffino would like to land an experienced quality center but he’s quick to point out that the pickings are a little slim in that department.

Of the 200 players in the current draft pool, no centers are rated especially high by the league’s scouting service.

That said, Coffino will take almost anything he can get. The T-Birds go on the clock at 5:03. They’ve then got three minutes to announce who their No. 1 man is.

Although there’s plenty of speculation, this much is certain about the long list of candidates on Coffino’s radar: Size matters.

The T-Birds have seven players on the current roster, only one of whom is expected to play in the paint. That’s Kevin Pittsnogle, a 6-foot-11 former college star (and ex-T-Bird) from West Virginia.

He joined Danridge in signing a contract Wednesday.

Coffino expects Pittsnogle to abandon his trademark long-range shooting for a little heavy lifting in the paint.

“You’re that big, I’m going to demand that you rebound at this level,” Coffino said. “I want him to do something other than shoot 40-foot jump shots for us. We’ve got the shooters. Now we need someone inside. If he wants another shot at the NBA, that’s what he has to do this season.”

But back to that No. 1 pick. Coffino is eyeing highly rated prospects such as former South Carolina small forward Carlos Powell, former Virginia Tech power forward Deron Washington, former Charlotte power forward Curtis Withers and small forward Amara Sy, an all-star in a French pro league.

Powell appears to be a solid choice. At 6-7 and 225 pounds, he can post up or shoot from distance, plus play defense against bigger players. He averaged better than 25 points in Korea last season.

Other players currently under contract include returning vets Antonio Agudio, Keith McLeod and Cory Underwood. Coffino has also invited tryout players Shane Edwards and Jason Horton to camp.

As many as 17 players can take part in the preseason workouts, but that number must be trimmed to 12 by Nov. 19. The season opener is Nov. 27 against Bakersfield.

Coffino said Albuquerque is likely to get a few players sent down from their NBA affiliates, Dallas and New Orleans, during the season.

One of those could well be Mavericks point guard Rodrigue Beaubois, the 25th overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft. A recent report on espn.com quoted Mavs president of operations Donnie Nelson as saying it might be a long-term benefit to get Beaubois seasoning in Albuquerque.

The T-Birds were the only D-League team not to have a transaction with an NBA team last season.