During lockout, Denver Nuggets' Nene stays in shape playing soccer

They play soccer on Thursdays, Denver's melting pot of footballers from Brazil, Argentina, Peru. It's a hodgepodge of muscular men, lithe ladies and one 6-foot-11 dude who somehow seems to fit in like he is 5-foot-11 — except when there's a header battle. Then, yeah, he's definitely 6-11.
"I'm like a normal person," Nene said. "Everyone is the same. I'm not special."
For the big Brazilian, soccer is his national pastime. And the longtime Nuggets center has been playing pickup matches in Denver parks this summer, a man-child playing his favorite childhood game.
"I feel more close to Brazil (when I play)," said Nene, a native of São Carlos, Brazil, who joined the Nuggets in 2002. "I miss it so much, and my friends live there. But I can come here and play soccer and enjoy it. It's a sport I love. I grew up playing soccer. And I just get to have some fun."
Last Thursday, Nene was in two natural habitats. He was playing soccer — while posting up a smaller, scrappy defender and demanding the ball near the goal.
It was a beautiful night for what they call the beautiful game. The air cooled as the sun slowly crept behind the mountains. Players shouted strategy to teammates in mutual languages, as if they were inadvertently talking in code to deter defenders.

"In Brazil, you're born and raised playing," said Nene's friend Felipe Eichenberger, also on the pitch that evening. "So this is just fun — and at the same time, you get some cardio."
They played the game passionately — like a street basketball game with cred on the line — and they played beautifully, with touch passes and savvy defense, including Nene, who showcased some pretty passes with his size 16s. Instead of using goalies, they play with smaller, movable goals to make it more difficult to score, as Nene discovered. With the ball glued to his boot, he spun his body to the right, faced the goal and unleashed a laser shot — which sailed over the goal, postponing the game while a poor sap retrieved the ball.
Nene, of course, has some free time.
"Right now, I have no job," he said with a little grin.
Indeed, the NBA players are locked out, and there aren't any signs this thing will be resolved anytime soon. Nene is exercising and even doing some martial arts workouts to stay in shape. And, of course, he gets in some cardio while playing soccer, though this ain't running up and down the court with Tim Duncan.
Whenever the NBA gets going again, Nene will be a free agent, after opting out of the final year of his Nuggets contract ($11.6 million). He reiterated that it's possible he could return to the Nuggets but suggested that one of the reasons he wants to play elsewhere is for a more immediate chance at a championship.
"After nine years, I have goals and I'm a team player," said Nene, who has averaged 12.3 points and 7.0 rebounds in his career. "I'm very competitive. I want to accomplish everything. It's a big opportunity, and it's the only one in my life to be a top free agent. So I want to enjoy this moment. If people think it's about money, they're wrong. I've saved my money. I could retire today. I don't need to prove points. I like it a lot here."
Indeed, the big guy has become part of the local mountain range. He even married a Colorado girl, and the couple had their first child, a baby boy, this summer.
"I stare at him all the time," the proud papa said. "It's just so cool."
Asked about possibly playing overseas, Nene said no.
"I'll do my cardio here, see my baby," he said. "I saved my money. I don't want to go to Europe. I want to enjoy my offseason. It's a magical time (with the baby)."
But on Thursdays and occasionally some other nights, the center slips away to play some striker.