Denver Nuggets' Wilson Chandler gives out Christmas presents, pizzas in Benton Harbor hometown

Children watch as Wilson Chandler, a Benton Harbor, Mich., native currently playing for the NBA's Denver Nuggets, hands out Christmas presents Tuesday, Dec. 24, 2013, at the Boys & Girls Club of Benton Harbor, Mich. Chandler donated hundreds of toys as well as 80 pizzas to area children for the holiday season.(AP Photo/The Herald-Palladium, Don Campbell)

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Wilson Chandler, a Benton Harbor, Mich., native currently playing for the NBA's Denver Nuggets, hands out Christmas presents at the Boys & Girls Club of Benton Harbor, Mich.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. — Denver Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler has brought a taste of Christmas to children in his western Michigan hometown.

Chandler handed out presents at Boys & Girls Clubs of Benton Harbor on Christmas Eve. The Herald-Palladium says he donated hundreds of toys and 80 pizzas for the event.

In a posting on Denver’s website, Chandler says “it’s a small town,” so he knows a lot of the children personally.

He says it’s “good just to be around the kids” and says he hopes to make the giveaway a yearly event.

The Benton Harbor High School standout was named Michigan’s Mr. Basketball in 2005. He played at DePaul, then went to the New York Knicks in the 2007 NBA draft.

The Knicks traded him to Denver in 2011.