NUGGETS LINE UP FOR A BATTLE OF THE POINT GUARDS
Nuggets set for “very interesting” point guard battle
Michael Malone easily rattled off the first four names of the Nuggets’ 2017-18 starting lineup during Monday’s media day.
Gary Harris, shooting guard. Wilson Chandler, small forward. Nikola Jokic, center. Newcomer Paul Millsap, power forward.
Then the Nuggets’ coach reached the position that even he is curious about as the team prepares to start training camp Tuesday morning in Boulder, trying to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2013.
The Nuggets don’t yet have a solidified starting point guard, and Malone is looking forward to a “very interesting” battle among veteran Jameer Nelson and youngsters Jamal Murray and Emmanuel Mudiay.
“Jamal Murray has moments where he’s the best player in the gym,” Malone said. “Emmanuel Mudiay has moments where he was the best player in our gym. And Jameer, you know what you’re getting. …
“That’s why I’m excited about that (position) now, because it’s going to be a great competition.”
Nelson closed last season as the starter, averaging 9.2 points and 5.1 assists while shooting 44.4 percent from the floor. Malone and Nelson praised how Mudiay, who was not available to the media Monday, handled a 2016-17 season in which he suffered a back injury and then fell completely out of the rotation after previously being anointed the
“I’m here in Denver, and I want to play Manimal basketball, no matter what, every time I step on that court.”
Kenneth Faried, Nuggets forward
team’s future at point guard.
And Murray, who is now healthy, remains an intriguing prospect. The former No. 7 overall draft pick, who had surgery on two hernias after the season, averaged 9.9 points in 21.5 minutes per game and moved from shooting guard to the backup point guard spot in January. Though Malone knows Murray is most comfortable with the ball in his hands, the coach stresses Murray needs to move the ball.
“If you’re dribbling more than three or four times, you’re hurting us more than helping us,” Malone said.
Malone notes the NBA’s evolution means most teams no longer need a prototypical pass-first point guard, adding LeBron James essentially held that role when Malone was an assistant with Cleveland. A heavy dose of the Nuggets’ offense, after all, will run through the big man combo of Jokic and Millsap, who are outstanding distributors down low.
That means Malone will be looking for a point guard who can push the tempo for an offense that ranked third in the NBA with 111.7 points per game last season. He wants the player at that spot to move without the ball, cut, finish at the rim and drill open jumpers. And that point guard must prove he can defend 1-on-1 and against the pick-and-roll, as the Nuggets aim for team-wide improvement on defense after ranking near the bottom of the NBA in most major statistical categories a season ago.
Nelson and Murray are not fazed by the upcoming competition. Murray has welcomed the mentorship of Nelson, a player he watched while growing up. Nelson knows he must lead and knock down shots.
Big men like Chandler and Jokic, meanwhile, already have an oncourt rapport with each point guard contender.
“I’m good with everybody, to be honest,” Jokic said.
Malone is confident the point guard pecking order will “play itself out” by the time the Nuggets finish their five preseason games. And Nelson, the returning starter, has embraced the looming battle.
“All three of us, in our eyes, we should be the starter,” Nelson said. “Why wouldn’t you want that on your team?”