No trade is on radar
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nuggets/article
/0,1299,DRMN_20_3507822,00.html
By Aaron J. Lopez, Rocky Mountain News
January 29, 2005
With his coach of the future finally in place as coach of the
present, Denver Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe once
again could focus on his primary job.
Building a championship team.
One day after signing coach George Karl to a six-year, $20
million contract, Vandeweghe looked relaxed Friday as he turned
his attention to the Feb. 24 NBA trade deadline.
How the Nuggets respond to Karl in the next four weeks will
determine if Vandeweghe stands pat or shakes up the roster.
"I'm not looking at any trades," Vandeweghe said. "I like
our core group of guys, but you've got to get a feel for
who George likes and who he's going to play. Then we can
get a better feel for if we should do something.
"I've never been one to say that anybody's untouchable.
To use an example from the old days, if somebody's going
to dangle Larry Bird or Magic Johnson, you've got to look
at it."
Karl clashed regularly with general manager Ernie Grunfeld
when the two worked together with the Milwaukee Bucks, but
Vandeweghe said Karl will have plenty of input in shaping
the roster.
For now, Karl is focusing more on evaluating the talent he
has on his roster rather than what he might need to succeed
down the road.
"I'm not going to worry about personnel," he said. "That's
Kiki's job. I think it'd be crazy for me to even have a vote
in the decisions on personnel in the next three weeks."
That doesn't mean Karl won't be making mental notes about each
and every one of his new players.
He began the process by meeting with each player in the 24
hours after his hiring, and he made sure to open a clear line
of communication with Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony.
It was something Karl failed to do with All-Star shooting guard
Ray Allen in Milwaukee in their final season together.
"I don't think I'll make that mistake again," Karl said. "It
doesn't guarantee that Carmelo and I will work out, but I think
I have a good attitude towards it. I told Carmelo the same thing.
"I said, 'Carmelo, as soon as you get a knot in your stomach,
don't you dare not come talk to me. Get in that door, tell me
what you're feeling.' If we have to work through hard relationships
, that's OK, because I'm sure he's feeling stress and pressure."
Anthony will not be alone in that regard during the next several
weeks as evaluations are made and Karl tries to push the Nuggets
out of their first-half abyss.
"This is just the beginning of class," Karl said. "Final exams
are at least a couple weeks away."
CRAM SESSION: In an effort to assemble some semblance of a game
plan for his Nuggets debut, Karl conducted a 1-hour, 45-minute
film session and shootaround before the Bucks game.
The session, which went about an hour longer than a normal
shootaround, delayed Kenyon Martin's usual afternoon nap.
"I'm supposed to be asleep right now," Martin said. "I don't
think I'm going to dream now. REM stage is when you're in that
most comfortable sleep and you're dreaming, so my REM is going
to be interrupted."
Denver's entire schedule has been disrupted by the coaching
change.
Instead of a day off after back- to-back games, the Nuggets
practiced Thursday, and Karl plans to practice Sunday after
another back-to-back set caps a five-game, seven-day trip.
"That's part of sacrificing and trying to get to a goal, which
is getting to the playoffs and winning a championship," Nuggets
point guard Andre Miller said. "You can't complain about that."
DENVER SEEING REDD? Shooting guard Michael Redd developed his
NBA game under Karl in Milwaukee. The Nuggets could benefit
from a reunion in Denver.
Redd, Milwaukee's leading scorer and three-point shooter, can
become a free agent after the season, and Denver probably will
be among the leading candidates to land him because of its
salary-cap space and Redd's good relationship with Karl.
"Each year in the system, I got better," Redd said. "He respects
guys that work hard. That's one thing I pride myself on doing."
Redd said he will worry about free agency after the season, but
Bucks coach Terry Porter said it is natural for players to think
about their contract status.
"The free-agency year is always a tough year because of everything
that's surrounding it," Porter said.
"If he wants to go somewhere else, he's going to go somewhere else.
If he wants to be a part of this organization and be a cornerstone
for us, he's going to stay here. Obviously, from my standpoint, I
hope he stays here."
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