George Karl remains of two minds when it comes to who will serve on his Nuggets staff next season.
“Some days I think I should add somebody,” the coach said Thursday. “Some days I think I shouldn’t. Some days there’s some interesting names, and some days those names go away.”
Whichever moves he makes and whether he makes them quickly will depend largely on whether NBA owners and players can reach a new collective bargaining agreement by the end of the month, when the old deal expires. Karl said a lockout would allow Denver to act more slowly.
Karl has indicated he intends to bring back Doug Moe as an assistant. But the fate of the rest of the staff, hired under former Denver coach Jeff Bzdelik, remains unknown. All of their contracts expire June 30.
But Karl has repeatedly expressed appreciation for the work done by Scott Brooks, Adrian Dantley, Chip Engelland and Rex Kalamian.
“I want to support people that supported me,” Karl said. “I’m just trying to make the right decision that makes us better. Support is the loyalty factor of sport.”
As for external candidates, Karl said he heard through the grapevine Indiana assistant Mike Brown had a soft spot for Denver and that his wife is from the area. Cleveland hired Brown as its head coach this week.
“There are guys still coaching (in the playoffs),” Karl said. “Donnie Newman in San Antonio is a good friend. I have no idea how much he loves his situation or doesn’t love his situation.”
Newman, who coached under Karl in Milwaukee and played three seasons for him with Montana of the Continental Basketball Association, is one of several high-profile assistants to have worked with Karl. Others include Seattle’s Dwane Casey and Bob Weiss, Portland’s Tim Grgurich and Golden State’s Terry Stotts, though Stotts and Karl reportedly have not been close in recent years.
Warren LeGarie, agent for Denver general manager Kiki Vandeweghe, said the lockout might also delay talks to extend Vandeweghe’s contract, which expires after next season.
“At this point, we’re in a holding pattern,” LeGarie said.
Footnotes
Vandeweghe will lead a Nuggets contingent to Chicago on Monday for the predraft workout there, followed by another scouting trip to Treviso, Italy. …
The Nuggets worked out two foreign power forwards hoping to become second-round draft picks: Marko Lekic of Serbia and Montenegro and graduating Fairfield senior Deng Gai of Sudan. Gai is a cousin of Chicago forward Luol Deng.
Gai said he hopes to use a pro career to aid his country, which is in the middle of a civil war.
“I want to do something positive to help my people,” he said. …
Nuggets center Marcus Camby will host a pizza party and trip to Six Flags Elitch Gardens on Wednesday to celebrate the area students who participated in his Marcus’ Mentors program this school year. Camby has provided scholarship money for underprivileged students who maintained good grades and mentored younger students.
Adam Thompson can be reached at 303-820-5447 or athompson@denverpost.com.
