The formula has been a simple one for George Karl as he tries to duct tape a frontcourt together from his banged up Nuggets forwards:
Marcus Camby goes out, Karl’s blood pressure goes up.
Denver’s 125-116 win over Atlanta on Tuesday was a perfect example of the juggling Denver must do these days. Francisco Elson sat with an infected right foot, and the tendinitis in Kenyon Martin’s left knee would not let the forward come back for the second half. Nene is out, possibly for the season, with a right knee injury.
That meant 37 minutes for Camby, a high number. He and his coach have acknowledged a need to rein him in so he can last all season.
Camby entered Wednesday second among NBA centers with 35.5 minutes per game, to go with his 17.3 points and 13.9 rebounds. Since he can’t play the whole game, small ball is all the Nuggets could play as he sat Tuesday.
Their only options for “center,” to use the term loosely, were three 6-foot-8 players undersized even for power forward – Eduardo Najera, Linas Kleiza or Carmelo Anthony. And Najera and Anthony are battling their own injuries.
Karl did not sound enthusiastic Wednesday in rating the littler lineup.
“I would be more confident if we’d rebound the ball,” Karl said. “We don’t rebound the ball when we play small. When we play small without Marcus, it’s a prayer to get a rebound.
“We’ve addressed it. We’ve shown them stats. We’ve just kind of gotten a little bit of a crutch because Marcus is such a great rebounder. And as a team, statistically, we’ve been pretty effective, but I don’t think we can rebound the ball. When Marcus is out of the game, I’m scared to death.”
Even when healthy, Martin stands at 6-9. Combine that with a three-guard lineup that often includes the NBA’s shortest player, 5-5 Earl Boykins, and the Nuggets are giving away inches wholesale.
Denver players are not as harsh in their assessment.
“I think it’s been working,” Camby said, praising the work of the rookie Kleiza.
Anthony added, “I’ve been doing that for a long time, going from the three to playing the four or the five sometimes. I’m kind of used to it right now.”
Elson practiced most of Wednesday, and while he said the top of his foot still hurts, Karl hopes he can return to the lineup Friday in Miami to help give Camby more of a breather.
Still, Camby sounded pragmatic about the near future. Martin is day to day for Friday, but he’s bound to miss more time at some point.
“Whatever they need,” Camby said. “I probably need to play the extra minutes with Kenyon being out.”
Footnote
At 10-9, the Nuggets are not tearing the league up as they prepare for a six-game road trip that will take them to Miami, Orlando, Charlotte, Cleveland, New Jersey and Atlanta.
But Karl expressed no nervousness about the coming games.
“I really think the majority of the times, you regroup and regain your confidence out on the road as much as anything,” he said. “It’s harder to do, but if you do it, it can kind of have a multiple factor for your success.”
Adam Thompson can be reached at 303-820-5447 or athompson@denverpost.com.
