Los Angeles – Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin, who has dealt with injuries all season, was visibly frustrated Monday after seeing limited action in the first half and being told he would sit out the second half.
Several minutes passed in the third quarter before Martin finally arrived at the bench. He then put a towel over his head.
Martin was the first Nugget to leave the locker room after the game and declined comment. Teammate Ruben Patterson said it may be more than his knee injury that’s bothering Martin.
“He ain’t hurt or nothing,” Patterson said. “He just wanted to be in the game. I don’t want to get into details about that.”
Later, he added: “I was a little worried about him. I’m a little frustrated by things. I’ve been with that guy since college. I’ve just got to keep his head up, because he’s hurting right now.
“Not physically, just mentally. He wanted to be in the game tonight. He didn’t get in the game. He was very angry. I’ve just got to stick by his side, me and D.J. (DerMarr Johnson). We are the only guys he communicates and talks to. But we need Kenyon, man.”
The Nuggets reported that Martin was out with a left knee bruise in the second half.
Johnson and Patterson played at Cincinnati, as did Martin.
Fouls bench Carmelo
It wasn’t Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony’s worst playoff game. But the first half of Game 2 was one he would like to forget.
Anthony, who averaged 26.5 points during the regular season, was held without a point in the first half. He was 0-for-4 and sat out all but six minutes because of foul trouble.
“Right now I don’t think we’re playing with any confidence,” Anthony said. “If we were playing with confidence, we would be closer than what we’re losing by now or winning the game.
“We need other guys to step up and make shots.”
Anthony said this series reminds him of the one against Minnesota in 2004, but he feels the Nuggets can come back.
“This series is going to be tough. There is no need for us to put our heads down. Lose confidence because we’re down 0-2? I think we’re in a pretty good situation right now. We go back home for two games. If we take care of business at home, Thursday first, the chips will start falling.”
Asked what coach George Karl said to him, Anthony said: “Stay positive. This series is going to be fun. At the same time, it’s not going to be a cakewalk. Tonight, I couldn’t get frustrated. I didn’t want to get frustrated. We have to put these two games behind us and move on.”
Anthony went to the bench with 7:08 left in the first quarter and Denver down 12-6 after he picked up his second foul. He didn’t return until the beginning of the second quarter, but he picked up his third foul at the 10:30 mark, in apparent frustration after missing a shot.
Anthony quickly got on the board to start the second half and scored 11 points in the third quarter. He finished with 16 points on 5-of-15 shooting.
Anthony’s career playoff low was two points in Game 4 of a first-round loss in 2004 against Minnesota, when he suffered an ankle injury.
Hodge looks to future
Julius Hodge made another small step in his recovery from four gunshot wounds to his lower body, joining his Nuggets teammates in California for Game 2. He missed Game 1 to receive treatment.
Wearing a boot on his left foot, Hodge gave no timetable for recovery from the April 8 incident, which occurred on an Interstate 76 ramp. Police are still searching for the shooter.
Asked to comment on the case, he said: “I’m still here. I’ll let God handle everything else.”
Hodge said he looks forward to playing on Denver’s summer league team in Las Vegas. He thanked his teammates, singling out Johnson and Marcus Camby for their support.
Hodge said his rookie season, during which he saw little playing time with the Nuggets, has been “an experience that in the long run is going to make me that much better of a player.”
“Definitely, it has made me more hungry as a player and on the basketball court,” he said. “For everything that I’ve been through, it just made me that much stronger and tougher.”
Camby said of Hodge: “I try to talk to him every day. I know it’s kind of tough not being around the team. He’s feeling alienated. But I try to talk to him, make him feel relevant. I try to crack a lot of jokes and make sure he has a smile on his face.”
Russell in transition
After starting the season with the Nuggets, Bryon Russell has spent the end of it as a de facto coach, attending “every last meeting” and giving Karl advice when asked. Mostly, Russell listens. With all the film work and late-night sessions, Russell has a newfound respect for assistant coaches.
“It’s easy to play the game, I will tell you that much,” he said. “With coaches, you’re better overprepared than underprepared. We are flooding each other’s ears with a lot of information.”
Russell will meet with Karl after the season to discuss staying with the team as a coach.
