Improvement can be a long road. Stardom, or anything close to it, doesn’t always come without its bumps.
J.R. Smith is navigating his way through those bumps.
The guard’s effort in the Nuggets’ preseason opener Tuesday was less than desirable to his coach, George Karl, who pointed out Wednesday that continued inconsistency from him and Von Wafer will be met with plenty of time on the bench.
“I told a lot of guys that are searching for minutes that ‘good-bad don’t get it done,”‘ Karl said. “J.R. had some good plays, he also had some bad plays. As did Von. I just think J.R. and Von had too many bad plays for a team that wants to be a championship team. Last year, we tolerated it. This year, it probably won’t be tolerated.”
Smith, who has been down this road before, knows the problem areas. He knows that a behind-the-back pass turnover late in the game against the Los Angeles Clippers was careless. He knows that good shot selection is a good idea.
Smith knew these things as he and Wafer were being inserted and removed, yo-yo style, in the fourth quarter by Karl after mistakes.
“He didn’t have to say anything,” Smith said of his coach. “I knew what it was. It’s a matter of my court savvy, my basketball IQ, just to finish as opposed to trying to make the spectacular play. Make a great play instead of making a spectacular play.”
That said, his 0-for-7 from the 3-point line Tuesday night wasn’t as much of a concern. Because, as Karl noted, “It’s just one game. He’s had some practices where he’s made everything. So I’m sure he has a hot spell around the bend.”
Said Smith: “It was a bad shooting night. It wasn’t a confidence thing; I just missed those shots. I think I’m doing well. I’ve been shooting the ball well in practice other than (Tuesday’s game). Overall, I think I’ve been doing pretty good.”
As for Wafer, the neophyte NBA guard started slowly but ended the game well to finish with a team high-tying 17 points. Most things are new to Wafer, who was signed to a one-year deal from the Colorado 14ers to provide additional shooting.
“It felt good to get out there and get to play,” Wafer said.
Both, however, have growing to do.
“I just need to ask (Karl) what’s good to him and what’s bad to him so I can go from there,” Smith said. “Once he tells me what I need to eliminate in my game, then I think I can have a better understanding of what he’s talking about out there on the court.
“Then I can see in certain areas what he’s talking about. It’s the assistant coaches as well. They’ve been telling me. It’s just a matter of me thinking about it while I’m out there on the court.”
Footnotes. Karl said star forward Carmelo Anthony probably won’t play in every preseason game. … Guard Chucky Atkins (groin) is expected to return to practice Saturday. … Nene (calf) still hasn’t practiced, and it may be some time before he does. The forward has increased running and cutting without setbacks.
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
