SALT LAKE CITY — Nuggets forward Kosta Koufos did not play in Friday night’s game at Utah, still dealing with a nagging knee injury. But he is on the road trip with the team and says he will get back in action before the seven-game road swing finishes.
“I’m pretty much day to day,” Koufos said after the morning shootaround. “Other than that, I’m feeling a lot better. I just want to be able to play on the court and be 100 percent, and that’s it.”
Koufos has missed the past two games because of it. He’s done some on-court work and says he’s steadily improving but wants to feel more comfortable.
“I’m still going through that process,” he said. “But it’s very minor. It’s just minor things, nothing serious.”
Faried contines to grow. It’s no secret that Kenneth Faried’s inspired and effective play basically cost Nene a spot on the Nuggets’ roster. The Nuggets eventually traded the big man.
Since the trade, Faried has been good, averaging 11.7 points and 8.8 rebounds in 23½ minutes per game going into Friday’s game.
Nuggets coach George Karl is taking Faried’s growth in stride.
“Kenneth is just a good rookie,” Karl said. “He’s a rookie that has proved he deserves to be on an NBA court, but he’s going to have nights where he’s getting schooled a little bit. He’s had his nights, but I definitely think he’s good enough to have out there.
“I think the one end of the court that we’d like to see more focused and disciplined is defense. But we’re happy with him.”
Christopher Dempsey, The Denver Post
