If you closed your eyes and just listened, you’d swear you’ve heard this somewhere before.
Nuggets interim coach Melvin Hunt is talking about coaching.
“A lot of the really good coaches coming up now were former junior college coaches and were former D-League coaches or minor league/CBA,” he said. “Because your team is constantly changing.”
That exactly what former Nuggets coach George Karl used to say. Hunt loves adjusting on the fly in the same manner that Karl did, and still does with his new team, the Sacramento Kings. But ask Hunt about his philosophy and it all started with Tom Penders, the high-profile Texas coach Hunt said first opened his eyes to the benefit of being a coaching chameleon.
And now, with his chance to make his mark as the Nuggets’ interim head coach, Hunt is putting his years of work into practice, hoping he makes a big enough impression to keep the job after this season. He has been promised the position only for the balance of the season, but through five games since taking over for Brian Shaw, Hunt already has proved he should be considered much more than just the caretaker of the franchise until season’s end. The Nuggets have played some of their most inspired basketball of the season in the past week.
“I’ve always viewed myself as a head coach,” Hunt said. “I’ve said before, I’ve been so thankful, I’ve been so blessed that I’ve had coaches and leaders that wanted me to lead. They’ve seen that in me. I was captain of my college team a couple of years. People have always looked at me as a leader, and I take that seriously.”
The question is: How seriously will the Nuggets consider him to be their leader?
“I have no idea,” Hunt said. “I’m not really concerned with it. Whatever is supposed to happen is going to happen. And I’ll be ready for whatever that is.”
The players are happy with the personable Hunt, whose jokes and easygoing manner mask an intense burning desire to be successful. The Nuggets are 3-2 on his watch and have shown a spark that was missing.
“For me, real coaching is when you’re not a slave to your system,” Hunt said. “For me, the best coaches I’ve been around reinvent themselves. The first time I really saw that and it stood out to me was in college. Tom Penders at Texas. The best thing about coaching to me is being able to look at what we have, evaluate it and then trying to figure out ways to get the best out of it. I’m trying to step back and trying to put the guys in position to where they can be successful.”
Hunt said he has done a “handful” of head-coaching interviews in the past. But now he’s able to put his best work on film.
“It is a chance to help these guys,” he said. “And I know that Brian wanted to help these guys. So, that doesn’t change. It’s a fun challenge, but it still is a challenge.”
Is he feeling pressure to show he should be named the head coach beyond this season?
“Not at all,” Hunt said. “There’s no anxiety. I go back to my faith. I honor my God with my work. I can’t half-do anything. So it’s not like I feel any pressure as far as to win or play a certain way or do this or do that. When the time’s right, whatever God has for me, it will be. So whenever that time is, it will happen.”
Christopher Dempsey: cdempsey@denverpost.com or
ATLANTA AT DENVER
7 p.m. Wednesday, ALT; 950 AM
Spotlight on Kyle Korver: The sharpshooter was a free-agent apple of the Nuggets’ eye a couple of summers ago, before he doubled down and committed to staying with what was then a fledgling Hawks plan to grow into a contender. Now, he arrives in Denver with a Hawks team that is fulfilling that goal. Atlanta is running away with the top seed in the Eastern Conference, and Korver is a big reason for that. He’s second in the NBA in 3-point percentage at .497 and averages 12.5 points per game.
NOTEBOOK
Nuggets: Center Jusuf Nurkic’s return from a sprained right ankle is getting closer. He practiced Tuesday and looked good, according to interim head coach Melvin Hunt. Nurkic wanted to play Monday against the Knicks, the coach said. “We’re playing it cautious,” Hunt said. Nurkic has missed three consecutive games because of the ankle.
Hawks: Defensive-minded guard Thabo Sefolosha will not play because of a right calf strain. Meanwhile, center Pero Antic (sprained left ankle) is listed as questionable. … Guard Jeff Teague has scored in double figures in 33 consecutive games, the longest stretch of his career. … The Hawks have lost seven consecutive games in Denver. They haven’t won a game in the Mile High City since 2006.
Christopher Dempsey, The Denver Post
