Coach Karl’s Corner: The Nuggets are in a precarious position

Current state of the game

The sport of basketball is suffering right now in general, regardless of level – high school, college, or professional. There seems to be a regression in the quality of the game.

The players seem a bit lost. “Why are we still playing?” may be a question they are continuing to ask themselves right now. They were certainly vocal about it over the past week at the NBA level in terms of the All-Star Game.

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Nuggets cohesion / team flow / trade deadline

As far as the Nuggets are concerned, there is still potential in this team to turn this ship around. But, in the loaded Western Conference, they are flying in the danger zone. The difference between the No. 3 spot and the No. 13 spot is presently six games .

It appears this team is still trying to figure out their togetherness and flow as a cohesive unit. The next couple of games will be a good test for the team to string some quality wins together.

They got a nice start there with a blowout win Wednesday night against Cleveland. The Nuggets need to keep that going against the gritty Thunder on Friday night before big match-ups against the Lakers again and then the Celtics next week.

As the trade deadline approaches, the Nuggets likely need to make a move to re-energize and retool their roster. Bradley Beal is a great player, an All-Star without a doubt, but where would he fit under the current construction of the roster?

I feel that Beal would conflict with the team chemistry, but I’m not sure. He’d fit with Nikola Jokic, but does he fit with Jamal Murray? With Michael Porter Jr.? I have my doubts there.

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Wing players (MPJ and Barton)

The role players have something to do with the team’s performance, particularly with the three spot. Will Barton and Michael Porter Jr. are struggling to find a definitive role within the team.

In the game versus the Bucks, Barton was a -19 while on the court. I’m not certain if he’s sure what his role is. He appears to be lost and wants more.

But with MPJ taking away his minutes, what can his role become? I think they have to define roles and responsibilities in general, especially with Barton and MPJ, for this team to really get rolling.

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Jamal Murray

The Nuggets probably expected Jamal Murray to be shooting better than 34 percent from three-point range and 44 percent overall from the field.

Murray seems to have some injuries, but injuries are a part of the game. I don’t like teams that focus too much on injuries. There will be moments when players are banged up, and if your roster is constructed well, you protect the team from that.

The bigger issue is the depth of the basketball team and the loss of a few really good players from last year’s team.

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Coaching / front office situation

Sandy and Orlando asked me this week if Michael Malone’s seat is getting warmer at all. I don’t see that at this time. He’s highly engaged and is doing well.

The front office is the bigger issue, at the moment, considering the decisions they made over the past year after a run to the Western Conference Finals. But there is time to make changes before the trade deadline to help this team come together to reunite and save the season.