Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray has been “in and out” of Denver’s two practices this week leading up to the second round of the NBA playoffs, coach Michael Malone said Friday.
Murray is dealing with a left calf strain, which he played through Monday night in Denver’s first-round series finale against the Los Angeles Lakers. Murray scored 32 points, including a late game-winning shot with 3.6 seconds remaining. Game 1 against the third-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves tips off at 5 p.m. MT Saturday at Ball Arena.
Murray downplayed the injury when asked about it Thursday, acknowledging that the days off between rounds were helpful to his recovery.
“Just trying to be smart with that calf,” Malone said Friday. “Knowing that tip-off at 5 tomorrow night is priority No. 1.”
The Nuggets will also benefit from three days between Games 2 and 3 of the series next week as other second-round matchups around the league catch up. Denver vs. Minnesota will start ahead of schedule after both teams won in five or fewer games in the first round.
Nuggets shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was a full participant in both practices, Thursday and Friday, after spraining his left ankle in Game 5 against the Lakers. The injury caused him to go back and forth between the locker room and bench throughout the game, but he never exited permanently. Caldwell-Pope will be expected to take primary defensive responsibility for Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who averaged 31 points per game in the first round.
Caldwell-Pope said his ankle felt “so-so” on Monday night, the most recent time he spoke to reporters.