Nuggets' George Karl Q&A: Nene an important cog

Here is the Nuggets' George Karl Q&A: Nene an important cog:

Q: What does your gut tell you about the Nuggets' chances of signing Nene?

A: I'm anxious for my opportunity to recruit him (later this week). I think Nene knows how much I care about him. In a strange way, Nene's become maybe the most important guy on our team. He's not a man of big numbers, but he's a man of big responsibility. I think our young guys need him. We've talked a lot (in the past) about how he'd rather play power forward than center, well, I think this is the year he can get that opportunity (with Timofey Mozgov at center). He's become our veteran leader. I really do think this is the best place for him.

Q: If Nene returns, is your lineup Ty Lawson, Arron Afflalo​, Danilo Gallinari​, Mozgov and Nene?

A: I'm not going to write that in stone, but that's probably what we're looking at. Timo has had a great run in Russia. Of all our players, he's played well. He's been extremely impressive from the videos we've seen.

Q: OK, but what is the lineup if Nene doesn't return?

A: I'll be honest with you — I think Kosta Koufos​ is a guy we'd probably consider, as well as Al Harrington​ and Chris Andersen. There are a lot of guys. And we're not afraid to play small. I would say that Kosta is going to be given a lot of minutes this year. And Bird has been a responsible player for us, and he'll be healthier.

Q: What will be your strategy with the point guards, since last spring you often played Lawson and ex-Nugget Raymond Felton together?

A: I think Ty and Andre Miller are going to be great leaders for our team. Andre (acquired from Portland), if he's not the smartest player in the NBA, he's one of the top three. His brain is as good as anybody in the game. I put him in the same category with Steve Nash​. We had a lot of success last season playing two point guards together, and I plan on doing some of that this year. Ty has shown he's ready to be a 30-35 minute player. We need him to step forward.

Q: What's your strategy in a shortened training camp?

A: Camp will be 60 percent defensive-oriented, to where we can build our offense off of being a good defensive team — and build our confidence off playing defense.

Q: How is your health these days?

A: Other than getting old, I think I'm doing great, from a standpoint of sustaining my weight, getting a little stronger, working out a little more. There's been a consistent improvement there from over the summer. I just enjoy where I am right now. The 66-game season squeezed in, there's going to be a lot of travel and a lot of games, but everybody in the organization has got to be ready to commit the time to give us a great chance to get better, grow during the season and get ready for the playoffs.