In his first year as Nuggets coach, Brian Shaw drastically scaled back his on-the-court workouts with the players.
There were just too many other obligations on his schedule, and he needed to delegate hands-on instruction among his assistants.
Shaw’s left knee had a say in the matter as well.
Hobbled by pain that had him limping on the sideline late in the season, Shaw is recovering from arthroscopic surgery to remove loose articles from the knee. He avoided surgery during his 15-year playing career – 14 seasons in the NBA and one in Italy.
“I had been putting it off,” he said. “I went ahead and got it done. I’m still doing my rehab and everything, but it feels great and I’m not experiencing any pain or other symptoms.”
Throughout the season, Shaw jumped into half-court drills with his players to emphasize the point he wanted to make. Those occurrences became less frequent as the pain in his knee became more acute.
With three Denver players – Danilo Gallinari, J.J. Hickson and Nate Robinson – recovering from knee surgery, Shaw saw a motivational opportunity while in the weight room doing his rehab.
“I kind of told them a little fib,” he said. “I told them, ‘I did this on purpose, so I can see what it’s like to go through this rehab process. You guys know I’m with you, so there’s no excuse. If I can push through all this stuff, then you can, too.’ ”