There are some football skills to thank for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s basketball success.
Before he was the Nuggets’ starting shooting guard, Caldwell-Pope was a well-rounded young athlete. He said he ran track and played football, baseball and basketball while growing up in Georgia. He was on the Greenville High School football team for a couple of years until he committed to play basketball at the University of Georgia. That decision has paid off, as Caldwell-Pope is on track to make more than $100 million in his NBA career.
“I wasn’t a star, but I did play football,” Caldwell-Pope said to The Denver Gazette after Thursday’s practice.
“I got a little football skill in me. That’s where my quickness and my footwork come from.”
Like he’s done throughout much of his professional basketball career, Caldwell-Pope contributed at both ends of the gridiron. He was originally a cornerback but also played some wide receiver. Those skills have carried over to the court.
Caldwell-Pope leads the Nuggets with 1.5 steals per game. Some of those come when he anticipates a pass, intercepts the ball and turns it into two points on the other end, basketball’s version of a pick-six. Other times, Caldwell-Pope has shown the ability to dislodge the ball from his opponent’s hands right before they score in transition.
“It’s all about timing and just being able to be in the right place at the right time and then knowing when you have the opportunity to go for the steal or like swipe at the ball,” Caldwell-Pope said.
Those cornerback skills also pay off when he’s chasing his man through traffic. The 30-year-old has a knack for getting the Nuggets stops by drawing offensive fouls. The tighter Caldwell-Pope trails his assignment while navigating a pick, the harder it is for the screener to make a legal play.
“There’s no trick, but the more I’m aggressive and on the ball, it’s harder for the screener,” he said. “When he’s trying to screen me, he’s moving a lot, because I’m moving.”
Those plays are the kind the Nuggets might need as they look to win the franchise’s first championship. Caldwell-Pope knows what it takes, as he’s the only member of the team who has hoisted the Larry O’Brien trophy before, winning the 2020 title with the Lakers.
“When you get into the postseason, the game slows down, and you have to be able to get stops. You have to have some toughness and physicality,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said after Thursday’s practice. “On the other end, you have to be able to make shots. I think KCP has shown all season long that he is a premier two-way player.”
Of the Nuggets who take more than one 3-pointer per game, no one has been more efficient than Caldwell-Pope. He made 42.3% of his attempts from 3 this season, despite going through a shooting slump where he went 2 for 18 from deep over a six-game stretch in late March and early April. He got back on track in his final game of the regular season, going 6 for 8 on 3s at Utah.
“I’m a shooter. … I’m going to have shooting slumps. I’ve been through a lot in my career, so it’s all about shooting myself out of it,” Caldwell-Pope said.
“The confidence is there, and I’m ready.”
Caldwell-Pope finished his first season in Denver with averages of 10.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists after the Nuggets acquired the 6-foot-5 wing in a trade with the Wizards in the offseason. Malone said during the regular season that trade was made to help this team win in the playoffs. Caldwell-Pope acknowledged he’s speaking up in the locker room more these days. His message is simple: the Nuggets have everything they need.
“We just got to defend and take care of the ball,” Caldwell-Pope said, sounding like a football coach. “We’ve got everything else offensive wise. We just got to take care of the ball and defend.”
After dealing with a minor wrist injury and a late-season illness, Caldwell-Pope said he’s feeling healthy and energized to start the playoffs. His contributions on both ends could be vital as the Nuggets look to keep Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards - another University of Georgia standout who grew up playing football and turned those skills into an early draft selection - in check during their first-round series, which starts Sunday at Ball Arena.
“Knowing that we have a guy like that, that can guard multiple positions … we know how valuable Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is on both ends of the floor,” Malone said.