Malone: Nuggets going "point guard by committee" as six-game road trip wraps up in Dallas

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Ahead of the Nuggets’ Monday night affair in Dallas to wrap up a six-game road trip, Michael Malone shed some light on Denver’s point guard situation.

“As of late, we’re really kind of playing point guard by committee,” Malone said prior to Monday night’s tip, courtesy of The Dallas Morning News’ Adam Grosbard. “(Emmanuel Mudiay) and Jameer are holding down that position and Emmanuel has done a very good job taking are of the ball. He’s at his best when he’s aggressive, when he’s generating free throw attempts and he’s probably one of the better rebounding guards in the NBA.”

Although Mudiay has started each of the 23 games he’s appeared in this year, the second-year point guard has struggled, averaging 12.7 points per game while shooting just 29.8 from the field. Mudiay was also plagued by turnovers early in the year but has limited his giveaways as of late. He’s currently averaging 2.9 turnovers per game, down from the 3.2 he averaged last season.

However, while he’s limited his turnovers, Mudiay’s playmaking has suffered. He’s averaging just 3.7 assists despite playing 29.8 minutes per game at point guard this year. The 20-year-old has recorded just three assists in his last five games.

As a result, veteran point guard Jameer Nelson has stepped up and put together a quality first quarter of the season. The 12-year veteran is averaging 9.7 points per game on 44.9 percent shooting while converting on 38.6 percent of his threes. Nelson has even closed games at point guard as of late for the Nuggets when Mudiay has struggled.

Malone did make clear that the Nuggets are still Mudiay’s “team.”

“We need Emmanuel to go out there, run his team,” Malone said. “Be a playmaker first and look for opportunities to score when they’re there.”

Malone has had no issue playing who he thinks will give him the best chance of winning games in fourth quarters this season. If Nelson has the hot hand, it sounds like Malone will continue to ride the veteran even if that’s at the expense of Mudiay, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2015 draft.