JaVale McGee might not start for Nuggets

Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl is a big proponent of matchups, and as a result JaVale McGee might not be the team's starter at center, according to comments Karl made in an interview with Benjamin Hochman of The Denver Post.

McGee, who signed a massive four-year $44 million contract with the Nuggets in July, spent the summer working with Hall of Famer Hakeen Olajuwon. His competition at center, Timofey Mosgov, won a bronze medal with Russia in the Olympics.

Karl noticed a rapport developing between McGee and backup point guard Andre Miller in a few of the Nuggets wins over the Lakers in last year's NBA playoffs, and while the head coach still has an entire training camp to make a decision on his starting center, he's aware of matchups and tandems he'd like to preserve.

Via The Denver Post:

"Training camp is going to tell me who plays - my idea right now is (Timofey) Mozgov would start with (power forward Kenneth) Faried and JaVale would stay with (reserve point guard) Andre Miller," Karl (said).

Nuggets' training camp opens on Oct. 2, and only time will tell who ends up as the team's starting big man. Depth is never a bad thing, and with the rotations Karl utilizes, both McGee and Mozgov should see solid minutes.

McGee averaged 11.8 points, 7.8 rebound and 2.2 block per game for the Nuggets and the Washington Wizards last season, while Mozgov averaged 5.4 points, 4.1 rebounds and one block in 44 games for Denver.