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Nuggets’ Kentavious Caldwell-Pope relishes matchup vs. “little brother” Anthony Edwards

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope knew all along that Anthony Edwards was going to be the top pick in the 2020 draft.

Both Georgia Bulldogs, Caldwell-Pope saw something special in the burly 6-foot-4 guard about the same time the Timberwolves did.

“I knew the season that he had at Georgia and then even the SEC tournament that he had, I knew then he was going to be the number one pick,” Caldwell-Pope told The Denver Post.

In this best-of-seven first-round series, where Denver will try and stake a 2-0 lead Wednesday night, Caldwell-Pope has drawn the defensive assignment on Edwards. On one hand, it’s a natural matchup between two physical, aggressive players in the backcourt. On the other, the two share a close friendship.

They talk often on the phone, hitting subjects like family, shared roots and Georgia. But during a playoff series, it’s church and state. There’s no institutional basketball knowledge exchanged between the two.

“I mean, we’re friends outside of basketball, we’re from the same town, went to the same school, but we hang out, work out together in Atlanta,” Caldwell-Pope said. “So we’re friends outside of basketball, just basically, this is him being my little brother. So it’s a good friendship.”

Caldwell-Pope, Denver’s best perimeter defender, was responsible for Edwards more than any other player in Sunday’s Game 1 throttling. In 17 possessions, Edwards was only 1 of 2 against Caldwell-Pope, according to NBA.com’s tracking stats.

In scheming for Minnesota’s upcoming adjustments, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said he anticipated a much more aggressive, attacking Edwards. Caldwell-Pope will be ready.

In the aftermath of a suffocating defensive Game 1 performance – Minnesota’s 80 points were the third-lowest Denver’s allowed in a playoff game – Caldwell-Pope praised the coaching staff’s preparation. He said they were ready for either opponent, OKC or Minnesota, but once Sunday came around, they knew what the Timberwolves were running.

“Yeah, we did know all their plays,” he said. “We knew exactly where they (were) going to be, how they were going to do it.”

The jarring results reflected it.

Caldwell-Pope, the only Nugget with a championship on his resume, is in a unique position. On other teams, perhaps with lower aspirations, he might be the third offensive option in the hierarchy. Within the Nuggets’ team construct, he’s lower than that among the starters. Instead of dwelling on his status, Caldwell-Pope’s emphasis is on defense, where he roams and patrols and blows up screens as Denver’s best point-of-attack defender.

“For me, I pride myself on the defensive end,” Caldwell-Pope said. “So me that’s where I get my energy and my confidence from, the defensive end, getting steals, getting out in transition, getting easy layups, get a rebound here and there. No, just being able to be focused on that end, it carries over to the offense, and it keeps me from worrying about not getting shots or I’m the last option or whatever. … Like I said earlier, defense wins games.”

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