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Denver Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik spoke with InsideHoops.com and other major media outlets in a teleconference. Here are the questions and answers:

Jeff Bzdelik's Opening Statement: Our players are energetic. They’re excited about this upcoming season. We hope to build on what we did last year. We know that it will take a lot of continued improvement, high energy and a total commitment for us to improve upon last season because of the improved Western Conference and the fact that we will not sneak up on anyone, perhaps as we did last year.

Q: Where does Denver fit in the West? Last year it wasn’t expected that you would have a good year, but this year the team is on the rise.

Jeff Bzdelik: Well, we are very excited about this year but also realistic as well, knowing that talk is cheap. We need to get better. We will have a target on our back from teams that we beat out last year – teams like Utah, Portland and Phoenix – those kinds of teams who historically have been in the playoffs, have improved drastically and are driven and motivated to get back into the playoffs. Those teams that were ahead of us last year, all seven of them, in my mind, have gotten stronger. On paper, perhaps, people might think they might’ve lost something. Well, they won 50-plus games for a reason. So, we know that we’re very realistic. We know that we need to work very hard and work together and improve so that we can be in the mix of the playoff race.

Q: With the acquisition of Kenyon Martin, it appears Nene may be the most likely to come off the bench. How does that work into your lineup this year?

Jeff Bzdelik: It gives us depth. Last year, we were fortunate that we never had an injury that took a core player out of the lineup for an extended period of time. To have a frontline, when healthy, of Marcus Camby, Kenyon Martin, Nene – with the additions of Francisco Elson and Nikoloz Tskitishivili, who we have great hope for and has tremendous upside and is really starting to play well and realize his potential – we feel very strong about the depth that we have. As we all know, over 82 games you will have injuries. Like I said, we were fortunate last year. If an injury does occur, we shouldn’t be hurt that badly because of the depth that we have. As far as Nene, Kenyon and Marcus are concerned, there’s 96 minutes there between the two bigs and three goes into 96 32 times on the average, so players will get their playing time and there’s no need for anyone to believe otherwise.

Q: What aspect of Carmelo Anthony’s game would you most like to see him improve?

Jeff Bzdelik: Carmelo’s a very intelligent player and he knows that he needs to trust the offense and allow the ball to get to the second and third option. Against bad teams, he’ll be able to score against the defense on the first option. Against good teams, it’s going to take the second option. Against great teams, it’s going to take the third option, perhaps, before he has the opportunity to get his hands on the ball in a desirable spot. He learned that through his playoff experience last year and throughout the course of the year, so he’s matured in that aspect. He’s a talented scorer and now he realizes how important it is to trust the offense and allow teammates to get him open on the second and third option and he’s working very hard on that in practice.

Q: Have you talked to Nene about his situation on the team this year and do you feel he’s motivated for this season?

Jeff Bzdelik: Nene is very motivated. Nene is very passionate about his game; cares deeply about his game. He’s working very hard, as I said just a couple questions ago, between Kenyon, Marcus and Nene there’s 96 minutes of playing time. Three goes into 96 32 times so there’s plenty of opportunity for him to get his minutes whether he starts or not.

Q: Can you talk about Carmelo Anthony and Kenyon Martin learning to work together?

Jeff Bzdelik: They both have tremendous respect for one another. They know that our team will be very strong if they play together. I’ve seen nothing but total respect for each other on the court. They’re playing very well together. I’m very pleased with the ball movement and the player movement on this team thus far. When your best player, and in this case our best players, are highly motivated to run the court, to pass the basketball, to move and trust one another, it’s contagious and makes it easy for me as a coach to have this team play as a team.