The Associated Press
DENVER - Denver Nuggets rookie guard Julius Hodge is expected to make a full recovery after being shot early Saturday while driving on a highway.
Sheriff's deputies said the 22-year-old player was struck in his lower body, and the motive wasn't known. No suspects were in custody.
The team said Hodge is in fair condition, and coach George Karl believes Hodge was hit three times in his legs.
“The preliminary reports are that he's going to be fine. He should be able to play again in two to three weeks,” Karl said.
Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe said Hodge was in good spirits when the two talked.
“He's obviously a little shaken up, but he's doing fine,” Vandeweghe said.
Hodge was on Interstate 76 in north Denver at about 2 a.m. when another vehicle pulled alongside and someone inside fired several shots, Adams County Sheriff's Sgt. Louis Dixon said. A passenger in Hodge's vehicle flagged down another motorist, who took Hodge and the passenger to the hospital.
Dixon said investigators don't know the name of the motorist who stopped but hope that motorist and any witnesses come forward.
Dixon said Hodge's passenger has been interviewed and is not a suspect. He declined to release the passenger's name and would not say what kind of vehicle Hodge was driving.
“Apparently Julius did nothing to provoke this at all,” Vandeweghe said.
The mood was somber at a Nuggets shootaround before Saturday night's game against Golden State in Denver.
“There was a bit of trauma hitting us this morning. We were really solemn, crying,” Karl said. “Right now we are just happy that everything is OK.”
Forward Reggie Evans said the players learned of the shooting when they arrived at the Pepsi Center for the shootaround.
“I'm shocked, really shocked,” Evans said. “It's crazy, really crazy.”
Hodge was Denver's first-round draft choice in 2005 out of North Carolina State. The 6-foot-7 guard was recalled from the NBA's developmental league last month after Earl Boykins broke his hand. He has appeared in 14 games for the Nuggets this season, averaging 0.9 points in 2.4 minutes.
“He's a good guy, a good kid,” Karl said. “I think he has taken being the bottom man on the totem pole real well. He wanted to go down to Austin, and most rookies don't want to be demoted, but he wanted to go play, and I respect that. In general he's gotten better.”
Sheriff's deputies said the 22-year-old player was struck in his lower body, and the motive wasn't known. No suspects were in custody.
The team said Hodge is in fair condition, and coach George Karl believes Hodge was hit three times in his legs.
“The preliminary reports are that he's going to be fine. He should be able to play again in two to three weeks,” Karl said.
Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe said Hodge was in good spirits when the two talked.
“He's obviously a little shaken up, but he's doing fine,” Vandeweghe said.
Hodge was on Interstate 76 in north Denver at about 2 a.m. when another vehicle pulled alongside and someone inside fired several shots, Adams County Sheriff's Sgt. Louis Dixon said. A passenger in Hodge's vehicle flagged down another motorist, who took Hodge and the passenger to the hospital.
Dixon said investigators don't know the name of the motorist who stopped but hope that motorist and any witnesses come forward.
Dixon said Hodge's passenger has been interviewed and is not a suspect. He declined to release the passenger's name and would not say what kind of vehicle Hodge was driving.
“Apparently Julius did nothing to provoke this at all,” Vandeweghe said.
The mood was somber at a Nuggets shootaround before Saturday night's game against Golden State in Denver.
“There was a bit of trauma hitting us this morning. We were really solemn, crying,” Karl said. “Right now we are just happy that everything is OK.”
Forward Reggie Evans said the players learned of the shooting when they arrived at the Pepsi Center for the shootaround.
“I'm shocked, really shocked,” Evans said. “It's crazy, really crazy.”
Hodge was Denver's first-round draft choice in 2005 out of North Carolina State. The 6-foot-7 guard was recalled from the NBA's developmental league last month after Earl Boykins broke his hand. He has appeared in 14 games for the Nuggets this season, averaging 0.9 points in 2.4 minutes.
“He's a good guy, a good kid,” Karl said. “I think he has taken being the bottom man on the totem pole real well. He wanted to go down to Austin, and most rookies don't want to be demoted, but he wanted to go play, and I respect that. In general he's gotten better.”
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