<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">NO TO HODGE? The Nuggets haven't gotten much of a look at guard Julius Hodge the past six months. With that in mind, his agent does not anticipate they will pick up Hodge's third-year contract option by the Oct. 31 deadline. "I would guess they will not," Marc Cornstein said. "I think they want to know (how he will progress). That's a major question that's hard to answer." While a rookie, Hodge was shot four times in the legs and hip while driving April 8. He did not recover well enough to play in the summer league and probably will miss at least the first week of camp because of a left foot infection related to the shooting. Hodge is making $1.23 million this season, and the Nuggets have until Oct. 31 to invoke his $1.32 million option for 2007-08. Nuggets vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien won't speculate. Cornstein, though, said Hodge's contract situation is a low priority. He said getting Hodge healthy is most important. "I talked to him (Wednesday), and he's feeling better," Cornstein said. "The biggest thing is not to rush him back. . . . It's a long process. It's most important to make sure he's 100 percent." Cornstein said Hodge came down with the infection a few weeks ago. He expects Hodge will remain in Denver and not go to Durango, where the team is practicing through Saturday. Nuggets coach George Karl is hopeful Hodge can do some court work next week, but he doesn't anticipate it will be five- on-five. "He can pick up the mental stuff (quickly)," Karl said of Hodge's missed time. "It's getting his body back to basketball activity." The Nuggets, in jeopardy of paying the luxury tax next season, are expected to wait until just before the Oct. 31 deadline to make 2007-08 contract decisions on Hodge, guard J.R. Smith ($2.14 million) and forward Linas Kleiza ($1.01 million). It is a good bet the Nuggets will pick up the fourth-year option on Smith and the third-year option on Kleiza. </div> Source
Hodge is a talented player, I liked him in College. Unfortunatly he is the wrong guy for our system(you had to expect that, with Hodge being a "Kiki-Pick")... I hope he recovers well and have a nice career in some other NBA team, because staying in Denver wouldn't be very good for him
