A three-day break between games will allow Karl to observe newly acquired center Johan Petro, but don't expect to see the 7-footer in the rotation Tuesday against the Dallas Mavericks.

Asked what it would take for Petro to get on the court, Karl said: "That's a hard one. A 20-point lead."

Petro, who averaged 15.5 minutes in 27 games this season with the last-place Oklahoma City Thunder, could get an opportunity Thursday when the Nuggets face 7-1, 315-pound Shaquille O'Neal and the Phoenix Suns.

FROM THE MOUTH OF MOE

Nearly four months removed from his 70th birthday, Doug Moe is enjoying his freedom after three-plus seasons on the bench as a full-time assistant.

"I'm too old to be sitting there," he said Sunday. "At least now, if I get upset with the way we're playing, I can move."

Moe, in Denver for the team's current seven-game homestand, likes what he sees from the Nuggets this season, primarily because they are playing better defense and they have Billups running the offense as a true point.

"I think everything has been better," he said. "I'm real optimistic with this team. Last year, I know I didn't feel the same watching this team as I do this year."