Coach Michael Malone revealed Friday that Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray has been “in and out” of Denver’s two practices this week as the team prepares for the second round of the NBA playoffs.

Murray has a left calf injury, which he managed to play through Monday night in Denver’s first-round series finale against the Los Angeles Lakers. Murray scored 32 points, including the game-winning shot with 3.6 seconds left. Game 1 against the third-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves begins at 5 p.m. MT Saturday at Ball Arena.

Murray downplayed the issue when asked about it Thursday, admitting that the days off between rounds aided his recuperation.

“Just trying to be smart with that calf,” Malone explained Friday. “Knowing that tip-off at 5 tomorrow night is priority No. 1.”

The Nuggets will also benefit from three days between Games 2 and 3 of the series next week, when other second-round games in the league catch up. Denver vs. Minnesota will begin ahead of schedule because both teams won in five or less games in the first round.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Nuggets’ shooting guard, practiced fully on Thursday and Friday after spraining his left ankle in Game 5 against the Lakers. The injury forced him to alternate between the locker room and the bench during the game, but he never left permanently. Caldwell-Pope will be expected to take on main defensive responsibilities for Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, who averaged 31 points per game in the opening round.

Caldwell-Pope said his ankle felt “so-so” when he last met with reporters on Monday night.