NELSON

OAKLAND, California, December 3, 2009 (AFP) - Golden State Warriors coach Don Nelson is still feeling the effects of a bout with pneumonia, but the NBA veteran is keen to get back to action with his team.

Nelson, 69, was in quarantine for more than a week. Still low on energy, Nelson said Thursday he hasn't decided if he'll go on the Warrior's looming five-game road trip.

But he's not planning on exiting the NBA any time soon.

"I'm very competitive and not to have anything to compete, other than watch games, I couldn't do anything else to compete at anything - tiddlywinks and watching film," he said. "It wasn't easy.

"I had to stay in my place. I didn't get out for a week. I was very bored. Watched a lot of games, watched a lot of film and passed my time that way, and slept a lot. I've always been a pretty active person, so that's probably the hardest thing. It's like being in jail."

Nelson said doctors told him it will take some time for him to regain his strength.

"I have to be smart about it," he said. "I've never been 69 before, but I am. I've never been through anything like this. I just don't want to be silly or stupid."

Nelson, the second-winningest coach in NBA history, knows there was talk during his absence about whether he should perhaps think about retirement.

"It is what it is. I think any time you're in a situation where the team isn't winning consistently, everybody's going to be a target of those kinds of rumors and accusations," he said. "But that's just part of the territory. I'm dealing with it the best that I can. ...

"I feel good, much better. I'm not quite over the pneumonia yet but enough that I think I can come back and coach and be effective."