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ESPN.com Denver Nuggets Season Preview

 

OK, now I am upset.  ESPN.com has posted their season preview on the Denver Nuggets and despite the presence of some impressive writing in box number six, I cannot believe what I just read.

First of all, only one of the ten “experts” picked the Nuggets to finish higher than third in the Northwest Division and not one of them picked them to make the playoffs.  Not one!  In fact former Nugget first round pick Jalen Rose picked the Nuggets to finish fourth in the division!  (Note:  after further inspection, he picked Minnesota to finish fourth as well and Oklahoma City in fifth.  Apparently Jalen does not believe anyone will finish third.  Way to make that Michigan education work for you Jalen.)

I realize the Nuggets have some question marks, but the standard analysis of the Nuggets by the national media continues to be no Camby, no Najera, no one will play defense, they are going to fall further and faster than the stock market. 

J.A. Adande:  “It will be a 48 minute lay up line for opponents.”

Jemele Hill:  “They got rid of their two best defensive players, Camby and Najera.”  That was the extent of her analysis. 

Is it really that tough to actually put some thought into your analysis?  This is their job.  They can watch film all day long if they want to, but apparently they choose not to.

I can handle someone saying, “Nene is injury prone and when he goes down they will be in trouble.”  I can also accept, “They are going to deal AI to save some more money and that is why I projected them to finish behind the Clippers.”  Rick Bucher’s comment that the Nuggets front office has sent a mental message of not going for it this season by letting Camby and Najera go may also have some merit although I do not buy into it.  There is no Michael Jordan on this team who will foster a losing is worse than death attitude, but these guys are all pretty competitive and many have something to prove.  They are not going to mail the season in because the team decided not to pay a couple of older veterans.

Chris Sheridan took a shot at Stan Kronke writing, “Money is more important than winning, especially when it's Stanley Kroenke's money and he doesn't want to spend it on luxury tax.”  He then went on to say the Nuggets are, “Our choice for our annual train wreck prediction. (Last year I chose Miami.)  Kronke is still on the hook for about $6 million in luxury tax payments as the roster stands today.  I get tired of the implication that he is being cheap for not wanting to pay $100 million in salary and luxury tax payments for a team that cannot get out of the first round.

Chris Broussard says, “The Nuggets have too much talent to miss the postseason, especially with J.R. and Kleiza coming into their own.  Then he predicts that they will finish ninth in the west.

It just blows me away how few people believe the Nuggets are a playoff team, but the final nail in the coffin was seeing that the aggregated final standings had the Los Angeles Clippers finishing ahead of the Nuggets.  If you are looking for a team to fall apart this season how about the Clippers?  They have a point guard who is famous for his horrid shot selection paired with a control freak head coach.  They lost their best player in what might have been a far more incompetent negotiating process by the front office than anything the Nuggets have been guilty of and God’s Gift to Defense Marcus Camby is not going to play a single game in the preseason due to a heel injury.  Oh yea, and do not forget that Chris Kaman is coming off of a season where he played only 56 games plus he put some extra wear and tear on his body by playing for Germany in the Olympics.

Look, I may be way off base and maybe I will end up being the fool over the next six months and the groupthink experts may end up being right.  I just think there is so much more to the Nuggets story than what is being pushed by the national media.  

I guess that is why I write a Nuggets blog.

 

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Comments

Display:

I am a homer

But I think everyone who is overlooking Denver based on the fact that Camby is gone is foolish. Last season was the most games Camby has ever played in one season. I feel if Nene is healthy he could be a nice force defensively. I am optomistic on this team. These are reason I dont read ESPN about any of my Denver teams. Plus who cares what Hill has to say, she is about as relevant as Scoop Jackson.

somethings wrong, Trying to conquer these fears i thought were gone. And it's been so long, I'm dying to live in a world i don't belong

by broncfanstuckinsd on Oct 22, 2008 12:04 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

I feel ya Jeremy

This is what JA Adande said about the Kings:

They give you everything they’ve got. Unfortunately, it isn’t a whole lot. It would be nice to have a guy to dump the ball to and say, “Get us 30.”

Hmm, if having a guy potentially top 5 in scoring can’t do that, I don’t want to watch that NBA.

These previews are stupid, and I understand many of your criticisms, particularly the part about not willing to pay 100 mill to get to the 1st round, and all that, but that doesn’t matter to ESPN. They just slap this crap together and claim it’s “expert”.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 22, 2008 2:19 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

I suggest you read the Ball Don't Lie preview

It addresses many of your criticism’s on these issue’s. (It’s not a surprise to me, but it was Kelly Dwyer who wrote it.)

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 22, 2008 2:22 PM MDT up reply actions   0 recs

Here is where I put it

I forget to write that in the last paragraph. Whoops.

No mistakes in the tango, darling. Not like life. It's simple. That's what makes the tango so great. If you make a mistake, and get tangled, you tango on

by pookeyguru on Oct 22, 2008 5:40 PM MDT up reply actions   0 recs

Poor journalism on ESPN. I’m as true blue a fan as they come, and at times can be overly optimistic about our team’s chances. However, I have been disappointed as much as anyone else these last several years not getting out of the first round and have been guardedly optimistic.

That being said, I would agree with you completely that these journalists don’t really follow Denver close enough to know what they are capable of. I think Portland will start out hot and fizzle as the year goes on. They may get into the playoffs, but they lack the late season and playoff experience Denver does.

by jmdeshazer on Oct 22, 2008 2:44 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

Oversimplified nonesense I've come to expect from Nuggets previews.

Interesting that Broussard agreed with you that it would be for the better to end up in the lottery Jeremy (I don’t) :).

by joshhopp on Oct 22, 2008 3:29 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

Lottery

I noticed that too, but did not take the time to mention it. I think it is an interesting argument and one which I think we will have the chance to pursue further as the year progresses.

Pickaxe and Roll - An SB Nation Denver Nuggets Blog

by Jeremy on Oct 22, 2008 4:07 PM MDT up reply actions   0 recs

stupid ESPN "experts"

Im sure we all know they are off on their analysis, and as much as i like playing with the Trailblazers on NBA 2k9, i dont think they automatically make the jump to a contender after missing the playoffs the last few years, i think our division comes down to us and Utah.
I dont mind everyone overlooking the Nuggs tho. We will hav a good year….

MELO!!!

MileHighReport.com
PickaxeAndRoll.com

by abaca15 on Oct 22, 2008 4:01 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

Don't put too much stock in what the ESPN guys

I’ve learned to get over their blatant east coast/LA bias. It seems like they don’t put anything into their comments about the team, no analysis they just say whatever pops into their head.

"It was like some sort of crazy torture in the movies. How do people do that so long without taking a breath? I think my ears are still ringing."
-Adrian Peterson, describing Autzen

by dougall5505 on Oct 22, 2008 8:25 PM MDT reply actions   0 recs

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THE STIFF LIST (as of 11/4 by Nate)

STIFF #1: DAN HAWKINS
After predicting 10 wins for his club before the season the Buffs find themselves just 2-6 with four games to play. To add injury to insult ... former 5-star prized recruit Darrell Scott announced he'll be transferring to UCLA after just 1 1/2 seasons at CU. Another black eye for the program and hopefully the final nail in Hawk's coaching coffin.  

STIFF #2: CHRIS PAUL/RAJON RONDO FEUD
Each player was assessed a technical foul after refs had to separate the two in Boston's 97-87 win Nov. 1st. After the game the arguing and posturing continued. As Celtics' coach Doc Rivers pointed out, the 180 lb. fight rule should be invoked allowing the two to scrap because, "It's impossible for them to hurt each other." Maybe Paul should focus more on his teams' 1-3 start and not on the opposing teams' point guard's ability to, "respect me as a man."

STIFF #3: ESPN NBA HEADLINES
The Nuggets headline today reads, "Nuggets sink Pacers to avoid taking first loss." Compare that to the Suns' line reading, "Suns remain unbeaten, hand Heat first loss." Thanks for the backhanded compliment Worldwide Leader. At least Yahoo! Sports got it right, "Nuggets off to best start in 24 years." Maybe I'm being too picky.

STIFF #4: STEVE NASH'S MINUTES
When has it EVER been considered a good idea to play a 35 year-old (36 yrs on February 7th) point guard 36.8 minutes per game? Nash is on pace to average a career-high in the minutes department. And while Nash has averaged 77 games played in five full seasons with the Suns, his chronic back issues could rear its ugly head out early at this rate.

STIFF #5: PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS
Sure starting the season off 2-3 is no big deal, but when head coach Nate McMillan begins openly questioning the teams' effort to the media ... look out.

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