A performance we can be proud of... (Game 5 recap)
by Andrew Feinstein on Apr 29, 2010 12:59 AM MDT
in Denver Nuggets: Game Recaps
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At long last, the Nuggets won a playoff elimination game. And in doing so, they may have found the blueprint for beating the Jazz in Game 6.
It sounds a little weird to say that you're "proud" of your favorite sports team. But I can't think of a better adjective to describe how I feel after watching the Nuggets gut out a Game 5 victory against the Jazz on Wednesday night.
First off, I'm proud of Carmelo Anthony for showing us - and, perhaps, himself - how a 26/11 game can be much more effective than a 39/11 game. Melo may not have shot well early, but he consistently took the ball hard to the rack and got to the free throw line eight times for 15 attempts. Additionally, most of Melo's rebounds were defensive, he turned the ball over just once and played pretty good defense against C.J. Miles and Wesley Matthews. I'd argue that his performance tonight was even better than his Game 1 outing.
I'm proud of Chauncey Billups for shaking off a streak of off nights and delivering a fine performance in the second half to give the Nuggets the shot-in-the-arm they desperately needed. Chauncey's defense may not have been affective on Deron Williams in the first half, but he stepped it up in the fourth quarter and was aggressive offensively without settling for the long ball.
I'm proud of Kenyon Martin for staying around the basket for put backs, passes off double teams and big rebounds.
I'm proud of Chris "Birdman" Andersen who - while still not looking right - kept fighting in the absence of Nene and made some huge defensive plays in the fourth quarter.
I'm proud of J.R. Smith for turning the ball over a mere one time, allowing the game to come to him, and nailing the three-pointers we count on him to make.
I'm proud of Ty Lawson for admirably anchoring the point guard position when Chauncey got into early foul trouble.
I'm proud of Aaron Afflalo for giving a solid performance on both ends. He never missed a shot!
I'm proud of Johan Petro for stepping into the void left by Nene, and in spite of some suspect shot attempts, never giving up and being a valuable contributor tonight.
I'm proud of Adrian Dantley and his coaching staff for finally putting a game plan together and sticking with it (more on that shortly).
And finally, I'm proud of this team's collective effort after days of uncertainty and useless drama that threatened to tear them apart. You could tell watching this game that much of the commotion was media-driven and didn't effect what was happening inside that Nuggets locker room.
Now comes the hard part - doing it again on Friday night. If we've learned anything in this series thus far, it's that the Jazz are at their weakest when the game is up-tempo and the possessions are fast and furious. Whether it's because the referees finally swallowed their whistles and let the Nuggets play, or it's because the game plan demanded speed, the Nuggets have finally figured out how to beat the Jazz: run them out of the damn building and attack the rim while doing so.
Clearly the more aggressive team on Wednesday night, the Nuggets attempted 42 free throws to 25 for the Jazz. And simply put, the Jazz can't win a game like this. They just don't have the horses for it. Hence why the Jazz thrive when the game is foul-heavy, slowed down and methodical. The Nuggets "random offense" that we all learned about this week just isn't effective in a traditional half court game. The trick now will be how the Nuggets replicate Game 5's pace into Game 6...but I'll let Nate ponder that for his preview on Friday.
In the meantime, I have a sore throat from yelling and screaming too much. I hope it wasn't the last time I'll be doing so inside the friendly confines of the Pepsi Center.
And I trust that head coach George Karl had a wide-eyed smile on his face watching this game. For the first time in several games, they finally played his style of basketball.
The View from the Not-So-Cheap-Seats...
...I sat about 10 rows up across the Nuggets bench in the first half, so I might have missed some things many of you saw on TV.
...we had yet another Jimmy Goldstein sighting, and I'm convinced the Nuggets have a winning record when the enigmatic super fan is in attendance. Last time I saw Jimmy, it was after the Nuggets Game 1 victory over the Jazz.
...before tipoff, MC Hammer's "2 Legit 2 Quit" blared on the sound system. The crowd ate it up.
...Melo didn't shake a single Jazz player's hand before tipoff. This was a great indication of how seriously he would be taking the game.
...in the first quarter, K-Mart's throw down of the Jazz's stiff center Kyrylo Fesenko was reminiscent of the "Thuggets" days. We need that mentality back in this series.
...and then K-Mart shot a long jump shot...something he should never, ever, ever (did I mention ever yet?) do again.
...in the first half, every time the Nuggets grabbed a defensive rebound the entire coaching staff jumped out of their seats and yelled "GO! GO! GO!" You could see there was an emphasis on pace tonight and it worked. Alas, a game plan!!
...Kyle Korver has turned into Sasha Vujacic. He can't hit a shot to save his life.
...during one of his stupid trivia routines (the answers are always given to the contestants ahead of time), Mark Randall's own last name was spelled wrong as "Randal" for one of the answers.
...when Nene went down with his knee sprain, I couldn't see what happened from my vantage point. Anyone?
...for the second half, I switched seats with a friend and got to sit right behind the Jazz bench. Amazing seats except I was surrounded by Jazz fans on all sides of me. They were loud and obnoxious, but were also super nice and good sports.
...seeing Wesley Matthews up close, it's remarkable how athletic and quick he is. He's faster than any Nugget not named Ty Lawson.
...Melo and Chauncey came alive in the third quarter and it was beautiful to see!
...watching Jerry Sloan work is a treat. He's usually calm and collected until something sets him off and then he erupts. But in every timeout, his players were remarkably attentive to his every word.
...I have a new appreciation for how the Jazz crash the offensive glass and was convinced that they were dominating the Nuggets on the boards. The box score, of course, indicated otherwise.
...Deron Williams doesn't sweat. No, really, he doesn't sweat.
...Melo's pass to Birdman for a missed slam was a great play. They clearly patched up whatever misunderstanding they had in Game 4.
...Birdman looked worse and worse physically as the game went on. He could barely walk in the fourth quarter.
...my favorite stat of the night: the fouls called were even (26 for Utah, 25 for Denver) but the Nuggets had 17 more free throw attempts. That's what smart, aggressive basketball does for you.
...the Jazz are like zombies. No matter how many times you think they're dead, they keep coming back. I have nothing but the utmost respect for this team.
Non-Stiff of the Night
-Carmelo Anthony: Melo did exactly what we've been asking of him for several games now - he took the ball to the rack continuously and aggressively...and finally got some calls! Hopefully now a lot of readers understand why four or five trips to the free throw line don't cut it, but eight or nine trips can sway a game for you.
Stiff of the Night
-Kyle Korver: Doing his best Sasha Vujacic impersonation, the normally sharp-shooting Korver went 0-for-6 in Game 5 after going 1-for-5 in Game 4.
FINAL THOUGHT
If Nene's sprained knee causes him to miss Game 6, the Nuggets aren't allowed to use this as an excuse. Lest we forget that Andrei Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur are still out for Utah.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images: Doug Pensinger
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Nene's injury didn't look good. Knee hyperextended on the replay.
I’m nervous about Nene. But not the Nuggets. I think if his injury is questionable that he should sit in game 6 just in case he could be ready for a game seven. I think what will hurt the most in his absence is his passing from the paint. He had 4 assists in limited minutes and hit some open three-point shooters.
But: the rest of the Nuggets stepped up tonight. Especially Kenyon Martin. Nice to see him produce on offense. I still think he should stop taking jump shots.
I think Billups on Williams doesn’t make a difference. Not to slag on CB1, but AAA is a great defender. D-Will is just that good. Billups hit some big shots tonight to compensate. It was nice to see JR hit some set shots. I haven’t checked the box score, but JR seemed to pass the ball well and be smart with his shooting.
Haven’t even mentioned Melo. But I don’t think I will: Andersen finally made an impact and so did Petro. All the more reason I think Denver has a small chance back at Utah. And…. If Denver wins game 6 — which I doubt, though not as much — I think Denver might surprise people. It would take a perfect game to win on the road.
Denver played as well as it has in months and Utah was still hanging in there most of the game. Pulling off game 6 in Utah is going to be tough. It could be an incredible game. And I am supposed to go dancing with my girlfriend. Oh man. I am so sneaking off to a television.
Member: 10-man rotation for deep playoff push advocacy group
Also: Congrats to the refs for being a nonfactor for a change
There were still some bad calls both ways, but the whistles never seemed to change the pace of the game. I wonder if Utah fans would think differently?
Member: 10-man rotation for deep playoff push advocacy group
Fly Agaric hit it on the nail
We won today because the refs decided to back off in the 2nd half. They still called some questionable flops calls that hurt us, and a bad no call on the kick by KMart, but it wasn’t as bad as before.
I hope that they keep that Hollinger article in their heads as that is what probably influenced them today.
I say if the refs of the 2nd half of tonight’s game show up in Utah (highly doubt it because they probably get part of a tithe from each fan before the game), then we have a strong chance to win.
View from the cheap-ass-cable
-In one of the Nug’s timeout, you can clearly see AD talking about the D and right in front of him is JR who was like looking for looking over everyone at the huddle clearly not paying attention. I guess JR is JR.
-Boxed out! Kmart was schooled by Boozer on one of his offensive rebounds. He was like out of the picture with one shove!
-Bird limped like he was shot in the leg. Heart baby!
more is less and less is more
with the exception of melo’s near 45 minutes played, the amount of time the rest of the players had was a major factor. billups played less than 29 and it showed in the 2nd half. guarding dwill by committee was a factor. there is no way to shut down a player like him. all 4 guards at some point during the game went at him. nuggets guards outscored the jazz guards 56 to 49 while denver had 1 more assist than utah. another positive was taking only 17 three point attempts while making 9. denver had 11 less field goal attempts while attempting 17 more free throws. overall the nuggets were under control and the coaches and players were all on the same page.
pick up a calf every day pretty soon you will be picking up a cow
There was a tension all-throughout the game
And it seemed like the crowd felt it, too. Lose, and the season’s over. I think this win, especially distancing themselves from the Jazz in the 4th, was a HUUUUUGE sigh of relief and return to form, both for the Nuggs & the Denver fans. I think this is a legitimate momentum gainer, but will it be enough to take back home-court in Salt Lake on Friday? Obviously we all have our doubts, but tonight was a nice injection of hope.
Nene’s injury, by the way, didn’t look good. Boozer’s heel hit Nene’s kneecap just as he was planting it, causing it to hyperextend. I hope his injury remains only a sprain, as I’m wincing as I type this out – just unnatural to watch those things.
Atmosphere
What was it like in Pepsi Center? From the TV it looked like the crowd was anxious/nervous all night.
Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out
by CSprings_Tommy on Apr 29, 2010 7:32 AM MDT up reply actions
I wanted to ask the same question
B/c the TNT studio commentators kept commenting on how Denver’s crowd was just not in the game, which made me wonder: how would you guys know? You’re off in a studio in NYC, LA, Chicago, elsewhere.
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 10:50 AM MDT up reply actions
They don't know shit
Kenney, $5 box, and the rest of Sterns buddies can [insert graphic comment here] Unitl the cows come home and then [insert even more graphic expletive here] Until PETA steps in.
I'M freaken i'm pumped,I've been drinking green tea all goddamn day!God I go to church every god damn sunday,your going yo bring the demons out of me...This is my hat now, this is totaly my hat !
by Joelsopinion on Apr 29, 2010 10:53 AM MDT up reply actions 1 recs
Compared with game 1 and 2 and most of last years playoffs
I thought it was pretty dead for most of the game. I was sitting with Melo’s Yellows, and even some of them didn’t seem that into it. At least until the 4th quarter, then it felt like a playoff game again. I don’t know if the crowd was nervous or just disappointed that we were down 3-1.
Crowd was nervous. But appropriately loud at the right times.
Member: 10-man rotation for deep playoff push advocacy group
Of course Utah fans will think differently
They’ve been brought up on cheating and for some reason. The refs totally tried to give this to the Jazz late in the 3rd. Didn’t work. Nugs persevered. It was awesome. Well done boys! It’s gonna be 5 on 8 for here on out.
While the Jazz have ALWAYS flopped. The Nuggets have always played with heart. ALWAYS have we.
Utah doesn’t know how good they have it and always have. It’s Doug Moe. The first stiff there is that makes the fan base and the team what it is. Jerry Sloan is a stiff.
Doug Moe taught heart. Sloan preaches cheating and then getting an advantage from said cheating — that the NBA officiating for some reason still falls for.
Sloans a great coach.
Lets show some respect. The refs were fine tonight. Hope it continues.
I don't think he preaches cheating
I do think his teams nudge the envelope each season i.e. how many hard fouls can collect w/o a whistle, or how many touch fouls can we “play up” for a whistle, but it’s within the rules apparently. He’s working loopholes in the NBA’s flaws. Not saying I agree with it, but I can’t call it cheating.
by Joelsopinion on Apr 29, 2010 8:31 AM MDT up reply actions
If the Jazz had not "cheated"
what would the free throw discrepancy have been? 62 to 5?
The game was called fairly. Maybe the Nuggets played well.
Editorial tip: Do a quick proofread of your post to avoid sounding like you are using a broken translator. This, for example, is senseless: “Utah doesn’t know how good they have it and always have. It’s Doug Moe. The first stiff there is that makes the fan base and the team what it is.” What are you saying, precisely?
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 9:12 AM MDT up reply actions
I know I am a JR fan
But why are you saying he is a poor man’s John Starks one day and then saying you are happy with his performance the next day.
The guy played hard today and made an effort to pass and be a playmaker. He actually followed up on his words and didn’t take ridiculous shots.
Sure maybe he doesn’t play like this in game 6, but it is a step forward. Again everyone wants him out of town but who are we getting for him that is better than him? Do you think just getting rid of him for nothing or some washed up vet like Rip Hamilton will make us better? Maybe, but I think he makes us that special team.
Whatever he is young, may never get “it”, probably won’t be a superstar, but we shouldn’t hold him to those expectations. I still feel he would be better than injury prone Rip Hamilton who is way past his prime.
Be happy that we have one of the best 6th men in the league.
Sometimes some people have different learning curves.Ginobili needed Pop to guide him, and he started at 26. JR is a polarizing figure and the media loves to hate him. I love to defend him because he has good intentions and needs to channel it in the right direction.
I just believe he is an appropriate player developmental coach from ascending to an all-star level.
A poor man's Starks.
That’s not fair to John Starks. A certified knucklehead, to be sure. But one who had to work for everything that he got, from bagging groceries, to the CBA, to the NBA finals. JR? Not so much. Aside from a few high school all-star games.
Sorry JR15, not trying to pick a fights, just espouse a contrary take, but, frankly, I do think even “getting nothing” for JR makes us better. And I disagree that tonight’s game didn’t feature its share of ridiculous JR shots. As soon as he hit his first three I thought “Oh, shit. Now he’s really gonna start jacking ’em.” And yep. He frequently went to his sugar-city dribbling routine, followed by a dumb fade away jack up. I swear, hitting 1 three sends JR into “heat check” mode. And lets not get into his dunk contest dunk. (I was hoping Sloan would immediately send of his brutes into the game to get JR after that one).
Where I like JR, and we saw flashes of it tonight is (as Karl has said), when he catches and shoots in rhytym, And also when he’s involved in a pick and roll in which he passes, and thus doesn’t subject the team to his dubious display of handles. I was refreshed to see bits n pieces of that tonight. But, a big part of the Nuggets problem with ‘Mental Lapses’ and ‘Lack of emotional maturity’ could be dealt with swiftly by expediting JR’s destiny (jacking 30 footers for the Warriors).
As I wrote that post I remembered
It doesn’t matter what I say, there are going to be JR haters and lovers. It all comes down to what the GM wants to do.
So I end this CaddyJack by saying I agree to disagree and lets just see what the FO does with Smith later on. Man with Nene possibly gone we can kiss our hopes of beating the Lakers goodbye.
JR is a love/hate relationship
Before the All Star break I was pretty much on board for the trade JR wagon, but he has played really well the last part of the year. I think his shot selection problem is entirely overblown personally. Does he take terrible shots? Absolutely, but you know who else does? Melo, Kobe and Lebron for sure all take terrible shots with some frequency. JR just gets blamed cuz he’s a knucklehead and has attitude problems at times. The one thing I have learned about JR that makes me reluctant to want to trade him at this point in time is that he’s one of the most unique, talented players in this league. Nobody gets as hot as he does as frequently as he does and that is an attribute that is extremely rare in this league. In my eyes he won game one. If it weren’t for him we might have already been out of this thing.
"Jive turkey is a little over the line my man!"
"I'm kinda grumpy today, dude. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I was having those dreams again. Ya know, how it's just me in a castle and I gotta fight, like, a thousand wizards and the only way to beat them is to punch them as hard as I can in their faces. Then, when I'm done, all their little wizard wives came out and wanted me to have sex with them - which is kinda weird."
by GoldenNugget on Apr 29, 2010 3:10 AM MDT up reply actions
I still think we should convince David Kahn to trade Kevin Love and Ryan Hollins for JR and a secodnrounder
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:50 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
That is a laughably shit deal for Minnesota
LOL
twitter.com/skitalicious
Quitter's People United Member #13
by runningdonut on Apr 29, 2010 11:55 PM MDT up reply actions
Not to mention Billups.
At least when JR jacks up crap ten seconds have run off the shotclock…
Quitter's People United Member #396
Because Montana has no professional sports, I gotta support the land of my birth.
Socrates was once executed for 'trolling'.
^Needs explaining: don't call someone asking uncomfortable, slightly antagonistic questions *for the purpose of learning* trolls. It's real easy to differentiate a 'Socratic' post from a trolling one.
smith's 2 problems
he is impulsive and inconsistent. both negatives can be overcome. coach tim grgurich is one of the best in the business at developing talent. every summer he holds a camp for point guards that smith has attended for several years. smith is his own worst enemy. during the 4th quarter of the 3rd game in this series he took his shoes off. do not get me started about him leaving the court during a game earlier this season. a good example for smith is wes mathews of utah. he was not drafted out of marquette university. he is a rookie and starts for the jazz in the playoffs. if smith ever wound up playing for jerry sloan in utah they could sell out their arena JUST FOR PRACTICE.
pick up a calf every day pretty soon you will be picking up a cow
JR is the R.... and A-N-D-O-M of
the Nugget’s “random basketball”
How about you replace the r in random with an f?
Fandom basketball!!!!!!!
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:49 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
+1
But you STOLE my JR sig.
The Stiffs Republic of Quitters!!!!!!
Quitter #96
by The U.N. Fab Five on Apr 29, 2010 7:25 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
View from atdhe.net
… Nene’s knee aint good. It’s hyper-extended and it looks BAD…
… Ty Lawson injected some energy to the Nuggets with his speed.
… I was shaking my head after Billups tried to draw a foul on the jumpshot that didn’t even hit the rim. On the other end Williams scooted in for 2 with Billups still bitching with the ref.
… K-Mart scored a quiet 18 points but his presence was definitely felt.
… Billups came alive with 12 points to start the second half.. SWEET!
… When JR is not taking dumb shots it helps alot.
… Dantley finally emphasizes DEFENCE.
… Birdman’s hair looks boring nowadays.
then I am not sure if I can thursty you for your spelling of "defense"
but let it be know that I’m watching!
Tangential tech question
for you NuggsFan15. I have to use atdhe.net as well to stream a lot of these games, as I am too cheap for cable. First of all, streaming games from atdhe.net causes frequent Firefox crashes. You get those? Secondly, I get this weird problem: Usually, after streaming some video from atdhe.net in my browser, any websites I visit fail to finish loading. The website will begin to load, but will then get hung up as it tries to load interactive advertisement content. It spins its wheels while trying to finish loading, and never get better until I unplug my router and reset my network. Irritating!
Do you have any issues like this with atdhe.net? Or know of another place to stream games?
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 9:23 AM MDT up reply actions
Good to know
Except that I will die before using IE, for other reasons. Thanks for the reply!
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 10:49 AM MDT up reply actions
I do get pop up ads for adult sites sometimes...
… which may or may not be a problem for you. ;)
QPU # 2.
no problems
i watch on atdhe.net or justin.tv. i sometimes have trouble getting connected, but after i get through, no problems at all. i use firefox on a mac, fyi.
Thanks for the info everybody
I will take it up with my service provider.
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 12:01 PM MDT up reply actions
p2p4u.net is the best
they have good HD links.
Yeah, they attacked us without Nene's presence
But I really believe Petro stepped up and has been all season when called upon. He may look clumsy a little. (Jesus, I ain’t no NBA player). But the dude has heart. Petro will fall into Nene’s role, should he be hurt as bad as he sounds to be. You can see in his eyes, all he wants to do is fill this team’s gaps.
Oh, and THIS on ESPN...
@johnhollinger Uh-oh RT @nuggetsnews Source familiar with the situation said the team is extremely fearful that Nene tore his left ACL
Poor guy
Sucks, but I feel more bad for him than anybody. He’s had to deal with some nasty stuff in his time.
"Jive turkey is a little over the line my man!"
"I'm kinda grumpy today, dude. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I was having those dreams again. Ya know, how it's just me in a castle and I gotta fight, like, a thousand wizards and the only way to beat them is to punch them as hard as I can in their faces. Then, when I'm done, all their little wizard wives came out and wanted me to have sex with them - which is kinda weird."
by GoldenNugget on Apr 29, 2010 3:11 AM MDT up reply actions
it because they are ESPN and they turn out Kobe-ass-kissing crap every day, like how Kobe is a “saavy old dog” and how he’s one of the most unselfish layers this postseason. Then, they gushed over on Kobe 3.5 apg average and helped cover up the rape that he had last night becuase he thinks he’s above the f•••ing lae
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:46 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
Whoops. I meant “law” at the end, and I spelled wrong “because”.
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:47 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
Loved the ball movement tonight
and VERY happy to see the pick and roll brought back to the offense. The pick and roll needs to be our first option in the half court until Utah proves they can stop it. So far, they havent. Heavy dose of pick and roll from here on out.
I also am proud of this team. Alot
What can I say. I loves me some Nuggets
"Groovy" Ash from Evil Dead 2
"No one came from miles around / and said man your music is really hot" No One Came...Deep Purple
Finally
Tonight was really all I wanted. Just one game to show that we at least have some pride left in us. The thing is now, our confidence has sky rocketed and if we can manage to pull out a win in Utah there’s no reason why we shouldn’t win this thing. I think it’s going to be sad if we lose and the players then realize how much better of a team we are than the Jazz instead of doing it now and using that as motivation to beat them a couple more times. Can’t wait till Friday. This next one is going to tell a hell of a lot about the character of this team.
"Jive turkey is a little over the line my man!"
"I'm kinda grumpy today, dude. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I was having those dreams again. Ya know, how it's just me in a castle and I gotta fight, like, a thousand wizards and the only way to beat them is to punch them as hard as I can in their faces. Then, when I'm done, all their little wizard wives came out and wanted me to have sex with them - which is kinda weird."
+1
Confidence is huge. After getting worked 3 games straight, the Nuggets showed a lot of heart last night.
Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out
by CSprings_Tommy on Apr 29, 2010 7:36 AM MDT up reply actions
Still Alive
We can play better. The difference in this game was not allowing the breakdowns and Utah runs to spiral out of control. It’s going to be a million times more difficult in Utah. Third quarter play is where we have suffered. The way Melo and Chauncey came out in the second half set the tone for the 4th quarter run. I believe we have a good game ready to come out in Utah with the right balance of Petro and Joey Graham filling in.So bummed for Nene, but we don’t know anything yet. Praying it’s not another torn ACL
twitter.com/skitalicious
Quitter's People United Member #13
NUGGETS STRATEGERY
I like the Nuggets Mojo last night and actually think they might play better without Nene for a short while. They would definitely miss him if they can survive until the next round. My gut thinks he is done for the playoffs.
As for the Nuggets I wanted to chuck out a strategy to see what you all think of this…
What about letting Deron Williams beat you. Playing Neck Manchu (williams) straight up with the idea of doubling Boozer intermittently might pay dividends. Sag off him a bit and see what happens… He cannot possibly play better than he has and at least then you control the matchups better. The pick and role may still pose problems but if you regroup out of it to control Boozer and the rest of the Jazz while giving up 45 to Deron I thinks its worth a shot.
Any way it might be terrible but I just think the Jazz are not that talented beyond Nojaw Flopsalot Williams
Also why not put a hard foul on Deron early to make him think twice about his usual B.S. shoulder lean… create the contact… draw a foul wizardry.
Jamie
williams straight up + doubling boozer =
williams will find somebody else. paul milsap would be my pick for the player that would step up. agree with giving williams something to flop about. i would like to see graham run him over and set a blind side pick in the back court on offense. i would like to see joey guard him a few times on the defensive end too.
pick up a calf every day pretty soon you will be picking up a cow
i agree about graham
i think we just need to constantly send different people at him. billups, lawson, afflalo, graham, jr even. don’t let him get comfortable, make him fight against a different person constantly. and foul him HARD when he tries to get to the rim on transition
Hear, hear
I really want to see a hard foul to check Deron’s ego. I still think he’s a baller, but had much more respect for him before this series. With all the flopping and then his open pronouncement before last game that he’s the best PG in the league (maybe so, but let your game speak for itself), I have a hard time liking him.
FLOPPING = DISRESPECTING THE GAME
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 12:13 PM MDT up reply actions
+1
Flopping is only encouraged by those that disrespect the game too!
utah fan here
honestly, i don’t like the comments either(even if i agree with them), but i don’t think you guys can complain. don’t tell me carmelo has never done anything like this before, cause he has. he’s been disrespecting matthews and miles this whole series
dude
you’re getting into a hornet’s nest here. I wish you the best.
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 3:12 PM MDT up reply actions
I don't remember Melo ever explicitly saying he 'is the best SF in the league'
If you know otherwise, please enlighten me. Again, not gonna take away from DWill’s game; I like him for a couple seasons now and couldn’t believe how underrated he was (I’m guessing b/c of hte small market team).
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 3:29 PM MDT up reply actions
he may not have said he's the best SF,
but he is one cocky dude. don’t tell me he’s never built himself up to the media.
i’m not taking away from his game. he’s a great player, no doubt about it, but don’t bash on williams without looking at melo too. just saying
you serious?
don’t tell me melo never flops. in this series, i’ve seen him flop at least 3 times. when he’s backing matthews or miles down, and they put a forearm on his back, he’ll act like they’re totally pushing him over, then look at the refs like “Wtf? give me the call!!! i’m a superstar!!”
again, not taking away from his game. he’s a great player, one of the best scorers in the game. just don’t act like he’s picked on. he is most definately not.
He never said he was the best SF in the league
But he did say this about being the best SF in the West
“I’m the only one out here in the West,” Anthony said Tuesday. “Can you name one better?”
Quitter's People United: Member 12
Maybe the foul thing I can agree.
Maybe if he gets some contact and send him crashing to the floor, followed by a K-Mart patented MF stare. Maybe he’d go home and cry to his momma.
Who does Boozer think he is? A Ninja?!
Great game from the Nuggets, but did anyone else notice that every time Boozer jumps he kicks his legs out as hard as he can, as if he were trying to kick someone? From what I could tell on my crappy internet feed, it looks like that is what happened to Nene. I have no doubt that he does it on purpose to clear out space, but I am surprised it doesn’t get called as a foul more often (and I bet he would just say that is how he jumps). It kind of reminds me of a few years back when Kobe kept elbowing people on his jump shots, and he claimed it was just the way he shot the ball. Didn’t stop the NBA from suspending him. I don’t know that Boozer should be suspended, but he definitely should get foul calls.
Boozer thinks he’s his fellow Alaskan, Sarah Palin
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:41 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
but some reports say it might be a torn ACL...
which is horrible, b/c when i ever i see nene land or fall on the floor i pray he doesnt fuck up his knee
If it is a torn ACL, then Nene will be gone for training camp too (next season’s). I’m hoping that he just strained it, as he didn’t have to be carted off. That means that either the injury isn’t a torn ligament/ fractured kneecap, or that Nene is tough as hell.
Whatever the case, he’s probably out for this season. Should we start Petro, or should we go smallball, put Kenyon at C, Melo/Graham at PF, Smith/Melo at SF, and the guard positions like usual.
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:37 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
Nice lineup
Graham would matchup with Boozer to give him a different look and a rougher defender. I’m thinking though, Who’s gonna rebound?
Coming this evening...
- Proof That Andrew Stands Out in a Crowd.
Before the game Andrew and I chatted about what was to come. I felt that the first 5 minutes of the game would set the tone. I believe there was 7:05 left in the 1st when the first 3 landed. A glance back and Andrew was smiling…
Got to meet Jim Goldstein after the game. Very interesting NBA Super-Fan. Nice guy. Easy to talk to.
Steal one in Utah… come home and be a part of NBA history… that’s the plan.
Thanks!
Vicki's Husband
(Russ)
We need JR to have a hot hand and we need Dantley to not suck to win Game 6
For Game 7, we need JR not to take too many shots just because he had a hot hand the day before, and we’ll need AAA to make a good deal of 3s. I guess we’ll need Lawson both of those games too…
"Left hand, right hand, it doesn't matter. I'm amphibious." - Charles Shackleford
"He’s a stiff." - The Legendary Doug Moe
"We have a great bunch of outside shooters. Unfortunately, all our games are played indoors." - Weldon Drew
"I really didn't want it, but now that I've won it, it's nice. It's an honor. It's nice to know people don't think you're a total idiot. ... It must have been a poor year for coaches." - Doug Moe...talking about winning 1987-88 Coach of the Year award.
"Keep your head up and don't let anything get to you." - Dante Bichette Jr.
by LACK on Apr 29, 2010 6:40 AM MDT via mobile up reply actions
Hey LACK's back
Where’ve you been?
Quitter's People United: Member 12
by Uh on Apr 29, 2010 5:43 PM MDT up reply actions
That's awesome you met Jim Goldstein
Despite the eccentric appearance, I’ve always had the feeling he was a nice guy. Would love to meet him.
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 12:18 PM MDT up reply actions
we could go all Mighty Ducks 2
and wait until half time and whip out some rainbow jerseys.
Tough, Gritty, leave it all on the floor performance
To me, enough can not be said about Birdman’s impact tonight. Down Nene, and noticeably limping Birdman guttedit out and put up 10 pts 7 reb and 3 blks while playing tight D. My favorite moment of the game was a time when Millsap had it down low against bird, pivoted, pumped and bird stayed down, then went up to challenge Millsaps shot, he didn’t block it but he made it difficult and Millsap missed from about two feet away, it was a thing of beauty. Nene’s knee did not look good, if it is torn its a huge blow. Not only will we be forced to a rotation of an injured K-mart, an injured Bird, Petro and Graham, but it derails any chance of a Nene/JR for Bosh deal this offseason, which is disappointing if you are on that bandwagon. The bottom line is Denver is still facing elimination, and now they are on the road, it will be a tough battle but give the Nuggets credit for not folding.
Why live life on the edge, when you can jump off?
It almost seemed as if Bird benefitted from the injury
because he was too injured and exhausted to fall for a head fake, and instead played straight up D.
Yes!
Not enough can be said about the game Bird played last night! He was obviously in pain but played a hell of a game. Best game in a while from Birdman and I loved it.
by GottaLoveMelo on Apr 29, 2010 8:11 AM MDT up reply actions
Team Effort
Was a great performance by everyone on the team. 6 guys in double figures. Held the Jazz to under 30 points every quarter.
Need the TEAM to continue trusting each other and playing together. Looking forward to Friday.
Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out
The Next Game is Friday Night
But I see the Fakers are on Espn on friday night at the same time. does anyone know what channel my precious nugz are on? (please do not respond with Altitude if they are on there, I’m not in Colorado!)
Damn
I saw the injury to Nene..im was hoping he would return. Im not hoping hes alright cuz i want yall to win or lose..but because these guy play all year to get to the playoff and hate to see a player get hurt when it all counts.
Get well Nene
by Kobe Won Kenobi on Apr 29, 2010 8:44 AM MDT via mobile reply actions
Hope Bird left enough in the tank for tomorrow
Sure hope Nene didn’t tear anything wither.
What Would Brian Boitano Do?
He'd quit and eat a Twinkie with Charles Barkley
Quitter's Proud United Member #11
Qwest Trivia
I did the Qwest trivia at one game this season and I was not supplied with the answer! I also know a few other people that have participated in that promo and none of them were supplied the answer. Not sure of your source, but it isn’t accurate for everyone.
Not much to say, except........
I still dont understand the foul shot “issue” Andrew has w/ Melo. In the games we lost he got no love from the refs, hence the small number of foul shots. In the games we won, the refs largely backed off, let em play, didn’t call BS all nite, & didnt upset the game’s rhythm- thereby accounting for more foul shots.
How is that an issue he can control? If the games’ called like garbage he gets less f-shots, & more fouls called on him. When they back off, like last nite, he’s likely to have a “better” game. Am I missing something here?
+ a trillion
I just don’t see much change in his game from when he has a bunch of foul shots to few. I think it’s the refs.
I understand what you're saying
I understand Andrew’s point to be that Melo needs to take it to the hole more often if he’s going to get any calls, rather than settle for lower % jumpers that are also less likely to draw the contact (i.e., less And1’s, less foul trouble for opponents). Do I understand this incorrectly?
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 12:30 PM MDT up reply actions
Nene may have a torn ACL:
The Nuggets sure hope they’re wrong, but a source familiar with the situation said the team is extremely fearful that Nene tore his left ACL in Wednesday’s Game 5. Nene was attended to by team trainers and doctors after his second-quarter fall, and today he will undergo the revealing MRI. The team listed the injury as a left knee sprain.
In the first game of 2005, the big man tore his other ACL on his right knee and missed the other 81 games of that season. In his career, which began in 2002, Nene has also battled testicular cancer, torn a ligament in his left thumb and missed time due to an assortment of other injuries.
In the first four games of this series against Utah, Nene had averaged 13.8 points and 7.0 rebounds.
Game 6 of the series, which Utah leads 3-2, is Friday in Salt Lake City.
Swats.
Like Melo said after the game, when asked how he kept getting to the line...
“They were calling it” He said he hasnt changed his game or level of aggression and I believe him…they were just calling it tonight!
Its funny to me that when Melo has a bad shooting night but everybody else steps up he gets praise because we won. Everybody else played great and this was a great win. When melo is the only person doing shit for 3 straight games (sans the 9 TOs) he needs to do more or he is shooting too much or he is selfish even tho chauncey and JR have been shooting like shit and Nene has been nonexistent.
Game 1 Melo scored 42 and we won. If JR didnt step up and score 18 points in the 4th that game then we could have lost that game. Since we won…we didnt hear any Melo is this or that talk. We were happy with a win. If JR doesnt score those 18…would melo have gotten criticized. If in game 2 we won and CB went 3/7 or 4/7 from 3 instead of 2/7 or if JR went 3/6 from 3 instead of 1/6….would Carmelo get the criticism hes been getting from the stiffs here? Granted in Game 2 he had his worse shooting game of the series I’m gonna go with the kevin durant argument again. Dude is shooting like 38 percent that series but since westbrook and others have been ballin…nobody is talkin shit about durant! Just funny as far as I’m concerned.
Ding ding ding!
My point exactly. Andrew’s logic on this situation is kinda skewed. See my post above.
oh...dont know how I missed that before.
I woulda just commented on yours!
by GottaLoveMelo on Apr 29, 2010 10:09 AM MDT up reply actions
great game
lost my voice.
got home jsut in time for melo’s post game interview. it was classic how he called johan “frenchi” to the media.
let's go nuggets!
also
i hope AD pulls chauncey earlier in game 6 regardless of foul trouble. ty is more than capable of running the team for extended periods and arguably runs the team better. i felt like utah would pull away at the end of the 1st quarters, gain momentum and never look back in games 3/4. they werent able to do that last night, not sure if it was due to chauncey or not. it also saves chauncey’s legs for the 2nd half.
we still need to do a better job of closing out quarters. i missed it a little bc i was reaching for my beer at the time so im not sure exactly what happend. we got the ball with 8 seconds left in the first half so i thought we would hold for the last shot. i looked down to grab my beer and the next thing i know we turned the ball over? it looked like cb1 tried to force a pass to melo on the break? we ended up turning the ball over and deron flopper got 2 free throws to end the half. again i missed the play, but if thats what happened, we should have settled for the last shot.
we need to do this as a team. that does not only mean passing the ball but with the exception of melo playin 40+ minutes, everyone else should get some time. i thought petro should have been playin the entire series, and now it looks like he’ll be forced to play. we should extend the bench more next game and play graham some. petro showed he could hold his own, im sure graham can as well.
let's go nuggets!
JR the court jester
By Mark Kiszla The Denver Post
Now here is one small, revealing scene that tells you that Denver might be as sweet as a Twinkie, but also full of fluff at its core.
It was halftime of Game 3 in Utah, with the Jazz on the way to a 2-1 lead in the series. J.R. Smith emerged from the visitors’ locker room and began warming up his shooting arm, as players have done since the NBA’s infancy.
But here’s what was odd: Smith decided he would practice bouncing the ball in the basket. Not just once or twice. In a stunt indicating he might have a promising future as a team mascot dressed in a goofy, furry suit, Smith pounded the ball off the floor toward the rim at least a dozen times.
On the Utah bench, veteran coach Jerry Sloan and his Jazz assistants could barely suppress laughter as Smith made a joke of the warm-ups. This childish display did not go unnoticed by a Nuggets official, and it made him fume with anger.
Quitter's People United Member #5280
Very revealing.
Reminds me of Nate Robinson w/ the NY Knicks. For 4 years they waited for him to show maturity, get serious, & start respecting the game. They finally gave up & shipped him to Boston. All the talent in the world but a stone cold knucklehead. To this day, Nate has no idea what he did wrong or why they traded him. sigh
consistency
and brains are just things no team will ever get from jr. altho for some reason he is my favorite player on the nuggets (i have no clue why), i understand jr is jr.
i remember game 1 at halftime, jr really struggled in the 1st half. he was the first person out of the locker room and must have shot at least 20 3-pointers before anyone else came out of the locker room. he was working hard to find it and thankfully his 3s started to fall and helped us seal game 1. dont know why he decided to go all and1 streetballers on the team during game 3’s halftime warmups. we’ll never know why jr does a lot of things, im not sure he knows either.
while the season is not over, id only be willing to trade jr for a legit value big man, like kevin love. other than that, keep him.
let's go nuggets!
this isn't the best time for me to take issue with Kiszla
but he has proven time and again that he has beef with JR. The words that he has used to describe him in the past are downright racist and unnecessary since we should be talking about BASKETBALL. Thus, while he might have a point here, due to his other articles in the past, I don’t believe a word he says.. He clearly targets JR as if he has something personal with the guy.
haha
no doubt jr does a lot of stupid things (understatement) but this dude always hates on jr every chance he gets.
let's go nuggets!
by 808inDenver on Apr 29, 2010 10:36 AM MDT up reply actions
Kiszla makes him sound like Rainman
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 12:35 PM MDT up reply actions
In which case
I hope the ‘make it rain’ JR shows up for gm 6 in Utah. We know we can win a gm 7 at home, but we’re gonna need a shot in the arm to get this game in SLC.
GO NUGGETS!!!
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 1:20 PM MDT up reply actions
2 things.
1. Nene was STILL tied with Billups for a team high 4 assists in 14 minunts. crazy.
2. At the end of the game when all the starters came out of the game…why was Melo still in?
Finish it
Rule number one of a dog fight: Don’t stop kicking until he stops moving. That’s how you finish someone off. This is professional sports, AKA a competition, and you don’t stop competing. Some people call it running up the score, I call it finishing the job. Fuck the mercy rule, finish him.
I'M freaken i'm pumped,I've been drinking green tea all goddamn day!God I go to church every god damn sunday,your going yo bring the demons out of me...This is my hat now, this is totaly my hat !
by Joelsopinion on Apr 29, 2010 10:48 AM MDT up reply actions
good game
Props to AD for showing a pulse. He was off the bench a lot.
Good job to kmart who I know is in more pain than that pussy turdman.
Nene I’m sorry about your knee. It will make it harder to trade you.
Melo and CB awesome job. Same to petro Ty and AAA and Jr
by MMGraves on Apr 29, 2010 10:32 AM MDT via mobile reply actions
Nene may have torn his ACL.
Shit.
Quitter's People United Member #69
by the real stranger on Apr 29, 2010 10:34 AM MDT reply actions
Great post Andrew
Melo was the man tonight. No question his best performance of the post season. His extremely efficient shooting in game 1 is the only reason they didn’t lose that one too. Him passing the ball and attacking the basket is the recipe for Nuggets Ws. Funny how he comes out with his lowest scoring night and the Nugs have their best win isn’t it? Funny how everyone thought his supporting cast was shit isn’t it? LOL. When Melo passes the ball he is one of the most dominant players in the NBA. He is right there with Kobe, LeBron, DWade, and Howard as a top 5 player in the NBA. If he goes back to Meelo ball in game 6 the Nugs will lose. If he takes 15 to 19 shots and keeps hustling his ass off the Nugs will get to game 7 in Denver where he will do the same and the Nugs will meet LA in round 2.
Seriously,dude....
You’re like a broken record w/ this “Meelo ball” garbage. It seems like a rather juvenile attempt to take potshots at Melo, w/out once acknowledging the role his teammates and/or the officials have played in this series.
Is it just a coincidence to you that JR, CB, & the bench, ALL had better games last nite- or that he got much more love from the refs? You’re giving too much credIt- while assigning too much blame.
Your single-minded, yet misguided adherence to a FLAWED logic; aka- “Meelo ball”, is a little disturbing.
Melo has been consistent this entire series- something we couldn’t give him credit for in the past.
Stop being an Azzhole……AND a hater. It’s tired.
What are you talking about?
I praised Melo’s play and didn’t dog it. Start watching some games and you may see what I am talking about. The whole series and this whole season has depended on what style of ball Melo played. In the games where he took over the Nugs lost. In the games where he passed the ball and got his teammates involved the Nugs won. Simple as that Kint.
Kobe used to have the same exact problem and he has figured it out
Melo is figuring it out as I write this. If he keeps getting his team involved he is going to win championships and not just scoring titles. He will go down as one of the best to ever play the game.
Its NOT all on him!
Thats just silly.
Im watching the replay right now- & no question JR especially, played so much better. Why does the whole world say the same thing, yet you’re fixated on only ONE thing? The difference in the 2 W’s was JR’s timely 3’s late in the game.
Whats the mystery?
While I am not in lockstep with Gasus
I find his posts insightful, though more harsh on Melo than I would like.
Still, your obsession with him is more than a little weird. Gasus is all right. Melo is an awesome player and Gasus holds him to a higher standard than the rest of us, even me. It’s allowed.
Member: 10-man rotation for deep playoff push advocacy group
Oh, puhleeze-
Give me a break, dude.
Just as it was FAIR to criticize Melo when he deserved it, its just as UNFAIR to do so when he doesn’t.
I was one of his biggest critics & would definitely call him out when it’s warranted. BUT to focus only on Melo, while consistently & repeatedly minimizing the officiating & the role of his teammates, frankly thats just dumb.
Are most Nugget fans, the media, & bball commentators “obsessed” because they agree w/ that POV?
Or is it folks like Gasus who refuse to see the forest for the trees?
Fail……try again!
The team always plays better when Melo gets them involved
He didn’t do it in 2 through 4 and he did it in 5. My gut says he’s gonna do it again in game 6 and the Nugs will win. You are silly if you don’t think the success of this team revolves around Carmelo Anthony.
It's hard to tell if you love Melo or hate him.
Something tells me if Melo had 50pts, 20 rebounds and 8000 assists you would still be checking the Laker game for Kobe stats to see how Melo stacks up against your hero.
-1
Stats don’t mean nearly as much as most people think in basketball. The NBA has marketed stats very well and a lot of players fall into that trap. Basketball is a great canidate for using the hockey assist I think as it would gives players like Melo way more assists on his nights when he is sharing the ball.
Love Melo by the way and I am a serious fan of the game. I know what it takes for the Nugs to win and I love talking with people about it that don’t understand.
"Stats don’t mean nearly as much as most people think"
…but here’s another stat we should collect.
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 1:41 PM MDT up reply actions
Just trying to make stats mean more
If you can’t understand my logic there then go hang out in Utah.
Chill out
was just makin’ fun of you’re wording.
I personally am fond of some of the newer advanced metrics, such as adjusted +/-, which attempt to quantify the intangible (i.e., non-box-score) factors that affect a team’s performance. These new metrics are less reductionist, and actually highlight many failures of the box score as a representation of a player’s performance. So I understand your logic.
Jesus, I can’t say anything here without being told to go back to Utah. Is this really how you end every conversation with people outside of your approved circle? I guess I don’t mind the cheap insult, but at least put a little thought into it. You guys are like the JR Smiths of insulters, mindlessly lobbing stupid long range shots, instead of going for the obvious easy score. Like try telling me to please wipe the blood spot off your lap, or ask me explain how I can be my own cousin. You can do better, I’ve read some of your comments, so I know you’re smart.
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 1:57 PM MDT up reply actions
I meant of "your" wording
poor form to make fun of wording with worse wording. I have issued myself 1 demerit.
by Bouncy Phillips on Apr 29, 2010 1:58 PM MDT up reply actions
If JR and Chauncey are cold
Should Melo not try to make up the difference? Who else are you going to get to fill the productivity void? And why is the JR sMEth style of play acceptable over MElo ball? Seems like a double standard to me, unless it’s just that you’re holding Melo to a higher standard, b/c I get that.
by Artimus Mangilord on Apr 29, 2010 12:40 PM MDT up reply actions
Sure am holding him to a higher standard because how he plays determines if the Nugs win
Melo has to trust his supporting cast because he has a great one. The game of basketball is all about team my man. Melo doesn’t need to defer to anyone, he just needs to share with his team and the Nugs will win. He passes the ball and avoids posting up all game at the top corner of the key and the Nugs move without the ball. When he is facilitating the offense (not deferring to anyone) the Nugs are definitely a top 3 team in the league. When he is trying to take over the game (I’ll use that instead of Meelo ball because so many people get the wrong idea about what I am saying) the Nugs lose way more often than not. Melo is so dominant on offense (ie Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade) that him just touching the ball then passing it to someone else fucks up the opposing teams defense so bad that the Nugs almost always come away with a layup or open 3.
there has not been a single criticism of melo that mike jordan was
accuses of the same thing. if it was good enough for jordan it is good enough for melo. no matter what you may think of jordan’s hall of fame speech the negative things said about him was his motivation to greatness. carmello anthony is no mike jordan. nothing wrong with that either.
pick up a calf every day pretty soon you will be picking up a cow
Melo could go down as one of the all time greats though
If he keeps getting his teammates involved like he did in game 5. He may have to give up on the chase for the scoring title every year to enhance his greatness but as the knowledgeable fan knows, scoring titles don’t very often translate to wins for the team of the title holder.
For the love of God
If Billus and Smith are cold, get Ty Lawson off of the bench. Lawson finished 17th in PER despite playing most of his minutes with the second unit. Get the guy 25 minutes in a game if you have to, but don’t let Chauncey and JR shoot us out of a game.
I love A.D. as interim coach, but he needs to stop being such a pussy with his bench. Lawson has been unstoppable in his 15 minutes a game and Billups has struggled for about 25 games in a row now. You have horses – use them.
well saw this coming
he only took 7 less shots than in game 4, and since he had 5 or 6 more offensive rebounds that about covers those shots. The difference is that the other people on the team were making shots, and oh thats right at times cutting to the rim. Maybe he scored 39 points last game because no one else could seem to put the ball in the basket for some reason. AAA didnt miss a shot, JR hit some, Chauncy shot better, KMART shot great (when the shots werent 20 ft let me give the jazz the ball shots). Everyone played better. So callin it on Melo is just silly. Did he turn the ball over too much in game 4, sure, but maybe he was trying to hard, cause he saw no one else willing to do it. Lets keep up the cutting to the rim, and spotting up for 3, and playing D here and there, and we will be fine.
QPU member # 3.14 or 6x10tothe23rd
Melo will pass the ball
But if no one is knocking down open shots what’s he gotta do? Take over and keep his team in the game.
by wangstu13 on Apr 29, 2010 3:26 PM MDT via mobile up reply actions
My experience last night
I had courtside seats but I had a sudden meeting that cropped up in late afternoon. I was quite important and was able to close the deal….however this meant I missed the first 3 quarters of the game. My friend was already aware I was going to miss the first half and he met me on the concourse. We were about to go to our seats when we bumped into other people we knew and ended up watching the game from the entrance way to the court. Great 4th but I was supposed to meet up with Andrew and I just couldn’t do to everything that was going on around me. Next time Andy!
My friend has access to the Nuggets. So he and I were able to drift down to the locker room area and wait for players to walk by. Funny……I honestly don’t think of how short I am until I’m standing next to basketball players. Anyway…..they all drifted out with smiles and spoke briefly to Chauncey. He was very polite and quite frankly all the players looked relieved yet EXTREMELY focused….I asked about Nene…while he didn’t know, Chauncey’s face said it all. Don’t expect Nene back for the playoffs. Melo was first at the podium so I didn’t get to see him. Frenchie walked out with a HUGE smile on his face (from everything I’ve seen he’s a VERY nice man)
All in all a great effort. I watched the Altitude rebroadcast when I got home and saw Nene’s injury (didn’t catch it because I was wrapping up my meeting). While it sucks he’s out….let’s all face one thing. All 6 games this series, win or lose, Nene has been a non factor. Losing him just for the series won’t be as big an impact as we think. Once we advance (and we will) it will hurt us.
Looking at the players I saw something I hadn’t seen all year. Confidence and focus. It’s like they created their own “us against the world” scenario and that stuff works for them. That is why I think they will win in Utah and bring it back to Denver. I went over to SLC Dunk and they are very confident (with good reason) but I think, deep down, they know when the Nuggets play like they did last night in the next two games….the Nuggets will win the series.
"Groovy" Ash from Evil Dead 2
"No one came from miles around / and said man your music is really hot" No One Came...Deep Purple
man I hope you're right
I don’t share your confidence, but rising, phoenix-like, from what looked to be a classic nuggets first-round meltdown would be incredible.
by Rainbow skyline on Apr 29, 2010 11:16 AM MDT up reply actions
As much as this team frustrates us
we have to remember that this is not the same AI led team from 07 and 08….Melo has taken a HUGE leadership role now and I think that’s what the Nuggets have been looking for.
"Groovy" Ash from Evil Dead 2
"No one came from miles around / and said man your music is really hot" No One Came...Deep Purple
Agreed
Getting off the elimination game schnide shows real growth from a character standpoint. And given everything that’s gone against us in this series – the 3-1 deficit, the refs, Karl out, Nene w/torn ACL, gimped up KMart & Birdman – I kinda feel like we’re back to playing with house $.
if we win the series w/o nene
petro’s stock might be on the rise, good chance we lose petro next season.
let's go nuggets!
I hope George watched this game.
Quitter's People United Member #69
by the real stranger on Apr 29, 2010 11:23 AM MDT reply actions
Knowing him he's probably re-watching it.
I heard he studies other team video for fun. He’s a basketball scientist.
I'm proud of them too
The effort last night was such a contrast to the elimination game vs. the l*kers last season. I really didn’t think they had it in them. So glad to be wrong.
by ParkHillNative on Apr 29, 2010 11:30 AM MDT reply actions
First Game 7 in Denver since 1978
Not sure if this has been posted yet or not, but….if this series does go to game 7, it will be the first (NBA) Game 7 in Denver since 1978 when we beat the Bucks. 32 years later.
I don't mind him missing Friday...
Just or even Sunday. I am just glad it is not a serious injury.
Hopefully Denver can win without him.
Great news. I want to hug someone. :\
Member: 10-man rotation for deep playoff push advocacy group
I really hope your right
Cause on my lunchbreak the ticker on ESPN kept saying “Nuggets fear Nene may have torn ACL”
It certainly looked teal bad last night. Game 6 backs against the wall, Lets give the Jazz a fight
by wangstu13 on Apr 29, 2010 3:31 PM MDT via mobile up reply actions
check the DP
MRI revealed no tear to the ACL. hes out friday but day to day after that.
let's go nuggets! who u wit?
Mavs first west team eliminated
And yet all the “expert” analysts said they would contend with the lakers in the conference finals. RETARDS.
The Stiffs Republic of Quitters!!!!!!
Quitter #96
by The U.N. Fab Five on Apr 29, 2010 7:15 PM MDT via mobile reply actions
Who said Dallas was overrated?
Oh wait, I think it was me.
What Would Brian Boitano Do?
He'd quit and eat a Twinkie with Charles Barkley
Quitter's Proud United Member #11
looks like cuban's cleaning house again haha!!!!
QUITTER'S PEOPLE UNITED # 3
a proud follower of pickaxes, the star, and the almighty cervelli\
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