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Okay, so in a play-off run full of blow-outs and beat downs, it was sort of an uninspired way to end 24 years of play-off struggles. Not a lot of flare or rim rocking excitement. Just a pretty routine win over the whinny Dallas Mavericks that moves the Denver Nuggets on to the NBA Western Conference Finals.
Now it’s time to take stock of this team and raise the bar of expectations.
First, a quick look back at the five-game series with Dallas.
You have to salute the record crowd inside the Pepsi Center for not acting like the idiot fans in Dallas did. Could have been a bad scene here following Mark Cuban’s antics in Dallas, but instead of stooping to that level, the Nugget fans stayed classy – saluting Jason Kidd after he took a hard fall for example – and showed that like our team, our fans are a lot better, too.
Could the Mavericks whine a little bit more? Hats off to Dallas Coach Rick Carlisle for acknowledging after the game that the Nuggets were the better team, but it still doesn’t make up for his crying after Denver’s game three win. Has anyone asked Carlisle or Cuban if they’d have been screaming for a foul call if Anthony’s miraculous shot had not gone in? Probably not. It was actually a fitting way to end a game that featured more than 60 foul calls, many of the ticky tack variety. It was a very poor game from the referees no matter how you looked at it.
And if you thought Tim Duncan was a great player who complained a lot, you needed to watch Dirk Nowitzki. Dirk is a great talent, but it seemed like almost any time a Nugget breathed on the guy it was a foul. You can understand when a player who drives to the basket draws a lot of fouls. But Nowitzki gets phantom foul calls when he’s shooting fade away jumpers! All that bitching and complaining – plus a good amount of flopping – does get you to the free throw line a bunch, and you can do a lot of scoring from there, as Dirk has proven.
So now it’s on to the conference finals – an amazing seventh straight trip for Chauncey Billups – and a chance to maybe make it Denver vs. Cleveland Part III – this time for a NBA title. How sweet would that be? Think John Elway and Bernie Kosar would make an appearance?
In order for the Nuggets to give this city yet another chance to punk The Mistake by the Lake, the Nuggets will have to do some things better in the next series than they did in the last one. For one, the competition will be better. Don’t expect the Lakers or Rockets to turn the ball over as often as Dallas did, and be ready for a much stauncher defensive effort from the opponent.
Charles Barkley on TNT after the game said he’s sticking with his pick of the Nuggets to win the West and go to the finals. “Them and Cleveland have been the most consistent teams I’ve seen in these play-offs,” Barkley said. That’s true, but even Sir Charles had to notice that the Nuggets defensive play was not as stellar in games four and five of the Dallas series. The Mavs were left open for a bushel of three pointers in game five, and they made a lot of them. Certainly the Lakers will be able to do the same. Let up on defense against Kobe and Co. and it will be lights out.
Denver will also have to rebound better than they did in the Dallas series. Both the Lakers and Rockets are strong rebounding teams, and if Denver gets beat badly on the boards, they will do the same on the scoreboard.
On the plus side, the Nuggets should be rested and pretty healthy when they tip off the next series. Most people are hoping that Houston pulls it out against LA so Denver can have the home court, but maybe it’s time for the Nuggets to be an underdog again? Couldn’t hurt to try to recapture some of that early intensity they had against New Orleans and early against Dallas – before people like Barkley started to really take notice and heap praise on them. Staying humble and focused is a MUST if Denver is to keep moving on.
(AP Photo by Jack Dempsey of Carmelo Anthony scoring against Dallas)
For more info: Denver Nuggets Examiner Mike Wolfe
Comments
I flat out love the Nuggets' chances against LA or Houston. Billups presents huge matchup problems for any team because he's so calm, sly, and wicked smart. When Carmelo puts his mind to it he can score at will and can carry the offense if need be. No one wants to face a Nuggets team with J.R. Smith playing to his potential, the kid can drain threes with frightening ease when he's on. Whatpropels their success is the suddenly suffocating defense. Jones wore down Chris Paul and Jason Kidd at times, making them look average. And I now think Nene is the most overlooked feel good story in sports...last year he was battling cancer! What happened to Kenyon Martin that has all of a sudden made him a model citizen? And this team is still fairly young; Carmelo is 25, Smith 24, Nene 28, Kleiza 24, Jones 28. The Nuggets are doing to me what the Rockies did back in 2007, make me care again.
Seriously Knudson, if you don't do a piece profiling Nene and his cancer scare, you're a fool. It'd be a fantastic read.
Its the NBA. Who cares. Nobody cares about the Nuggets.
Mr T - Glad to see we FINALLY agree on something! It does feel A LOT like the Rockies in '07. Hopefully the Nuggets can overcome their lack of play-off experience and keep it rolling...and that the lay-off doesn't mess them up. This is a blast.
I'd suggest you give your idea for a 'profile' of Nene to Mike Wolf. As the Nuggets Examiner, that's his turf. I just write caustic stuff and pop off...
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