JR catches FAYAh! to help the Nuggets finish off the hot Grizzlies

JR gave us 27 pts, 1 reb, 1 ast & 1 stl in 21 minutes. What?

C'mon, I've been saying this for the past couple of months:



"Put AI on Point and Start JR at Shooting Guard!" - see details below in "If I Were Coach of the Denver Nuggets".

Ok so we got another win which makes it 3 in a row, again, now historically I would have expected us to lose the next one which would have been against Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks but in an odd twist of fate we are going to get the Mavericks without their leader.

Now I expect that we should be able to blow them out of the Pepsi Center but, I will not get my hopes up, for 2 reasons:

1. Historically, the Nuggets, haven't won more than 3 in a row this season, maybe we get lazy, maybe we just don't want it, maybe we're just tired, whatever the reason is, that's how its been.

2. Watch for the rest of the Mavericks to bring their "A" Game while we start off slow and barely keep up. ( I would love to be wrong on this, seriously )

In a perfect world our All-Star Team Denver Nuggets will win by 30. In the real world, we'll probably barely get the win, if we get it at all.

I'm still just hoping for the best for our favorite Team the Denver Nuggets.

My Message to the Nuggz:

AI - AI you continue to inspire us, your efficiency is under appreciated, although you will always be underrated compared to the likes of CP3 or Nash because of the assists category. Don't worry, CB is just jealous, but like I keep saying, you can easily get a dub-dub every night in pts/ast if you wanted it.

Melo - You are still the Man Melo. I think you are still not as agressive as we want to see you though. Like AI said, with your height and athleticism, if you wanted it, you'd easily get a dub-dub in pts/reb every night. Also I wish you took it to the hole more often, especially when you miss more than 2 jump shots in a row. Help Camby get the ball.

Camby - You sir are a monster, the only thing I don't get is why you choose to take so many low percentage jump shots? At your height and capability you could easily either take a quick fake, then dunk it, or just dunk it on anybody. Sometimes you dissappear, like in Philly, what happened there?

K-Mart - You have been making the difference lately K-mart, keep it up the team really needs you especially without Nene. Help Camby get the ball.

JR - Dang, you could be so good. You are good, but I think coach is still worried about your decision making, but just keep playing smart and bring it every time you get on the court, man you are something else. I seriously think you can be the 3rd All-Star on this team, show us JR.

AC - You've been doing a solid job on both ends of the court, keep workin on those 3 pointers because consistency is what we lack.

CA - I hope you get more minutes and are able to show us what you bring to the team. Keep working on your 3 pointers too cause I haven't seen you make a lot. I know you just need to get your groove back.

Najera - The unsung hero. Your hard work is very much appreciated and remains vital to the team winning games. Your 3 point shooting is very much a bonus too, way to find ways to contribute to the Team!

Hunter - Sorry you haven't been getting the minutes but hey, I believe you have the capability to do so much with your height and athleticism. Just keep working on your game and I hope you'll get more minutes.

Diawara - I think you can be a stopper. I think you could be a clean "Bowen" type player, you can also hit the 3. I hope you get more minutes too.

TG - Sorry don't know much about you yet. Hope you get a chance to show yourself.

Nene - I hope everything is fine and you are getting healthier and better everyday. Come back as soon as you can Ok? Your team misses you and we the fans miss you too! I honestly believe we would be at the TOP of the WEST right now if you weren't out!

NuggSter

If I Were Coach of the Denver Nuggets

I by no means am an expert at basketball nor do I claim to be good at it or anything of the sort. I do though understand the game and have a passion and love for the game probably only matched by the likes of MJ or AI.

If I were the coach of the Denver Nuggets, these are the immediate changes that I would make:

1. AI would start as Point Guard. - He is still the most effective assist machine on the team because defenders all expect him to shoot. also the team's record is something like 24-4 when he get's a double-double in Points & Assists.
2. AC as backup Point Guard. - He would get his minutes by giving AI a rest, at least 3 minutes per half, so AI is fresh to finish off the 4th.
3. JR would start as Shooting Guard. - He brings more height, offense AND defense to the perimeter. High risk, high reward. He has been playing smarter lately, he is worth the risk.
4. We can blow any team out of the court with AI and JR in the Back Court. AI and JR are too proud to let the other back court get the better of them, and can you imagine the speed? Woohoo! This doesn't even have to be every game, but at least when playing teams with taller more athletic shooting guards like Kobe or T-Mac.
5. Use Diawara more as the "Bowen" of the team and have him lock down the luck offensive player of the other team.
6. ANY Player that is 0 for 5, will come out of the game to sit down and think about it. ANY PLAYER. It doesn't have to be 5, it could just be too many jump shots. The "Sit Down" rule should be if you miss 3 jumpers, you need to TAKE IT TO THE HOLE.
7. I would have the team practice EXTRA hard on THREE POINTERS & FREE THROWS. If we make these we lessen the chance of any close games that translate to losses.
8. Improve perimeter Defense, see AI and JR above for taller shooting guards above.
9. Have Melo, AI, Camby work on go-to set plays like PICK-&-ROLL a la Stockton & Malone, these could be very potent, but NOOOOOO>>>... I'm just a fan, who's gonna listen to me?
10. Convince AI and Melo that they need to work on other facets of their game and prove doubters that they are not One-Dimensional Players. AI could easily get a dub-dub in Points & Assists every night and Melo could work a little harder and get a dub-dub in Points & Rebounds every night. It's a lot of pressure on them yeah but they are the most consistent players on the court most of the time, and that is why they are called the Dynamic Duo.
11. Talk to Nene and decide on whether he is coming back this season or not. Make it clear to the team as well so they know where they stand and what they need to do with what.
12. Coach Carl has been doing this lately, well, somewhat but, I'd try to give more playing time to JR, LK43, Najera, Diawara & Atkins. See the "Sit Down" rule above for application.

BASICALLY I WOULD HAVE AN OVERALL SMARTER APPROACH TO EACH AND EVERY GAME. IT'S ALL ABOUT MATCH-UPS, RECOGNIZE THEM AND PLAY THEM ACCORDINGLY, LIKE A GAME OF CHESS. If this means that your starting 5 changes once in awhile depending on who we are playing then so be it.

Oh well all I can do with all this is blog about it and use it when I play NBA 2K8 on my playstation. =P'

NuggSter

Nuggets Bench show signs of life, Finally Win on the Road Over the Nets

We are lucky to have pulled off this win. According to the BoxScore we got outrebounded again (by 12) and we missed a whole lot of free throws, again. We are lucky that AI, JR, Kleiza & Najera had that run in the 4th that they did. Otherwise we would just continue to fall out of the race.

If we continue to play like this, especially against stronger, more consistent teams, we will definitely not make the playoffs, .. and if we do, we won't go far.

Why is it so hard for Coach Karl to identify and address the problems of this team? Why aren't the leaders of this team doing anything?

Oh well, an ugly Win is better than an Ugly Loss I suppose.

We'll see what happens next.

NuggSter.

Nuggets Finally Eclipse Suns at the Pepsi Center

This is what we have been waiting for, well, more like, wins like these for more than 3 in a row. Basically more than a 1 or 2 game winning streak. =P'

Melo and AI showed us why they are All-Stars with their showing for this game. AI was, well AI, what can I say, the player with the most Heart and Talent per inch in the world I would say. If he were as tall as Kobe or McGrady, then you might as well just throw the towel in when you play against him. Melo, Wow. He just showed us what he is capable of when he puts his mind to it. He is scary good when he plays like that, attacking the rim and crashing the boards like there is no tomorrow.

There were many good things about this game. A couple of other brighter spots were JR Smith's awesome shooting (START HIM AS SG WITH AI AS PG), AC's excellent D and double double, Marcus and K-mart are their usual efficient selves and everybody's contributions off the bench were crucial too.

I'd have to say that the only NEGATIVE for the Nuggets this game was the Free Throw Shooting. I mean c'mon?? 9 missed free throws? What if it was a close game? That's 9 points that could have won or lost it for us! There is a reason why they call them FREE THROWS guys, you are professionals, get them down please.

MAY I POINT OUT THAT AI HAD ANOTHER DUB-DUB IN POINTS & ASSISTS = WIN. (23-3??)

THE BIGGER QUESTION IS: Can the NUGGET's pull it together for this stretch and continue to WIN SOME GAMES so our season doesn't get cut short? It remains to be seen. DO THEY WANT IT AS MUCH AS WE THE FANS DO? HOPEFULLY, WE'LL SEE.

TOMORROW WE GET A CHANCE TO BEAT THE TEAM THAT HAS ELIMINATED US IN THE FIRST ROUND MORE THAN ONCE. KEEP THAT IN MIND GUYS. OFFENSIVELY THEY HAVE NOTHING ON US EXCEPT THEIR OCCASIONAL LUCK FROM THE 3 POINT LINE WHICH WE NEED TO DEFEND. PLEASE? PUT SOMEONE ON GINOBILI!

LET'S DO THIS NUGGETS!

NuggSter

Nuggets Blow-Out the Cavs On The Road

Winning on the road is one thing, winning big on the road is another. Both teams were shorthanded but I believe LeBron was reminded tonight of how better Melo's team is. Although the Nugget's just won a game that they were supposed to, they had a very good game by winning by 30 points and by getting everyone involved.

The trio of Melo-AI-JR Smith lead the offensive attack while AI distributed the ball well with 13 assists.

I think my challenge to my long time favorite player AI (even before Melo) somehow got to him because if I am not mistaken he is averaging a little over 10 assists per game over the last 5 or so games since I blogged about my challenge to my idol.

If that is the case and he is putting his mind to it, and shooting for the double-double in points and assists, it is just a matter of time before the Nugget's go on longer winning streaks and AI gets the same respect that Nash gets from NBA Analysts, except for those ex-players that carry any kind of bias against AI. You know who you are. ;) Who knows, if you play like that in the All-Star game there might be another All-Star MVP Award for you AI. Imagine how easy it will be to get assists with Kobe and Melo to pass to. =D

GO NUGGETS!!

NuggSter