Nuggets looking to strike gold
By John Livingston | October 26, 2009
The Denver Nuggets tip off their 2009-10 season this Wednesday when they face the Northwest division rival Utah Jazz. The Nuggets will be looking to build on what was a magical season last year when they reached the Western Conference Finals before falling to the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers. This was just the second time in franchise history that the Nuggets reached the conference finals and was the first time since 1985.
The Nuggets righted the ship last year after trading away the cancerous Allen Iverson for hometown hero Chauncey Billups. Now with a full off season to work out with the team, Billups and the Nuggets will try to take the next step in reaching the NBA Finals for the first time in team history; something the Nuggets have clearly been working hard for throughout training camp. Fans have plenty of reasons to be excited for this upcoming year and there are a few key elements to the season that will decide the teams fate.
A big reason the Nuggets were able to reach the third round of the playoffs after five consecutive first round defeats was because they were able to secure the second overall seed going into the playoffs. The Nuggets will certainly have to finish in the top three seeds again which means they must win their second consecutive Northwest division title. The Western Conference is always stacked with talented teams 1-8 and it is imperative that the Nuggets, who held one of the better home court records in the NBA a season ago, once again lock up home court advantage for at least the first two rounds of the playoffs. This is also important because the Nuggets will certainly not want to be face a team like the Lakers or the Spurs in the first round. Last year the Nuggets were able to build confidence and momentum by thumping the Hornets and Mavericks in the first two rounds and this gave the team and more importantly Carmelo Anthony, who had never been out of the first round of the playoffs, the belief they needed to face a team of the Lakers caliber.
Melo will play a big role in determining how well the Nuggets do this season and judging by his pre-season he is redy to prove to the world that he is one of the NBA’s top five players. After watching NBA TV’s Real Training Camp 2K9 at the Nuggets training facility it is clear that Melo is in the best shape of his NBA career and is focused on winning. Melo looks explosive and has been scoring at will early in the pre-season scoring in the 40’s by the third quarter at will. Everyone knows that Melo is an elite scorer but he will also look to continue his improved skills at defensively by collecting rebounds and steals. If Melo can have more takeaways then turnovers this season, can average around six or seven rebounds per contest and can continue to develop his passing game out of the double-team by finding team mates cutting to to the rim he could be a threat in the MVP race. Melo can certainly be an All-Star starter this season potentially alongside Billups and Nene.
This season the Nuggets will go as far as Nene will take them. A healthy and ever improving Nene is necessary for the Nuggets who will be competing all year with the Lakers and Spurs for supremacy. It will be key for Nene to keep up with the Lakers Andrew Bynum. Both teams need their big men to stay healthy but the Nuggets especially need Nene to be a force in the paint by collecting double digit rebounds every game and scoring big when the Nuggets perimeter players dish the ball into the big Brazilian. Last year, after bouncing back from testicular cancer, Nene had the best year of his career. He showed that he is capable of scoring 30+ in a game and he shredded the Mavericks in the second round of last years playoffs. Nene should be able to dominate most centers in the Western Conference now with the departure of Shaquille O’Neal to the Cavaliers and the Rockets Yao Ming being sidelined for the year. Nene should be looking at an All-Star bid if he plays the way he is capable and stays injury free. The Nuggets are not particularly deep in big men so Kenyon Martin, who had a solid season last year, will need to stay healthy as well for the Nuggets to succeed. Chris “Birdman” Andersen came up huge last season proving once again to be a fan favorite in the Mile High City. The bird finished 3rd in the league in blocked shots and the Nuggets expect the bird to collect similar numbers this season which is why they inked him to a nice new multi-year contract.
At this point in his career everyone knows what to expect out of Chauncey Billups. As long as the King of Park Hill’s legs will allow him to play a full season he will be on the floor every game giving 110% hitting the big shots he always does and motivating the team defensively as well. A lot can be said for the attitude adjustment Billups gave the Nuggets last year; much like the one Brian Dawkins has given the Denver Broncos defense this season. It seemed like the Nuggets became Chauncey’s team as he was able to unite the team in a way it seemed George Karl couldn’t in years past. Perhaps this had a lot to do with the Nuggets shipping out the “me-first” Allen Iverson but Billups instilled a defensive mind set in the Nuggets players unlike any before. Billups leadership takes a lot of pressure off of Karl who very likely could have been on the hot-seat last year if not for the quick turn around that came along with Billups.
It will be important to see how the Nuggets new acquisitions will fill in for the defense that Dahntay Jones provided last season. The Nuggets lost Jones to the Pacers via free agency but made key moves by re-signing Anthony Carter, bringing in Aaron Afflalo from the Pistons, Joey Graham from the Raptors, and drafting rookie G Ty Lawson. Graham should fill in effectively where Linas Kleiza did in years past as the Nuggets also lost Kleiza via free agency to Europe. Lawson has looked impressive in the pre-season and the Nuggets will rely on him and Afflalo to step up big during the first seven games of the year while J.R. Smith serves his suspension.
With the success the Nuggets had a season ago and with the skills and talent they displayed in the post-season it will be important for the team to get off to a quick start. There are high expectations for the Nuggets this season and it will be important to establish their presence early as a contender for the Western Conference with the Spurs and Mavericks ready to bounce back with some solid off-season acquisitions and the Lakers looking to repeat as champions. The Nuggets need to remind everyone that they are once again ready to make a run at a title and they will get their first chance Wednesday night when the Jazz come into what should be a raucous Pepsi Center for the opening game of the 2009-10 season; get ready Nuggets fans it should be a wild ride.
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