Season Preview: Denver Nuggets

Dhivy: The Denver McNuggets’ previous season was marred by the suspensions of Carmelo Anthony and JR Smith. Conversely, their previous season was awesome because they punched a New York Knick in the face. If I could punch Nate Robinson and only get a 15-day suspension from my job, I would gladly serve the time.

A full season of Carmelo and AI sounds like a nightmare for opposing teams and fun for anyone who owns NBA Live ‘08. I hate when people say that having two prolific scorers on the same team would create a problem in sharing the ball. If I offered you a team of Carmelo, Iverson, Wade, Amare, and Yao, would you turn it down because there are too many scorers? I didn’t major in basketball but I think scoring points is better than not scoring points. But what do I know, I’m just a kid. JR Smith has a chance to re-establish himself as a burgeoning young star and should be a great third fiddle. The backcourt is packed with depth and is flexible depending on what the team needs: defense (Yakhouba Diawara), explosiveness (Anthony Roberson), or a floor general (Anthony Carter). The frontcourt has experience as well, but the big three are all injury-prone. If Nené, Camby, or Martin suffers a sustained injury, look for Linas Kleiza to emerge as a reliable scorer. Also look for Hubie Brown to have trouble pronouncing his name. Kleiza’s emergence could force the Nuggets into a smaller lineup, which would help fuel their fast-break offense.

Whenever someone plays a game in Denver, they mention the change in altitude playing a major factor. But teams in Denver have long been known for running fast break offenses, as far back as the ABA days. Is this a good idea? I understand that training at higher altitudes would give the Denver team an advantage, but would they tailor their game around the fast break specifically for this purpose? Is this why the Denver Broncos have had a long history of a great running game? My suggestion is that someone finances a study that aims to prove that the average athlete who trains in Denver is better conditioned than an average athlete who trains at sea level. And yes, I did run out of things to say after the second paragraph.

Joe: I often have nightmares that the NBA - in their nonstop pursuit to become the "global game" - changes their rules to mesh with the International game. This would entail trapezoidal lanes, high-school distance three-point lines and general softness. Although this would be one of the most horrible things I could ever imagine, I am consoled by the fact that if this were to happen Carmelo Anthony would become easily the best player ever. It seems that Carmelo's calling in life is to absolutely dominate the international game - and although I don't respect the international game, I respect the hell out of Carmelo Anthony. Put him up against foreign competition, and his jumper becomes automatic, he starts assaulting big men in the post and all of a sudden becomes the most potent finisher when attacking the basket. Not to say that he doesn't possess these skills when playing domestically, but if he were to play with the same zeal he does during the Summer competitions, he would take long strides in narrowing the widening gap between King James and himself.

This year, Carmelo has a full season with probably the best weapon a basketball player can have on their team, a mature, humbled, Allen Iverson, who wants nothing more than to reach the promised land of an NBA championship. I for one believe they can give the other contenders a pretty good run for their money. Aside from the two superstars, this team boasts a quality center in Marcus Camby who will consistently score in the mid teens without having a single play called for him. Couple this with the return of Kenyon Martin who acts as a low-post offensive boon to the team and we have a lot to work with here. I'm particularly encouraged by the way Amare Stoudamire made micro-fracture surgery his bitch. Hopefully Kenyon took notes, because when healthy, he's still one of the most exciting power forwards in the league. The rest of this roster fills out nicely, with Nene and J.R. Smith playing integral roles on both sides of the ball and should give them some dimension of depth that is needed for a conference final run.

Side note, it bought a smile to my face seeing that "Plastic Man" Stacey Augmon was on this roster - I remember him killing the Knicks back in the mid nineties and for years to come I went about thinking that Stacey Augmon was one of the most under-appreciated players in the NBA.

Quang: the nuggets' 06-07 campaign was one of the most eventful in the league. they lost their starting power forward for the season after the second game, they traded for future hall of famer allen iverson, and best of all, they fought the knicks. unfortunately, interesting seasons apparently don't help win playoff games and the spurs knocked the nuggets out in the first round. at least denver can take solace in the fact that they lost to the eventual champion and played them close in four of the five games. and if they don't take any comfort knowing that, they can always fight the spurs and ruin both their seasons. then everybody wins. especially teams who play the spurs and nuggets.

of most interest to me about the nuggets is the fact that carmelo anthony has become one of the five most difficult match ups in the league. and another summer spent cooking international competition has done nothing but solidify his status of one of the premier players in the league while also fueling rumors that carmelo is a bigot. there is no other explanation for his extraordinary numbers in fiba games. he obviously just doesn't like foreigners. though as long as he uses these prejudices to win basketball games, i have no problem turning a blind eye. either way, it's gotten to the point where carmelo's foreign policy of dunking on over-matched countries has made him a legitimate presidential candidate. this would be great, not only because he'd be the tallest president in history, but also because he'd win the national electoral college basketball tournament and then forego the remaining three years on his term to play professionally. it'd be like air bud except in real life. and instead of a dog it's carmelo anthony, who is president of the united states.

carmelo's political career aside, regarding this season i think this year the nuggets are a class below the three mainstays atop the western conference. on paper though, i think they have comparable talent to the west's elite but the denver nuggets are not a professional origami team and their games are not played on paper but on basketball courts. with that said, they'll run past most teams simply because they have so many good players on their roster. allen iverson is still an all star and tries so hard at his job that it makes me feel bad that at my job most of my time is spent eating other people's lunches. marcus camby, though often nicked up, is the best defensive center in the league when healthy. jr smith gave glimpses of his potential even though he found himself in yet another coaches' dog house at the end of the season. kenyon martin is returning from his second microfracture but all reports so far have been fairly positive. and since he doesn't have a third knee to injure, i'm holding out hope that he plays most of the season. further, with linas kleiza, nené, eduardo najera, von wafer, and steven hunter it looks like they're deep enough to avoid playing yakhouba diawara ever again. though i think the nuggets will miss steve blake, if the cards fall in place it wouldn't be a surprise if they made an extended playoff run. it'd be just like air bud: seventh inning fetch except in real life. and instead of baseball, air bud plays basketball. and instead of air bud being played by a dog he's played by carmelo anthony, who helps his team make an extend playoff run.

Achilles Heel

• Kenyon Martin (d)
• Steven Hunter (j)
• Chucky Atkins (q)

Unsung Hero

• Linas Kleiza (d)
• Kenyon Martin (j)
• Von Wafer (q)

Bold Prediction

• Nené reveals the true reason he only goes by one name: his last name is “Doodoó” (d)
• In one of their few disagreements all year, an "all grown up" Allen Iverson lets George Karl know that Carmelo Anthony doesn't have the flu and skipped practice for some other reason. Carmelo tells Allen to "stop snitchin" (j)
• Kenyon Martin gets injured in the first game of the season and after seeing a doctor he is advised to undergo season-ending surgery. However, after a hospital mix-up Kenyon Martin returns midseason as RoboCop and the Nuggets win the NBA Championship. (q)

Favorite Moment

• Carmelo Anthony punches Mardy Collins in the face, and then runs away from Nate Robinson. (d)
• Carmelo does the moonwalk off of the Garden floor after punching the Knicks Mardy Collins in the face (j)
• The Knicks-Nuggets brawl, obviously. Though the best part was the lazy refs who just ejected all ten players who were on the court, even Eduardo Najera. Eduardo Najera!