The Nuggets are beginning to roll!

After the embarrassing loss to the Boston Celtics last Wednesday, the Nuggets have decided they no longer want to play mediocre basketball. They realize when you play mediocre, lazy, energy-less basketball you are bound to get humiliated. It seems that type of play has left a bad taste in their mouths and since then they have reeled of 4 straight wins. Denver can attribute their recent wave of good play to hard-nose defense, unselfishness on the offensive end and great bench play. As long as Denver plays their best all -around game each night and continue to improve they will become major contenders come playoff time.

The Nuggets have the 4th best defensive efficiency in the league according to John Hollinger of ESPN. Their defensive game all starts with energy and effort. Recently, the Nuggets have been all over the court. Allen Iverson is doing more then just scoring points, he has been hounding the opposition's guards and is nabbing balls in passing lanes. This has led to AI being at the top of the NBA in steals. Melo is also doing his part, really showing an increased intensity on the defensive end. Camby and a revitalized K - Mart have been protecting the rim and grabbing every rebound in sight. Camby is in the top 5 in the league in both rebounds and blocks. K-Mart is beginning to show that stellar one-on -one defense that led to his great reputation as a lock-down post defender. The bench has really done a great job of coming in and bringing energy and hustle to the defense end. Guys like Diawara, Klieza, JR Smith and Bobby Jones have been playing perimeter defense extremely well against the oppositions shooting guards and small forwards. Each brings his own style of defense to the table and it seems to wear on the opponents best scorer. It's imperative for our defense to rebound, block shots and steal the basketball. When this happens we get a chance to get up and down the court and score the basketball more easily. All in all its been a great combined effort from all of the Nuggets defensively

I really like what I see on the offensive end as well. I think we will improve on our fast break offense, which has been a little sloppy so far in the early season. We just need to make the best decision and not turn the ball over. But, mostly I am pleased with our 5-5 set offense that we have been running. When the double team comes on Anthony, he quickly passes to either a perimeter scorer or a player slashing to the basket. We move the ball nicely and seem to find the open man a lot more often then I can remember in past seasons. It's also important to mention the play of JR Smith. Smith has been handling the point guard duties for 20 - 25 minutes a night and really has showed what type of skills, as a player, he possesses. He is much more under control then years previous, he is making the extra pass, penetrating and dishing to the open man, and when he is open knocking down the open 3. This team could be unstoppable if JR continues his hot play.


The bench has been big reason why this team has won 4 games in a row. It seems like every night a different player is stepping up and hitting a big 3 pointer, grabbing a rebound in traffic, or keeping a play alive with their hustle. As previously stated JR Smith has been exceptional at the point, shooting the three, penetrating the lane and using his athleticism on the defensive end to get his hands on the ball. Linas Klieza is also started off the season well with getting to the rim and rebounding the basketball. Bobby Jones has been our spark plug on the defensive end, really hustling around making plays. He certainly brings a spark to whichever unit is on the floor. Of course you have to mention Eddie "Hustle" Najera, he has been great coming off the bench giving his usual hustle and energy.


The last couple of years it seemed like it was always about just trying to score as many points as possible while everybody selfishly tries to "get theirs." This year you can really see the team understand what it takes to win on a consistent basis in this league. It takes sound team defense and execution on the offensive end. Both of which the Nuggets have done very effectively in this 4 game winning streak. Let's hope they continue to play with this type of team effort for the rest of the season. We know that this team has talent, the question remains if they can mold that talent into a total team effort. So far, So good.


Go Nuggets!