Denver's gold rush. - 丹佛金塊 Denver Nuggets

Denver's gold rush

By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports
March 21, 2007

Early in March, with the Denver Nuggets struggling to find their way through
a disjointed season, George Karl pulled a frustrated Allen Iverson aside and
said, "Don't worry – this is going to work, and it's going to work this
season."

"This" referred to Denver's ambitious pairing of Iverson and Carmelo Anthony,
made possible by the midseason trade for Iverson that had yet to yield
successful results. The combination of Anthony's 15-game suspension for
fighting and injuries to Marcus Camby and Nene meant that the Nuggets rarely
were able to put their best lineup on the floor.

Inconsistent basketball followed and Denver hovered around the .500 mark for
most of the season. Even with Iverson playing at a very high level, the
Nuggets just couldn't put any kind of a run together. All the post-trade hype
began to die down, and it didn't appear that Karl's club would be able to
build enough momentum to do any damage in the playoffs. Denver fans were
already talking about "next year."

But the confidence Karl displayed in the team to Iverson was based on one
fact that he reiterated Tuesday night before his Nuggets took the floor in
New Jersey to face the Nets. "We've got talent," Karl said. "A lot of it."

Do they ever. With Iverson and Anthony on the floor together, Denver has two
of the top five scorers in the NBA. Camby and Nene provide athleticism and
shot blocking up front, and when J.R. Smith is healthy, the Nuggets have one
of the more potent three-point shooters in the league. A shrewd trade of Earl
Boykins for Steve Blake gave Denver the floor leader and ball mover it
needed, as Blake has been a source of stability and unselfishness on a team
full of high-profile scorers.

But the key to the Denver resurgence has been a commitment to defense. Karl
knows that his team will never be the Spurs, but if the Nuggets defend with
intensity they can cause problems for opponents.

Denver's style is to ball hawk – they're second in the NBA in steals and
eighth in blocks. When they force turnovers and create havoc, they run like
crazy – their 20 points a game off turnovers is second best in the league –
and with Iverson and Anthony attacking in the open court, opponents are
forced to foul, which is why the Nuggets average almost 30 free-throw
attempts (third best in the league).

Despite those gaudy numbers, this has not been a good defensive team overall.
The Nuggets may steal the ball, but they also give it right back to their
opponents. They commit 16 turnovers per game, which gives opponents a chance
to run right back at them. They give up more fast-break points than anyone in
the NBA. They have also given up way too much penetration, which has resulted
in 45 points in the paint allowed per game (29th in the NBA).

Essentially, the Nuggets have spent most of the season simply trying to
outscore opponents. That's why they've beaten plenty of bad teams, but not
very many good ones.

But during the current five-game winning streak, the Nuggets have been much
more solid at the defensive end. They've figured out that when they give
effort defensively and take care of the ball, they are very tough to beat.
Despite shooting only 40 percent, they beat the Nets on Tuesday by taking
care of the ball, not giving up many easy hoops and holding New Jersey to
40-percent shooting of its own. The 94-90 win marked the first time all
season that Denver won a game when scoring fewer than 100 points.

Can Denver keep it up? George Karl thinks so. Last week, his team blew out
the Lakers and pounded the Suns by 24. Karl finally has all his horses on the
floor and they're starting to click. They're also beginning to defend.
Iverson's frustration is gone and he and Anthony are playing well as a
tandem. And even though the Nuggets aren't going to earn anything higher than
a sixth seed in the West come playoff time, they have the talent to match up
with anyone.

Maybe Karl was right. Maybe this can work. And maybe it can work this season.


Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send Steve a question or comment
for potential use in a future column or webcast.


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