OFFICIAL DENVER NUGGETS Season Thread (Ok... Maybe we're not "finished")

i always knew Lines was a great shooter, but i never knew he was capable of dropping 41pts in an NBA game. What did he do? Shoot 3's all night orsomething?
 
Time for "coaching legend" Karl to act like one

By Mark Kiszla
The Denver Post

Article Last Updated: 01/17/2008 02:20:45 AM MST


We feel sorry for the Nuggets. We really do.

But if this pity party goes on too long, Denver will miss the NBA playoffs.

And, should that happen, somebody's going to get fired.

With a roster depleted by a serious health scare to Nene and so many nagging injuries it's depressing, Denver has two choices:

The Nuggets can make a trade.

Or George Karl can remind us what all the fuss was about when he was hired by Denver three years ago, and coach 'em up.

"It's great to be the best team. It's really a lot more fun when the other team has got to play an 'A+' game to beat you," Karl said Wednesday. "But that's not basketball. Basketball is very seldom an 'A+' game. It's a 'B' or 'C' game. There are a lot mistakes. And a lot of things can happen. We've got to make more things happen."

With a player payroll in excess of $80 million and good seats available in its home arena for $110, the Nuggets cannot afford to have a broken team.

Why? There's no margin for error in the Western Conference, where unless your local heroes win 50 games, folks might be sweating a playoff berth until the final buzzer of the regular season.

Players who predicted big things for this Denver team will be held accountable by fans never afraid to boo NBA millionaires. But it's also true Karl has not figured out how to coax the defensive effort or unselfish passing he claims are essential for the Nuggets to be successful.

If a coach stands in front of the team bench without establishing an effective style of play, all he's doing is blocking the view of somebody who paid 110 bucks for a ticket. In each of his two full seasons with the Nuggets, Karl has failed to win 50 games. He has not won a playoff series in Denver.

As Karl's third full season approaches the halfway point, when all legitimate excuses start becoming disturbing trends, the Nuggets are not yet winning at a clip that will ensure 50 victories or a favorable seed in the playoffs.

"I think everybody knows in playoff basketball sometimes you get a bad matchup. Yeah, your odds of getting a good matchup is best when you have the home court and finish higher," Karl said. "But I've had good matchups at (No.) 7, better matchups at 7 than I've had 4."

No argument here. If memory serves, while coaching Seattle in 1994, Karl earned the top-seeded team in the West, only to get upset in a bad matchup against Dikembe Mutombo.

"Exactly," he said.

I will grant you this Denver roster has flaws, some potentially fatal, especially if you're talking about the expensive championship dreams of franchise owner Stan Kroenke. The Nuggets do not possess the cowboy-up toughness of San Antonio, and they lack the offensive balance of Boston.

But Carmelo Anthony is a 23-year-old forward on the verge of becoming a starter in the All-Star Game for the first time.

Since being acquired in trade, guard Allen Iverson has lived up to his Hall of Fame reputation.

And center Marcus Camby is the NBA's reigning defensive player of the year.

Those are three pretty nice pieces for which Kroenke paid a pretty penny.

If Karl cannot win a division title with Anthony, Iverson and Camby on his side, maybe he is the wrong coach for the job.

With the league's trade deadline within sight, Denver needs to be an active shopper. Vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien no longer has the luxury of waiting for Nene and Chucky Atkins to get healthy.

"The thing that is hard to comprehend is two weeks ago we thought we were getting them back, and now two weeks later, you have not only them gone, but Kenyon (Martin) is out with a staph infection and Eddie (Najera) is out," said Karl, who acknowledged the time has come for the Nuggets to start exploring trade possibilities.

A dream acquisition for the Nuggets: Toronto's Jose Calderon, a 26-year-old point guard who not only is worth every cent of his $2.5 million salary, he's a better player than ballyhooed teammate T.J. Ford.

The problem? Denver can offer the Raptors no reasonable salary-cap match in trade, unless Toronto general manager Bryan Colangelo suddenly feels an inexplicable need for the chronic migraines that could be supplied by the enfant terrible act of petulant Nuggets guard J.R. Smith.

Denver has done too much whining and not enough winning.

"The struggles that we've been dealt, we can moan about and groan about," Karl said. "But we've still got to win."

In his official biography, the first words the Nuggets use to describe Karl are "NBA coaching legend."

Could a man who fits that description please pick up the white paging telephone?

We have yet to see him in Denver.
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It's about time someone in the media ripped into Karl. This article helps describe the very reson why I can't stand how he treats JR Smith. He acts like JR Smith is doing something to directly cause the team to lose, when in fact the team is certainly not improved with JR on the bench (our record doesn't lie). We try a few pick and rolls every now and then, but our offense still appears disorganized. I just don't see the habits of a "well-coached" team. If he would take as much time putting together gameplans as he does making up philisophical quotes (i.e. "Basketball is very seldom an 'A+' game. It's a 'B' or 'C' game. There are a lot mistakes. And a lot of things can happen. We've got to make more things happen."), we'd be in better shape. And our record isn't that bad at this point, but the first half of our schedule was toted as or chance to break away from the pack in preparation for a tough second half. So much for that plan.
 
Yea karl is a bum...like Charles and Kenny were sayin on inside the nba this is a disappointing team....They should be leading the west or at least in 2nd withthe way the Spurs have been fading lately....Yea we've had injuries but every team does....but come on..and we've had our top 3 the whole seasonIverson, Melo, and Camby (i think he missed 1 or 2).....

A big part of defense is coaching...look at the celtics...a lot of those girls weren't considered good defensive players and look how well they play dnow...and they have 3 big time scoring superstars and look how well they move the ball...Iverson's been a good defensive teams be4...and Carter has goodd...so does Martin....and of course Camby...Najera....we have good defensive players our team d is just horrible and i blame Karl as a big part.

Hopefully a good coach will get fired this year and we can pick them up and get rid of karl...
 
Nene and Atkins have been out for long stretches for multiple reasons. Najera and Martin are out just about every other game for different reasons. Now Melosprains his ankle. At least x-rays were negative. But still, we need to call Kerney Thomas ASAP. Who would have thought that Marcus Camby would be our Iron-Manthis season?
 
Originally Posted by TraSoul82

Nene and Atkins have been out for long stretches for multiple reasons. Najera and Martin are out just about every other game for different reasons. Now Melo sprains his ankle. At least x-rays were negative. But still, we need to call Kerney Thomas ASAP. Who would have thought that Marcus Camby would be our Iron-Man this season?
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http://www.nba.com/nuggets/news/nene_medical_update_012208.html

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Medical Update on Nuggets Forward Nenê


DENVER, Jan. 22 -- Results of a biopsy performed on a small testicular tumor found on Nuggets forward Nenê indicate the tumor was malignant. Further test results show that the cancer was isolated and did not spread. Nenê underwent surgery to remove the tumor on Jan. 14.
The tumor was discovered in the very early stages and the recovery rate is extremely high. In addition, the odds of a recurrence are very small.

Nenê is doing well and is recovering in Denver.

There remains no timeline for his return to the court.
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Well the season is young. My earlier posts in this thread defended George Karl but I think it's time for a change. I like him as a person, though, and ifNuggets get some form of REMOTELY VAGUE defense together, they can actually get rolling on some win streaks later this season. If that's the case, I'llbe patient/content with Karl the rest of the season. If the end result isn't satisfactory in the playoffs, he will be fired, and someone with a little morestrategy and assertiveness can step in to the coaching spot.

That last game against LA was so frustrating. Nuggets seem to catch random players on the best shooting night of their careers while managing to give up like120 points or whatever it was. Ugh...
 
^^^ its frustrating. he just is not the right coach for this team. but somehow i dont see the Nuggets firing him..........but i hope so if it drastically willimprove the team.
 
I've been on the Fence with GK but I think he needs to get fired if he can't define how the team will play. This is what hurts me the most about oursquad is the inconsistency in how they play. In one game they an fire on all cylnders and beat a team like the Spurs or the Jazz, but in the very next game weget beat by the T-Wolves. The sad part is I've seen the effort on defense improve but the results aren't there. On offense guys are doing what peoplelike Kenny and Charles have been saying but it's not enough. We have to stop people.
 
Its about time that we are 10 games above .500. Seems like it took forever for us to get there. We got a tough 3 game roadtrip coming up, hopefully we can take2 of them.
 
Originally Posted by BoutMyMoney333

Its about time that we are 10 games above .500. Seems like it took forever for us to get there. We got a tough 3 game roadtrip coming up, hopefully we can take 2 of them.
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I'm really not looking forward to the NO game....cuz EVERYTIME we play them...i get frustrated becuz we give West wide open jumper after wide openjumper like he's sum bum or something....not to mention Paul always destroys us cuz he gets into the paint at will...im sure he does this to most teams butits still frustrating lol...

Also Utah its starting to gain on us....theyve been playing well since they got Korver...
 
Originally Posted by BlowDaWhistle

Originally Posted by BoutMyMoney333

Its about time that we are 10 games above .500. Seems like it took forever for us to get there. We got a tough 3 game roadtrip coming up, hopefully we can take 2 of them.
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I'm really not looking forward to the NO game....cuz EVERYTIME we play them...i get frustrated becuz we give West wide open jumper after wide open jumper like he's sum bum or something....not to mention Paul always destroys us cuz he gets into the paint at will...im sure he does this to most teams but its still frustrating lol...
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Naw !@%% that, I want to beat them _'s BAD. They're basically having the kind of season that we should be having. This would be the perfect time toshow the critics that the Nuggets still have a shot of being a elite team. But if they lose all 3.....
 
Melo has been out one game too long. That loss to NO tonight was embarassing.

I can't wait till everyone is at full health so we can find some damn ryhthm.
 
Originally Posted by SkyLarkster

Melo has been out one game too long. That loss to NO tonight was embarassing.

I can't wait till everyone is at full health so we can find some damn ryhthm.
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If that ever happens...It seems like we can never have everyone healthy.....and we need to get healthy quick becuz currently right now we our out ofthe playoffs.....Utah looks like theyre playing the way they should be and I keep waiting for Portland to fade away but theyre still hanging around....I'mhonestly starting to think that we might be destined for a 6 to 8 seed again and that means another 1st round exit...we HAVE to win ur division or else will weget bounced out of the first round...
 
Melo's out again. If he doesn't come back soon the team will be in serious trouble.
 
Did anybody see Karl's comments on JR about last game. JR played well and Karl still **#! on him.

"This was a bench game," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "This is tip the hats to Kuba, Steven Hunter andJ.R. (Smith) a little bit. The energy of our bench was a factor in our confidence."

Homie got some real hate in his blood for JR
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Great win by the nuggets tonight..but I was wondering if anyone else has noticed this but me..But is it just me or has Melo not be clutch at all this seasonfor a player of his caliber....I mean there was one game against the blazers where roy blocked his game winner...and then on another game winner hetraveled...and tonight he was getting the ball ripped down the stretch...and I mean i undertstand he thought he was getting fouled but its just come on meloyour probably the strongest wing in the game besides Lebron...i mean down the stretch he's gotta understand he's not guna get the call unless he'shammered....but its been the whole season that i've noticed Melo hasn't been coming though in the last 5 min like you would think he would....Iremember like his first year in the league he hit a bunch of game winners I cant remember how many but he was the definition of clutch....AI has been that guyfor us down the stretch all year tho...

Another thing I don't get is how Jamison is averaging 20 & 10...but Melo isnt....maybe a big reason for that is Camby grabbing every defensive boardbut i still think Melo can be a 20 & 10 guy...he had a stretch where he was dominating the boards and then it kinda way...he did it tonight tho...I willgive Melo credit tho..every game Camby has been out I think he's gotten a double double...

By the way I still can't stand Karl... You know someone I wouldn't mind being our coach is Rick Carlisle....he did good jobs at indiana and detroit...Iwouldnt mind him replacing Karl if he got fired...

Great Win tho for the nuggets but next up we got an even bigger game against the Jazz
 
Originally Posted by BlowDaWhistle

Great win by the nuggets tonight..but I was wondering if anyone else has noticed this but me..But is it just me or has Melo not be clutch at all this season for a player of his caliber....I mean there was one game against the blazers where roy blocked his game winner...and then on another game winner he traveled...and tonight he was getting the ball ripped down the stretch...and I mean i undertstand he thought he was getting fouled but its just come on melo your probably the strongest wing in the game besides Lebron...i mean down the stretch he's gotta understand he's not guna get the call unless he's hammered....but its been the whole season that i've noticed Melo hasn't been coming though in the last 5 min like you would think he would....I remember like his first year in the league he hit a bunch of game winners I cant remember how many but he was the definition of clutch....AI has been that guy for us down the stretch all year tho...

Another thing I don't get is how Jamison is averaging 20 & 10...but Melo isnt....maybe a big reason for that is Camby grabbing every defensive board but i still think Melo can be a 20 & 10 guy...he had a stretch where he was dominating the boards and then it kinda way...he did it tonight tho...I will give Melo credit tho..every game Camby has been out I think he's gotten a double double...

By the way I still can't stand Karl... You know someone I wouldn't mind being our coach is Rick Carlisle....he did good jobs at indiana and detroit...I wouldnt mind him replacing Karl if he got fired...

Great Win tho for the nuggets but next up we got an even bigger game against the Jazz
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Great points, Melo during the 04-05 and 05-06 seasons had a ton of game-winners, most notably was all those shots he hit in the tripleOT game against theSuns with the tissue in his nose. Well tonight he just plain struggled and mentally jinxed himself because of the physical frustration, but the refs wereletting both teams play. He should have kept a little more cool. The last two seasons as a whole Melo hasn't been as clutch but look at last season withhis suspension, big trades, injuries. That can rock you mentally and get you out of your groove in a season. Well this season has been chaotic too with theinjuries and lack of chemistry. Iverson's impact also has a lot to do with it, he takes a lot of the pressure off of Anthony...in a positive way.

Great win tonight. Too bad the Jazz were the last team in the league we wanted winning games, and they just won't lose now. Except for Wednesday against usat home, because we're hot at the Pepsi Center.

Rick Carlisle: he might be having so much fun working at ESPN now that he'll never want to coach again....hah, maybe.
 
Homie got some real hate in his blood for JR
You ain't lyin'. JR has been putting up solid numbers everytime he has been given minutes. I'm not saying superstar numbers withperfect decision-making, but he has been solid. The only reason he's playing JR has been playing is because of the injuries, but JR just put up 10 pointsin the 14 minutes he was given last night. I know dude's attitude and play aren't perfect, but as a coach I think you should use the tools you have inthe most efficient way possible. Karl is busy driving in nails with the handle of a screwdriver when there's a hammer right in the tool box. Just becausehe doesn't like the grip of the hammer doesn't mean it's not the right tool for the job.

Good job last night by Melo, snatching 15 rebounds with Camby out. He also had 5 assists and 28 points. Both Melo and AI had off-nights in shooting -- 10-27for Melo and 10-28 for Iverson. Iverson had the better true percentage due to him going 3-6 from behind the arc. He also had the bigger shots at the end tosend it to overtime and then to win the game.

I love this team, but I really can't see us going anywhere until we have a solid frontcourt. I basically jinxed Camby by calling him our 'Iron-Man'for the season (My bad). But this Nene, Camby, Marting frontcourt has to be the most injury-prone in recent memory. Loads of talent, but light on playing time.This has been the element that has been holding this team back for the past 3-4 years, basically. But the problem is, how do you stop guys from beinginjury-prone? I hate to have this negative outlook, but when Nene returns from surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, I can't help but wonder what will takehim out next. I realize actually forgot about Najera as I type this. He's a solid role player with a Mitchell Report's worth of injuries.

The talent of our frontcourt is what I think George Karl has been banking on. He has to realize that this is not going to just "fall into place" ashe would like would like. He should be stressed out over X's and O's involving the personnel he has available, but instead he drops gems like this:


From the Denver Post:
"Without Nene, Melo and Chucky, we're kind of in a survival mode, like last year with the suspension," Karl said. "We can't expect to win 75 percent of our games. We just have to figure out what games to go after."

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Can I get a SigCheck?
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Iverson with the GW last night
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Homie got some real hate in his blood for JR
ya he does
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"With J.R., it's always the same answer - good and bad. He's a good-bad basketball player. (At Dallas on Sunday) hewas good in the first half and was a train wreck in the second half."

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But J.R. isn't exactly the smartest in terms basketball IQ either... Off of physical talent he can become a very good player in this league....
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