Battered Hornets Beat the Battered Nuggets 99-89

This was yet another game between two teams devastated by injuries (and suspensions in the case of the Nuggets) but this time A.I. fell well below his career scoring accuracy and Boykins and the second teamers were not enough to produce a win against the Hornets. The Camby injury has made the suspension situation twice as bad because the Nuggets have only one "defensive specialist" and Camby is it. One minus one equals zero.

After both second teams produced an entertaining first half, the second half became very bleak, with neither team able to score in the 3rd and only the Hornets able to score in the 4th. After leading 81-76, Denver scored just eight points in the final 9 1/2 minutes. They were out of gas, out of talent, and out of players. The grinch (David Stern) had left them with nothing.

Here was the Hornet's injury toll going into tonight's game:

Chris Paul, PG Sprained right ankle - out 1 week
Bobby Jackson, PG Cracked left rib - out 2-3 weeks
Peja Stojakovic, GF Lower back surgery
David West, PF Arthroscopic surgery, right elbow

These four have provided over 70% of the Hornets scoring so far this season and none of them could play, so this is total devastation.

The Nuggets are now 3-2 in suspension games, and I am reasonably sure they would have been 4-1 over this easy schedule stretch had there not been any suspensions, so tonight was the first "suspension loss". Had the suspensions been kept to a reasonable limit of 5 games, they would now be over, and the Nuggets would have escaped with a one game penalty.

But as we all know, the suspensions are going to drag on for 5 more games (J.R. Smith) and 10 more games (Melo). Am I worried that Iverson is going to go into a slump and cause alot of additional suspension losses? Absolutely not, all players of all skill levels have games when they are that 2 or 3 inches off and so they miss a bunch of shots they usually make. And more often than not, a star player will have this type of game playing a back to back night on the road, which is what this was.

Most of these suspension games have featured one of the second teamers besides Boykins going all out to try to help the team and to try to make an impression. Tonight it was swingman's DerMarr Johnson's turn to try to do the impossible. On 28 minutes, he was 4/13, and 2/7 on 3's for 10 points, and he had 6 rebounds.

On the other hand, swingman Yakhouba Diawara finally figured this situation out and refrained from taking bad shots, and had a decent, very balanced game as a result. He was 5/11, and 2/7 on 3's, and 2/2 from the line for 14 points. He also had 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals, and his ball handling and defense were not lacking as in most of the other suspension games.

Najera and Evans each had 10 rebounds. Johnson and Sampson had 6 boards each and Kleiza had 5. Not having a dominant rebounder is frequently a sign of a pourous inside defense. (It will probably get very ugly on Sunday night against the Mavericks if Camby is not back by then.)

With Melo out, the Nuggets do not have a forward on the roster who can put up points, thus the Nuggets are currently totally dependent on the Iverson-Boykins duo for the points needed to win suspension games. Tonight, Evans was 4/8, Najera was 3/8, and Sampson did not even put a shot up.

Najera this year is averaging just 2.9 made field goals per game on just 4.9 attempts per game, well below par for a starting forward. He has failed to rise to the challenge of the loss of K-Mart for the season. And with Camby/Melo/J.R. out, it is his responsibility to step up, but it is not happening.

Boykins, who I now think of as Iverson #2, is as dependable these days as a timex watch, but he can only do so much with his 5'5" frame. He was 10/22, 2/7 on 3's, and 4/5 from the line for 26 points. He also had 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal. It now seems obvious that he does not have an extra gear that he can shift into in a problem situation like this game, so that he all of a sudden goes to the hoop more and takes more shots in general. The Iverson high gears were not available this game.

The Nuggets achieved no flow at all, but how can you achieve any flow to the game if every new squad on the floor has almost never been seen before? It's not just Iverson, but also Boykins who is unfamiliar with these squads. Where is Diawara going to cut to? Is Evans going to box out his man? Is DerMarr Johnson going to put up a three or cut to the basket? Is Najera finally going to take an open shot when he should? No one knows the answers; there are no obvious or easy plays to be run on a devastated team. Every play is a new adventure.

A.I. was 6/22, and 0/2 on 3's and 9/10 on threes for 21 points, and he added 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 rebounds, and a block. His veteran wisdom was there even on a bad night; he was smart enough not to take 30 shots when he knew he wasn't "feeling it". The inexperienced version of Iverson would have ended up roughly 9/30 and the Nuggets would have been routed. Iverson knows when it's best to pull back and live to fight another day.

The next game will be against the top team in the League right now, the Mavericks, on New Year's Eve back in Denver (Sunday night) at 7 pm mountain time.

Had the suspensions been over as they should have been, the Mavs game could have been one of those great basketball classics. As it is, if Camby is still out, it could be very very ugly, unless A.I. gets the magic touch at home again. Hopefully, he will draw energy and performance from a crowd that will want to forget the snowstorms and to enjoy being sick with Nuggets fever.

A.I. Near Perfect as Nuggets Wear Down Sonics 112-98

There is this old Star Trek episode where Captain Kirk and the Enterprise discover this massive planet eater drifting through space. I'm beginning to think that when Melo and J.R. and Camby return, the Nuggets will become a "team eater," wearing out and demoralizing their opponents to the point of self destruction or surrender. This is what happened to the Sonics tonight. Opposing coaches will say when they see the Nuggets "My god, who created this monster?" The monster was created by the Nugget's owner, the Denver front office, Melo becoming a superstar, Camby, Boykins, and several others playing their guts out, and Allen Iverson wanting to win a Ring more than anything in his life and being one of the best basketball players of all time.

Oh, and we may have gotten an assist from David Stern. David Stern, with his massive suspensions to Melo and J.R., may have put just enough fire under the behinds of the Nuggets front office to seal the Iverson trade before the Celtics or Wolves or somebody else could get their hands on him. So it is possible, though not probable, that Iverson might have gone elsewhere were it not for the suspensions. The Nuggets ended their stubborn resistance to parting with Andre Miller after those historic mega suspensions came down and then the historic deal was done.

Aside from that, it also seems that someone (it wasn't me, I swear) put a really nasty spell on many of the teams that are playing the Nuggets during the long suspensions and the Camby injury. First the Wizards were exhausted from a double overtime on the road the night before. Then the Celtics were without their top two scorers, as well as all their other big veterans. The Suns had all their guys, but they were sent packing because the game was cancelled from the blizzard. That game has now been scheduled for when all Nuggets except K-Mart are supposed to be back from various injuries and suspensions. And it goes on. The next game is at Oklahoma, and that team has recently been totally devastated by injuries. It's getting really creepy.

Tonight the Sonics were without their top two scorers. Strong forward Rashard Lewis (22 ppg) is out 2-3 months with a torn tendon in his right hand. And shooting guard Ray Allen (25 ppg) did not travel to Denver because his fiance had a baby on Wednesday. Center Chris Wilcox was so disgusted with the whole chain of events that he was double t'd and ejected near the end of the third quarter. The Sonics lost their fight after that.

But the Sonics played extremely tight b-ball in the first half, taking everything the loose Nuggets defense gave them, and making the Nuggets pay for a bunch of sloppy turnovers. But in the second half, they could not defend the Answer, who produced one of the best games of his career, an almost perfect display of basketball skill and will to win. The home crowd understandably went crazy, and the Sonics gradually wore out and lost their confidence that they could beat this monster.

Jamal Sampson, a C-F who has had almost no playing time until tonight, played 17 minutes and picked up 9 boards in that short time.

Reggie Evans had 18 rebounds, and Najera just 4, as the Nuggets totally dominated the boards all game long. Evans, who likes to go to the hoop, made 5 of his 6 free throws tonight and finished with 9 points. Najera was 4/4, and 1/1 on 3's for 9 points, and he had 3 assists and the 4 rebounds.

DerMarr Johnson played 29 minutes and he was 3/9 and 1/4 on 3's for 7 points. Other than 7 rebounds, Kleiza's night was a disaster, and he had to be pulled from the game early with 5 fouls and 5 turnovers.

With Nene out again due to the knee, George Karl has essentially run out of players. As a result, Diawara got massive playing time, 38 minutes. He was 2/8, 0/4 on 3's, and 4/4 from the line for 8 points. He also had 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Diawara showed some signs in late November and the first week of December but all the crazy stuff that's happened to the Nuggets recently and his being a starter too soon has taken a big toll on Diawara's game. Obviously, Karl thinks Diawara's game will return when things start to get back to normal, judging from the huge minutes Diawara had.

Many Iverson critics over the years have claimed that A.I. either can not or does not want to play the point. He always could play it, the relevant question was and is whether he wants to play it. And for the Nuggets, he clearly does want to play it. He had 10 of the Nuggets 16 assists.

In games similar to this one earlier this season, with a 10-12 point lead early in the 4th, the Nuggets would frequently have a bunch of turnovers and get torched to the point where they would lose the game. But with Iverson at the helm, there was no way that could happen. Iverson, with an assist from Boykins, broke the spirit of the Sonics, starting with the Wilcox ejection, to the point where the Sonics gave up.

The guy is playing his heart out just because he's happy. Specifically, he's happy to be playing for a team that has more wins than losses (16-10 now), and for a team that has a 10 point lead at the start of the 4th, instead of being 10 behind as was often the case in Philadelphia. It's like 1999-2000 all over again; Iverson is having dream games because he knows that there is a real possibility that this team can land in the finals. A.I. himself said recently that he feels as if he has been reborn.

So our new team captain was 17/29, 1/2 on 3's and 9/12 from the line for 44 points. To go with the 10 assists, he had 3 rebounds and 2 steals.

Earl Boykins has almost become Iverson #2, an even shorter and more improbable version of basketball will to win than Iverson himself. They are almost like soul mates who think and play in a very similar way, though Boykins is ultimately limited by being only 5'5" tall. In just 3 games, Iverson may have found his favorite run and gun partner of his whole career. Boykins was a superb 9/17, 1/2 on 3's and 5/6 from the line for 24 points. He played 31 minutes while A.I. played almost the whole game.

The next game is tomorrow night, (Friday, Dec. 29) in Oklahoma to play the Hornets at 6 pm mountain time.

A.I. Guides Nuggets Past Celtics 116-105

The Celtics were every bit as disadvantaged as the Nuggets were, being devastated with injuries. Swingmen Paul Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak, every bit as important to the Celtics as Melo and J.R. are to the Nuggets, were both out with injuries. The newest injury was to Szczerbiak (right ankle). Pierce is expected to be out 2-3 weeks with a foot injury. Along with these two, most of the Celtic's other veterans are out with injuries as well (Theo Ratliff, Michael Olowokandi, and Kendrick Perkins). The Celtics were left with only rookies and players in their second and third years. They were little more than a warmed over college team.

The Nuggets are also devastated right now, in their case due to two factors. There are the injuries to Camby (broken finger) and, of course, K-Mart, who is out for the year after knee surgery, with many fearing his career is over. And, thanks to the Huge, By Far The Biggest Of All Time David Stern Suspensions, handed out to Melo and J.R. Smith, the Nuggets roster was at least as devasted as that of the Celtics.

So the stage was set for a match up of the lineups from the twilight zone, featuring alot of players who are trying to earn playing time in the future who suddenly had alot of playing time right now. Except that the Nuggets had the crafty old veterans Najera and Boykins to take advantage of the Celtic's inexperience. And they had that guy who moved 1,600 miles so that he might not feel the burden of winning every game himself, yet still be in the running for a Championship. A guy who thinks he deserves to play without a superman suit on from now on, now that he is a respected 10-year veteran.

Of course, I suppose Iverson reserves the right in theory to "take over a game" if he thinks the conditions are right. There will be a few 4th quarters where we will see Iverson playing like superman, especially in the playoffs. Tonight, although Iverson wasn't going to allow the crippled Nuggets to lose to the crippled Celtics, he correctly sensed he did not need to take 30 shots to insure the win. He relied on his new second-team teammates, ran things with his 13 assists, and managed the win without unnecessary drama, exactly like the 10-year veteran who got tired of playing superman that he is.

Iverson's critics never thought that he would become one of the wisest veterans in the game, did they? And it looks like everyone who prediced that Melo and A.I. would "not get along" are going to have to try to forget they made that goofy prediction.

The forwards finally got some points tonight! Najera had points, for a change, to go with his 11 rebounds: 6/12, and 4/5 from the line for 16 points. And Nene had points, for a change, to go with the 14 rebounds he had: 5/11, and 2/4 from the line for 12 points. And Evans, who has already been getting points along with his rebounding, but only in limited playing time, got a whopping 30 minutes tonight and, sure enough, he got more points: he was 5/10, and 4/8 from the line, for 14 points, which went nicely with his 14 rebounds and 2 steals. For a while there, I was worried that Evans, who wants to go to the hole more often than not, and who is becoming a rebounding machine, might not be able to make even half his free throws, but he did get half of them tonight so I'm gonna say Evans played extremely well.

Diawara, whose game against the Kings on Friday was so bad that it apparently scared him into not taking hardly any shots in this game, was 1/2, getting a long-ranger, and picked up 5 rebounds. Like all rookies put into confusing starting roles by the thundering rulings of the League Commissioner, he ended up on last Friday trying to play outside his current level. Hopefully, tonight's game shows that he has gone back to the drawing board and will now try to stick to "playing within himself," instead of trying to do miracles, during the remainder of the marathon suspensions.

DerMarr Johnson played just 21 minutes and could not hit on any of four 3-point attempts. Not counting the shots from downtown, he was 3/7 for 6 points and he had 2 rebounds and 2 steals.

The sheer energy of Boykins continued to impress A.I., and he fed the little guy several times rather than take the shot himself. The dynamic duo had 56 points, exceeding the Melo/J.R. dynamic duo average. Boykins was 8/19 from the field, a huge 4/5 from downtown, and 8/8 from the line. He added 4 assists, 2 rebounds, and a steal. The Nuggets are 19th in the league from the line, so anyone who goes 8/8 earns respect just for that. But what about those 3's from the little guy? A.I was impressed, and since he was running things, that's all that mattered.

Iverson was 9/22 from the field, 1/2 from 3-point land, and 9/13 from the line for his 28 points, and he added the 13 assists, 4 steals, and 2 rebounds.

The next game will be Thursday Dec. 28 at home at 8:30 pm mountain time against Seattle.