Denver Nuggets - The Next Level [Game 3 + 4]

[[Hyperize]]

What year will the game let you go till?

[Andrew]

Pretty sure NBA Live 10 retains the 25 year limit.

[Kenny]

Wow, twelve players in double digits is something else. Epic win in that second to last round.

It was a huge achievement. It's one of the things I wanted to tick off my list. It's kind of the culture the real life Nuggets have too (although, I'm interested to see how Iguodala is going to impact that).

2025?? Oh my god man. This is still going strong! Congrats, I'll try to check more often

Thanks Thierry, it's good to see you back. I've actually been enjoying this so much lately that I've got a backlog of games to report on. I might have to look into a monthly format for the next season to accomodate how quickly I'm getting through them

What year will the game let you go till?

Pretty sure NBA Live 10 retains the 25 year limit.

I think the last season would be 34-35. I've been meaning to start a dummy dynasty to officially check that, but I have a feeling that's what it is. Since I need to save every cent I can for a possible exchange next year, I'll be continuing on with this game, rather than getting 2k13 or Live 13.

[Kenny]

5 Game Summary

The Pepsi Centre continued to be a fortress for the Nuggets, as they went undefeated once again in their 5 home games. Apart from Chicago and New Jersey, no other team got within 20 points of the Mile High City. Ominous signs for the rest of the league.

The feature is against the New Jersey Nets:

Nuggets Remain Perfect in Denver



The Denver Nuggets continued their unblemished home record by defeating the Nets by 91-79 in Denver. Taylor MacKenzie led the way for the Nuggets with 21. Both Mario Carlos and Julian Chandler scored 14 each, while James Palmer (13) and Vince MacMahon (11) both had solid contributions at the point.

New Jersey had two contributors with over 20 points, with Christian O'Dwyer (23) and Nicholas Schneider (22) providing their offensive backbone. However, they had little help, as Conrad Henry was the only other double digit scorer with 11.

-------------

NJN@DEN

DEN: 91 (MacKenzie 21, Carlos 14, Chandler 14)
NJN: 79 (O'Dwyer 23, Schneider 22, Henry 11)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Taylor MacKenzie 21 points 4 rebounds 1 block 3 steals

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 8
NJN: Garcia 15

Assists

DEN: Griffiths, Perko 5
NJN: O'Dwyer 5

-------------

Last 5 Games

PHX: 93-70 W
SAC: 106-80 W
BOS: 109-73 W
CHI: 102-89 W
NJN: 91-79 W

Overall: 18-2

-------------

A New Record

Just when you think Perko's having a quiet season, he goes and breaks Scott Skiles' assists-in-a-game record. Borislav had 21 rebounds and 31 assists. How often do you see a player have a 20-20 game and score only 4 points?

And From Out of Nowhere...

In the massive blowout against the Celtics, Julian Chandler made the most of some extra minutes by scoring 27 points. He's gone from being a benchwarmer to a potential starter.

Still Standing

Stan has been more of a defensive role player this season, but every now and then, he's proven that he can still be a difference maker on the offensive end. Against Chicago he had 26 points and 10 rebounds.

The Super Subs

Vince MacMahon and Mario Carlos have both provided great energy off the bench for the Nuggets this season. Against the Kings, Vince had 23 points and 5 assists, while Mario scored 20.

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Next 5 Games

NYK
WAS
OKC
@CLE
@TOR

[Kenny]

5 Game Summary

The Nuggets completed their home stand without losing, with wins against the Knicks, Wizards and Thunder. They however faulted in their first road game, losing in Cleveland, ending their win streak at 11. They bounced back in Toronto in the last game, thanks to a contribution from an old enemy.

The feature is against the Washington Wizards

Denver Stretch Streak to Ten



The Denver Nuggets prevailed against the Washington Wizards by a score of 86-81. James Palmer led the way for Denver with 24 points. It was a good game for the Denver wingmen once again, with Taylor MacKenzie (17), Mario Carlos (14) and Julian Chandler (10) all contributing to the cause.

For the Wizards, both Adrian Carroll (29) and Patrick Vaughn (28) had outstanding games, while Nach Carlos scored 11.

-------------

WAS@DEN

DEN: 86 (Palmer 24, MacKenzie 17, M Carlos 14)
WAS: 81 (Carroll 29, Vaughn 28, N Carlos 11

Sprite Performer of the Game: James Palmer 24 points 1 rebound 1 assist 2 steals

Rebounds

DEN: Griffiths 10
WAS: Herrmann 15

Assists

DEN: MacMahon 6
WAS: Vaughn 6

-------------

Last 5 Games

NYK: 91-84 W
WAS: 86-81 W
OKC: 113-78 W
@CLE: 98-93 L
@TOR: 88-80 W

Overall: 22-3

-------------

Big Night Dwight

At 40, it looked like this season was just easing Howard into retirement. But then against OKC, he had 31 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks.

Almost

Taylor MacKenzie did his best to carry the Nuggets to victory over the Cavs, with 26 points. Unfortunately, Denver fell short.

The Old Enemy

For Denver fans, it's still a weird thing seeing Ollie Rose in a Nuggets jersey; and not just because he's been in suits for a good part of this season. He used to have epic battles against J.R. Smith; now he's trying to win a ring in Earl's city. Against the Raptors, he scored 22 points.

First Start

Julian Chandler had a tidy debut as a starter against the Knicks, with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. If he keeps it up, Dennis Anderson's days with the Nuggets look numbered.

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Next 5 Games

@NYK
@IND
DAL
MEM
NOH

[Valor]

At 40...he had 31 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks.

Wait..WHAT!? Greatest performance by a 40 year old in the history of the NBA maybe?

[Andrew]

A couple more strong rounds there. Great to see Perko pick up another record.

[Kenny]

At 40...he had 31 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 blocks.

Wait..WHAT!? Greatest performance by a 40 year old in the history of the NBA maybe?

Possibly on an individual game stand point, but then again, I had a 41 year old Chauncey Billups win a Finals MVP trophy

A couple more strong rounds there. Great to see Perko pick up another record.

That game was particularly fun. I always envisioned Perko breaking that record at some stage, so I'm glad to knock off that little milestone.

[Kenny]

5 Game Summary

The Nuggets started this summary with two monstrous wins on the East Coast. If you thought a 29 point thumping of New York was huge, the 48 point massacre of Indiana was something to behold. Dallas got the Nuggets a little closer to Earth, while Memphis were beaten convincingly as well. Just as it looked like the Nuggets were becoming the next dream team, the unthinkable happened. They lost one; at home!

But, we shall go back to the game against the Grizzlies:

Nuggets Maul Grizzlies, Win Eleventh Straight



Denver had 4 players with 20 points or more in their 104-84 win over Memphis. Mario Carlos and Taylor MacKenzie led the way with 23 each. James Palmer was also a healthy contributor with 21, while Julian Chandler continued his rise from obscurity, with 20.

For the Grizzlies, only one player scored more than 20, as Ambrose Schwarz had 24 points and 4 assists. Tangeni Chiwira (17), Kitt Vine (14) and Daniel O'Reilly (12) all had decent contributions, but the Nuggets offense was far too strong in comparison.

------------

MEM@DEN

DEN: 104 (Carlos 23, MacKenzie 23, Palmer 21)
MEM: 84 (Schwarz 24, Chiwira 17, Vine 14)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Taylor MacKenzie 23 points 5 rebounds 2 assists 2 steals

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 18
MEM: Chiwira 8

Assists

DEN: MacMahon 8
MEM: Schwarz 5

------------

Last 5 Games

@NYK: 88-59 W
@IND: 121-73 W
DAL: 96-84 W
MEM: 104-84 W
NOH: 98-84 L

Overall: 26-4

------------

Big City, Big Performance

Taylor MacKenzie loves the big stage, and they don't come much bigger than Madison Square Garden. He poured in 37 against the Knicks.

MIP Candidate

Julian Chandler continued to impress in his bigger role. Against the Pacers, he had 27 points.

More Consistency

James Palmer had 4 games over 20 points this round, with the best being 26 against the Mavericks. He also had games of 25 (New York), 22 and 9 assists (Indiana) and 21 (Memphis).

Against the Best

Despite losing to the Hornets, there were plenty of positives that came out of the game. Playing against Hobbes MacDonald, Mario Carlos didn't back down from the challenge, as he scored 23. The Detroit loss earlier in the season still remains to be the only game where he hasn't registered double-figure-scoring

------------

Next 5 Games

@POR
@UTA
@GSW
@LAC
@PHX

With 5 away games, the next summary will be the annual green summary.

[Kenny]

December 2025 Review

Denver is the best team in the league right now; but they have nobody in the MVP race. It makes us ponder; who is the Nuggets' MVP this season?

The Nuggets are a 10-man team on any given night. Guys like James Palmer, Taylor MacKenzie and Mario Carlos have all been fairly regular contributors on the offensive end. In December, Julian Chandler also emerged as a threat, as he was promoted to the starting lineup.

With such offensive strike power, Borislav Perko has been allowed to accept a smaller role within the team. But as he showed against the Phoenix Suns, he can still put up some gigantic numbers of his own.

This dynasty now rolls into the year 2026. The next 5 games will be played in Denver's green uniform, so I hope everyone is taking their flying hybrid cars to the away fixtures.


Monthly Awards

EAST Player: [NJN] Nicholas Schneider (26.5ppg 3rpg 2.9apg)
WEST Player: [NOH] Hobbes MacDonald (21.9ppg 5.5rpg 2spg)
EAST Rookie: [CLE] Walter Rutherford (10.3ppg 2.7rpg 1apg)
WEST Rookie: [DEN] Mario Carlos (14.7ppg 1.9rpg 2.3spg)

MVP Race

[NOH] Hobbes MacDonald (25.6ppg 5.2rpg 2spg)
[NOH] Caleb Vick (20.8ppg 3.6rpg 3.4apg)
[NJN] Nicholas Schneider (24.9ppg 4.4apg 1.3spg)
[HOU] Austin Nolan (21.4ppg 7apg 1.2spg)
[IND] Murray Koch (21.6ppg 6.1apg 1.7spg)

Standings

EAST

Chicago 21-8
Miami 18-10
Detroit 17-10
New Jersey 17-13
Boston 17-15
New York 14-12
Charlotte 17-16
Cleveland 15-15
---
Orlando 14-17
Milwaukee 13-17
Washington 12-17
Philadelphia 13-19
Toronto 11-18
Indiana 12-20
Atlanta 7-24


WEST

Denver 26-4
Portland 20-8
New Orleans 22-11
Minnesota 20-12
Golden State 17-12
LA Lakers 17-13
San Antonio 17-14
Sacramento 16-16
---
Dallas 15-17
Houston 14-20
LA Clippers 13-18
Oklahoma City 13-18
Phoenix 12-19
Memphis 10-19
Utah 6-24

[Andrew]

Shame that home loss came about to put an end to the streak, but that was a very solid run. Strange to see you without an MVP candidate, but good to see your promising rookie take home the Month's honours.

[Kenny]

I'm actually beginning to wonder if I'll have an all-star. I've spread the offensive production over several players, so there's nobody there that really stands out.

[Kenny]

The Green Summary

The annual green summary started off with a contentious loss against the Blazers. With the game tied at 92, Stan Griffiths was called for a three second violation, giving Wyatt Walsh the game winning free throw. The Nuggets followed that up with convincing wins over Utah and Golden State, but then dropped another game. This time, it was against the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Nuggets then finished off this round of 5 games with the feature against Phoenix:

Nuggets Overpower Suns



The Denver Nuggets made light work of the Phoenix Suns, winning by 88-59. Taylor MacKenzie was the top scorer, with 20 points. Stan Griffiths was more involved with this one, with 14 points and 9 rebounds, while Mario Carlos and Julian Chandler scored 12 each. But once again, it was Borislav Perko who was the most influential against Phoenix. He registered a triple-double (10 points, 10 rebounds, 15 assists) over old teammate George Power. This continues on his dominance in the rivalry, as the previous game between the two, he set the NBA record for assists in a game.

Speaking of George Power, he was the Suns top scorer, with 12 points. Brice Alan and Justin Wallace scored 11 each to round out an awful night on the offensive end for the Suns.

-------------

DEN@PHX

DEN: 88 (MacKenzie 20, Griffiths 14, M Carlos 12)
PHX: 59 (Power 12, Alan 11, Wallace 11)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Borislav Perko 10 points 10 rebounds 15 assists 3 blocks

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 10
PHX: Wallace 7

Assists

DEN: Perko 15
PHX: S Carlos 5

-------------

Last 5 Games

@POR: 93-92 L
@UTA: 89-64 W
@GSW: 83-73 W
@LAC: 90-88 L
@PHX: 88-59 W

Overall: 29-6

-------------

Evergreen

The green jersey brought out the best of Taylor MacKenzie against Portland, as he scored 52. Unfortunately, a controversial 3 second call against Stan Griffiths on the defensive end gave the game to Portland.

Making a Name for Himself

Mario Carlos is continuing to improve his already impressive rookie season. Against the Clippers, he had 34 points off the the bench.

The Spark

The Nuggets had a really lethargic start against the cellar dweller Jazz; but when Kevin Durant came into the game, he took the game away from Utah. He scored 20 points.

Another Bright Prospect

John Rice has been used sparingly over the course of his rookie season, but it's looking like he's ready to breakout. With James Palmer in foul trouble, he made the most of his extended minutes, by scoring 18 points.

-------------

Next 5 Games

MIN
@DAL
@DAL
@SAN
@SAN

[Kenny]

Badreligionau Plays the NBA 2k13 Demo

phpBB [video]

Kind of unusual for me to post something like this in here, but I thought it'd be interesting. I documented my first (and currently, only) play of the NBA 2k13 demo on PS3. Please note, I'm going to draw a lot of comparisons to NBA Live 10 for the following reasons:

1) The most obvious: I've played it a lot.
2) Apart from NBA Live 08, it's the only other NBA game I've played on PS3. I've previously played NBA 2k10 and 2k11 on PC, with the exception of the that one time at Sit's place where I played 2k11 on X-Box 360.

The controller system actually wasn't a huge deal for me. I'm used to right stick dribbling moves, and I actually think the NBA Live 10 system is more intuitive. In fact, in playing this, I realised what a strength for NBA Live 10 the control system really is, because I was hitting R2 and the right stick, trying to pull off a freestyle pass. Playing this demo, it was the first time in years I actually used X to pass to the ball to anyone besides the point guard. This was probably the biggest adjustment I had to make, as the flow of my offense in NBA Live 10 is usually dictated by my ability to use that freestyle passing feature.

My defense, as you could see, was pretty awful throughout the quarter. I laughed pretty hard when the first play of the game resulted in a clear lane for LeBron to dunk. I realised that for me, this game would probably have a steeper learning curve to that of NBA Live 10. This isn't a negative point, just an observation.

Overall, I enjoyed the demo. It probably won't convince me to buy the game, or even really take time away from this dynasty, but it shows that 2k13 is going to be a solid game.

Hopefully if I can find a better way to record my screen, I can record myself playing a quarter or two with my dynasty team

First, I need to figure out what that black dot is on my screen

[Andrew]

Nice change of pace getting your thoughts on the demo. I'll be posting mine in the NBA 2K13 section in the not too distant future.

Back to the Dynasty...definitely a tough call there against the Blazers, but kind of cool when true to life stuff like that happens...except of course when it comes about due to a bug, which I'm sure we've all experienced at one time or another. Shame it put a damper on MacKenzie's big night, but on the whole you're still going strong.

[The X]

Agreed that 2K13 is looking very, very solid. If there was a year you took the leap, this is it

Also agreed that Live's control system is more intuitive. Shame they couldn't get gameplay better. But hey, you can't have them all. Shame the consumer can't get a hybrid between the two.

[Kenny]

Nice change of pace getting your thoughts on the demo. I'll be posting mine in the NBA 2K13 section in the not too distant future.

Back to the Dynasty...definitely a tough call there against the Blazers, but kind of cool when true to life stuff like that happens...except of course when it comes about due to a bug, which I'm sure we've all experienced at one time or another. Shame it put a damper on MacKenzie's big night, but on the whole you're still going strong.

It was a legit 3 seconds, so I wasn't annoyed about that; I was moreso surprised that it was called. I have a tendency to camp sometimes when I'm trying to limit penetration to the basket. Perimeter defense isn't exactly a strength of mine

Agreed that 2K13 is looking very, very solid. If there was a year you took the leap, this is it

Also agreed that Live's control system is more intuitive. Shame they couldn't get gameplay better. But hey, you can't have them all. Shame the consumer can't get a hybrid between the two.

This would be a year I'd make the jump, but as I've mentioned before, I'm looking to save every cent I can, since I'm applying for an exchange program next year. So it's going to be at least another 6-12 months of NBA Live 10.

With the freestyle passing, I agree it's definitely more intuitive. With the dribbling, I've kind of changed my mind a little. The spin moves you can do in 2k13 (including that awesome one JaoSming did) made me feel like 2k13 have the slight edge on the dribbling. In saying that though, Live 10 has it on the overall control system. I think a third candidate should come out and combine the best of both worlds

[Kenny]

5 Game Summary

This summary had some Dream Team-esque blowouts. The Nuggets won by margins of 42, 29 and 29, before being surprisingly beaten by the San Antonio Spurs by 4.

Luckily for them, it proved to be an anomaly:

Nuggets Get Revenge Against Spurs



After losing the previous encounter, the Denver Nuggets won 97-70 against San Antonio in the second game. They were able to bounce back from their shock 80-76 loss thanks to a huge game by James Palmer. Palmer was 3 points off registering a 50 point game, as he scored 47 points, along with 7 assists and 5 steals. He did the bulk of the damage for the Nuggets, while Julian Chandler (11), Taylor MacKenzie (11) and Mario Carlos (10) had minor contributions.

It was a completely different story for the Spurs, as only two of their players surpassed double figures, with Maxwell Hall being their best with 22 points and 4 assists. Njabulo Nyoni (15) was the other double digit scorer, while Tristan Gray and Zack McLoughlin both scored 8 each.

-----------

DEN@SAN

DEN: 97 (Palmer 47, Chandler 11, MacKenzie 11)
SAN: 70 (Hall 22, Nyoni 15, Gray 8)

Sprite Performer of the Game: James Palmer 47 points 3 rebounds 7 assists 5 steals 1 block

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 9
SAN: Gray 11

Assists

DEN: Perko 8
SAN: Hall 4

-----------

Last 5 Games

MIN: 97-57 W
@DAL: 113-84 W
@DAL: 105-76 W
@SAN: 80-76 L
@SAN: 97-70 W

Overall: 33-7

-----------

Becoming More Involved

After having a passive start to the year, we're starting to see more of the classic Perko. In the demolition of Minnesota, he had 14 points, 11 rebounds, 17 assists and 4 blocks. He also had a triple-double (12 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists) in the second game against Dallas.

More Bench Production

Vince MacMahon once again proved to be explosive off the bench, with 25 points and 7 assists against Dallas in the second game.

More Minutes

John Rice once again made the most of his minutes, scoring 14 against the Spurs.

There's a Pulse

Jim Simon's sophomore campaign has been largely erratic, but his 11 points against Dallas proved that he can still contribute to the team cause.

-----------

Next 5 Games

OKC
UTA
GSW
LAC
LAL

-----------

Trade Announcement: MacDonald Leaves New Orleans!

In a move that shocked the NBA community, Hobbes MacDonald was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves for centre Luis Carlos. It's been widely speculated that Hobbes MacDonald, an unrestricted free agent this summer, was going to leave New Orleans in the offseason.

[Kenny]

My Name is Carlos

Throughout my summaries, I've noticed that the last name Carlos is quite common in NBA Live 10. In my roster alone, I've had three players with this last name (Jesus, Alejandro and Mario). So, how many players in the league have the name Carlos? Here's what I found:

ATL: Vincenzo Carlos
CLE: Romano Carlos
DAL: Daniel Carlos
DEN: Mario Carlos
GSW: Luis Carlos
IND: Pablo Carlos
MEM: Emmanuel Carlos
MIL: Miguel Carlos
NJN: Carlos Durand
NOH: Luis Carlos
OKC: Romano Carlos
PHX: Sergio Carlos
SAN: Pablo Carlos
TOR: Alejandro Carlos
WAS: Nach Carlos
Free Agency: Rafael Carlos

Overall: 16 guys with the name Carlos, with three names an exact double (Luis, Pablo and Romano)

Is Carlos the new Smith? Has anyone else noticed a common generated last name in their dynasties/associations?

[Martti.]

Pretty interesting, as there has been just one in the NBA.

Perko needs to drop more triple-doubles to get into the MVP discussion.

[Andrew]

Solid round there once again.

Looks like Carlos is indeed the new Smith. The name generation in NBA Live does leave something to be desired at times.

[Kenny]

Pretty interesting, as there has been just one in the NBA.

Perko needs to drop more triple-doubles to get into the MVP discussion.

And that one Carlos ended up being a pioneer for a generation

I agree with that statement about Perko. Hopefully we'll see more.

Solid round there once again.

Looks like Carlos is indeed the new Smith. The name generation in NBA Live does leave something to be desired at times.

Like the X's story, I'm waiting for a Carlos Carlos (he had Andrew Andrew IIRC). Hoping it'll happen at some point

[Kenny]

Three years ago today, this thread started. It's now spanned 67 pages, and had over 70,000 views.

I thought for this year, I'd look at the season that corresponds with the upcoming NBA season. It was a season of threes, as Denver won the threepeat, beating Detroit in 5 games; while on a more realistic note, LeBron James won his third season MVP award. Carmelo picked up his third Finals MVP trophy.

While there have been more illustrious Denver sides in this dynasty, this team managed to do something that Kobe Bryant couldn't; win a championship with Smush Parker. And isn't that the most impressive fact of all?


Roster Notes

-Taylor MacKenzie entered the league. He announced himself in the very first game of the season, hitting the game winner against the Timberwolves.
-Ty Maximilian was coming off a massive playoff series, where he was arguably the Finals MVP.
-Shaq wasn't a terrible analyst taking cheap shots at Dwight Howard. He was a member of the Denver Nuggets. It would be his last season in the NBA.
-Chris Andersen wasn't amnestied by the Denver Nuggets. In fact, he was the defensive backbone of the team.
-Arron Afflalo, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups were still members of the Denver Nuggets.
-Smush Parker got another chance in the NBA. He ended up winning a ring - LeBron James never did.
-Ray Allen didn't go to the Miami Heat. Like Shaq, he finished his career with the Denver Nuggets.
-Grant Hill went on to win his second ring with the Nuggets. He went on for one more season before he called it quits.


The 2012-2013 Team







---

In hindsight, I should have gotten more shots of Arron Afflalo

[Andrew]

Congrats on the milestone! Three years and still going strong.

Nice look back at the season that was, which in real life is the season which is about to be. I'm not sure the real Nuggets will do quite so well or be quite as interesting, though there's certainly a decent amount of intrigue there with their offseason moves.

[Houndy]

Hey Kenny, gratz on hitting this amazing milestone!