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

Man, they together will have a lot of tattoos.

I Guess Robert was Hangin with Birdman,

If only I still had Kenyon Martin! Birdman has had a great comeback with Denver... hopefully Rob can as well.

At least you still got Earl Smith III.

That's true, I probably still have the most tattooed team in the NBA, even without Kenyon Martin.

I'm beginning to put Big Ben on IR during away games,

Why's that?

He's getting old and closer to retirement, hence he doesn't make all the road trips anymore. I know it's a game, but I'm trying to keep the realism I suppose to make it interesting

I'll take this opportunity to refresh everyone on what my current roster is:

that is one rugged roster

i thought you'd get thin with Lou Williams backing Billups, but then realized you also have Lawson

hope you can take out the Lakeshow and get Billups and Big Ben more rings!

I'll take this opportunity to refresh everyone on what my current roster is:

that is one rugged roster

i thought you'd get thin with Lou Williams backing Billups, but then realized you also have Lawson

hope you can take out the Lakeshow and get Billups and Big Ben more rings!

Ty Lawson doesn't see many minutes either though with Mario Chalmers in the side. Billups definitely deserves atleast one more ring

5 Game Summary

What a run Denver are on, winning all 5 of these games to take their winning streak to 7 and put pressure on the Lakers for top position in the conference, with a record of 44-19. Everything is clicking at the moment... Melo is having big scoring nights, the Birdman is hitting the boards with ferocity and Chauncey has kept the offense together. The likes of Smith, Beasley and Bonner have been chipping in as well. The feature game is against the Chicago Bulls in Chicago

Melo show arrives in Chi-town



For the second time this month, Carmelo Anthony has passed the 50 point mark, this time against a more team oriented Bulls. Melo scored 19 of his 58 in the first quarter, getting Denver off to a 16-0 run. However Derrick Rose and his team mates rallied together, at one point having a lead against Denver. But for the offense lacking in the rest of the Denver team, Melo more than made up for, carrying them to a 93-85 win.

Apart from Melo, only Earl Smith was in double figures (10) and Matt Bonner was close (9). Chicago probably had the better team performance of the night, with Derrick Rose (21), John Salmons (17), Joakim Noah (16) and Kirk Hinrich (16) all contributing to the cause. This wasn't enough for them, as Melo not only put up an amazing scoring effort, but also came up with 6 assists and 6 steals to go with his 58 points. Once again he had an opposition crowd chanting "MVP" for him... maybe these people are onto something.
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DEN@CHI

DEN: 93 (Anthony 58, Smith 10, Bonner 9)
CHI: 85 (Rose 21, Salmons 17, Noah 16, Hinrich 16)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Carmelo Anthony 58 points 6 assists 6 steals

Rebounds

DEN: Andersen 13
CHI: Noah 13

Assists

DEN: Anthony 6
CHI: Rose 7
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Last 5 Games

DEN@WAS: 82-75 W
DEN@BOS: 90-75 W
DEN@CHI: 93-85 W
DAL@DEN: 95-69 W
MEM@DEN: 72-64 W

Next 5 Games

NOH
@MIN
DAL
HOU
SAN

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Air Bonner


Matt Bonner gets away from the perimeter shot to throw down this sweet dunk.


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The next feature game will be up against Minnesota. After the next 5, the month of March will be done.

Melo is unstoppable.

Melo's out of this world

Melo was awesome, but to more important stuff - Matt Bonner dunking?

Huge game from Anthony. Shame it had to come at the Bulls' expense.

Bonner with the sweet finish.

Melo is unstoppable.

Melo's out of this world

Yes and yes. Melo is playing some amazing basketball at the moment.

Melo was awesome, but to more important stuff - Matt Bonner dunking?

Bonner with the sweet finish.

See, he'd be the ultimate player if he could throw them down like that more often. But the times that he does, I saver them

Huge game from Anthony. Shame it had to come at the Bulls' expense.

It's always sad to beat the Bulls, because they were once such an awesome team. I always consider choosing them for a dynasty, but I find it hard to go past my favourite team. That and you always do great stories about them.

5 Game Recap

Denver narrowly defeated the lowly New Orleans Hornets in a double-overtime encounter. It was Earl Smith's 2 pointer in the dying stages that saw them finally overcome the West's cellar dwellers. After the win against Minnesota, Denver were on a roll. However the Nuggets winning streak ended at 9 with a narrow 3 point loss to the Dallas Mavericks. They also lost the next game against Houston in overtime. However, they managed to beat the third Texan team they met, beating San Antonio 82-77. The feature game of the round is Denver vs Minnesota, and here's how it shaped up:

New look Minnesota still no match for the Nuggets



A mid season trade saw the Minnesota Timberwolves acquire Hedo Turkoglu from the Toronto Raptors for Von Wafer and Will Bynum, and he looked good during the game, scoring a game high 23 points. However, the Denver Nuggets lead by Carmelo Anthony were too good for them once again, as they came out 78-62 winners. Melo scored a reasonably subdue 20 points, with Michael Beasley got the Sprite Performer of the Game with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Other double figure scorers for Denver on the night were Earl Smith (13) and Chauncey Billups (10), who also flirted with a double-double with 8 assists as well.

Despite possibly pulling off the trade of the season a little less than two months ago, the Minnesota just didn't look like they were in the same stadium as Denver.

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DEN@MIN

DEN: 78 (Anthony 20, Smith 13, Beasley 12, Billups 10)
MIN: 62 (Turkoglu 23, Jefferson 10, Boozer 9, Brewer 9)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Michael Beasley 12 points 8 rebounds 3 blocks

Rebounds

DEN: Andersen 10
MIN: Jefferson 10

Assists

DEN: Billups 8
MIN: Turkoglu, Flynn 3

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Last 5 games

DEN@NOH: 94-92 (2OT) W
DEN@MIN: 78-62 W
DAL@DEN: 76-73 L
HOU@DEN: 112-99 (OT) L
SAN@DEN: 82-77 W

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Two Reds are better than one


I had to make some lame reference or pun about having to redheads on my team

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Next 5 Games

CHI
ORL
PHI
WAS
@PHO

The feature game will be against the Washington Wizards.
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With the end of the month near, the next report will be the March summary. Denver are currently 47-21.

Damn,Swift doesn't have those tattoo's.

A very tough 5 games and you still managed to finish 3-2. Good work.

Rockets killed you in OT.

Good job finishing 3-2 in your last five! Bonner with a jam against Memphis was tight. Look at his emotion too! LOL

Good updates!

Damn,Swift doesn't have those tattoo's.

I know, I was disappointed too...

A very tough 5 games and you still managed to finish 3-2. Good work.

Thanks mate, hopefully I can keep winning. Not too long til the playoffs.

Rockets killed you in OT.

Yep, McGrady thought it was 2002

Good job finishing 3-2 in your last five! Bonner with a jam against Memphis was tight. Look at his emotion too! LOL

Good updates!

Bonner plays with pure emotion. He's way cooler than Chuck Norris in my opinion

Is that Wade on the Wolves? What does their roster look like?

Is that Wade on the Wolves? What does their roster look like?

I Think it's Al.

Is that Wade on the Wolves? What does their roster look like?

Is that Wade on the Wolves? What does their roster look like?

I Think it's Al.

That would be Al Jefferson. D-Wade is still a member of the Heat organisation. The wolves starting 5 looks like this:

C: Al Jefferson
PF: Carlos Boozer
SF: Hedo Turkoglu
SG: Corey Brewer
PG: Jonny Flynn

6th: Kevin Love

March Summary

March turned out to be a big month for Melo and the Nuggets. Although they're still 2nd in the West behind the Lakers, they're still in a good position to get to the top with 47-21 (Lakers are 49-22).

Melo wins West Player of the Month again



Carmelo Anthony capped off a brilliant month by winning the West Player of the Month. He is now second on the MVP race behind East Player of the Month Dwyane Wade. For the month, Melo averaged 26.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.7 steals per game. Hopefully for the Nuggets his form can stay like this in the run into and during the playoffs.

Monthly Awards

EAST Player: [MIA] Dwyane Wade (27.4ppg, 3.2rpg, 2.8apg, 1.6bpg, 1.8spg)
WEST Player: [DEN] Carmelo Anthony (26.5ppg, 3.7rpg, 2.2apg, 2.7spg)
EAST Rookie: [MIA] Reuben Walker (12.2ppg, 7.1apg)
WEST Rookie: [OKC] Stanley Alston (13.9ppg, 2.1rpg, 3.7apg, 1bpg, 1.5spg)

MVP Rankings

[MIA] Dwyane Wade (24.7ppg, 2.8rpg, 2.8apg)
[DEN] Carmelo Anthony (21.3ppg, 4rpg, 2.2apg, 1.8spg)
[LAL] Pau Gasol (16.7ppg, 8.6rpg, 1.2bpg)
[CLE] Mo Williams (17.7ppg, 5.3apg, 1spg)
[CLE] Lebron James (20.7ppg, 4.3rpg, 1.6bpg)

Standings

EAST
-------
Cleveland 53-18
Washington 43-29
New Jersey 41-30
Orlando 40-30
Atlanta 39-32
Boston 39-32
Philadelphia 37-33
Milwaukee 34-36
---
Detroit 35-37
Miami 33-37
Chicago 30-39
Toronto 30-40
New York 28-42
Indiana 27-42
Charlotte 27-45


WEST
-------
LA Lakers 49-22
Denver 47-21
Oklahoma City 42-30
Houston 39-29
Sacramento 39-29
LA Clippers 42-32
Portland 39-35
San Antonio 36-35
---
Dallas 33-37
Phoenix 33-38
Memphis 31-40
Minnesota 27-44
Golden State 23-47
Utah 24-48
New Orleans 19-52
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My next 5 games will be up after this. Only 14 games til the playoffs

5 Game Summary

Once again through this 5 game round, the Nuggets went 3-2. They realised how vunerable they were without Melo in the game against Orlando, getting blown out 96-81. Anthony had foul trouble throughout the game. As well as this they got beaten by a gutsy 76ers side. They now sit 50-23. The feature game is against second best in the East, the Washington Wizards.

Super Mario Stars in win against the Wizards



Although troubled at times, the Denver Nuggets ended up with a comprehensive win over the Washington Wizards, beating them 77-65.

With Earl Smith copping a 1 match suspension for descent in the loss against Philadelphia, Arron Afflalo came into the starting lineup and registered 12 points. Melo scored 14 in a slightly off game and Beasley scored 12 and grabbed 10 boards. But it was the other player involved in Denver's big trade this season that came up huge. Mario Chalmers scored 26 points and dished off 5 assists from the bench, and was truly the difference in the game. His explosive night has come at a welcome time, with the Nuggets dropping a few games close to the playoffs.

For the Wizards, controversial star Gilbert Arenas was the high point man with 28 points. He was supported by Antawn Jamison with 16 points, but they were the only two for the Wizards with double figure scoring.
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WAS@DEN

DEN: 77 (Chalmers 26, Anthony 14, Beasley 12, Afflalo 12)
WAS: 65 (Arenas 28, Jamison 16, Miller 9, Blatche 8)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Carmelo Anthony 14 points 3 rebounds 3 assists

Rebounds

DEN: Andersen 11
WAS: Blatche 14

Assists

DEN: Chalmers 5
WAS: Arenas 8
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Last 5 Games

CHI@DEN: 93-85 W
ORL@DEN: 96-81 L
PHI@DEN: 80-70 L
WAS@DEN: 77-65 W
DEN@PHO: 71-67 W

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Super Mario


Mario Chalmers has been in great form of late. Along with his 26 against Washington, he scored 11 points against Phoenix and troubled Steve Nash all game. Check out this 4 point play he made against the Suns:

phpBB [video]

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Next 5 Games

@LAC
@GSW
@SAC
@OKC
@UTA

The feature game will be against Sacramento.

[Kenny]

Last 9 regular season games

Well, I looked at the standing of the West, and since Sacramento were about 7 games behind me, I simulated the last 4. Following the loss to the LA Clippers, the Denver Nuggets won the last 4 games I played with them. Unfortunately since I jumped to the playoff mode, I forgot to record the end scores for all these games. I do tend to get a bit eager towards the end of the season. However, as they were simulating, I was able to get the scores from the 4 I simulated:

DEN@MEM: 66-56 L
DEN@MEM: 101-73 W
DEN@NOH: 94-46 L
DEN@SAN: 110-86 W

Gotta love simulated games

Earl's improved defense


Against Sacramento, Earl Smith got the Sprite Performer of the Game, however it wasn't for his offense. He only scored 10 points on the night, but he managed to get 5 rebounds and 6 (you read it right, it's no typo) blocks

Mario's last 4 games (user controlled)



Vs Golden State: 16
Vs Sacramento: 14
Vs Oklahoma City: 12
Vs Utah: 27


Seems like I'm learning about some things in this game the hard way (well, recovering scores anyway). But hey, this dynasty has atleast another season in it, so hopefully I can learn from my mistakes.

Last edited by Kenny on Sun Jan 10, 2010 1:04 am, edited 1 time in total.

Before I get to the end of year review and awards, I thought I'd share my favourite plays from the season. Here they are:

Afflalo's clutch dunk

phpBB [video]

An assist, Birdman style

phpBB [video]

Smith's layup

phpBB [video]

Maximilian throws it down

phpBB [video]

Melo's amazing shot and 1

phpBB [video]

Air Bonner

phpBB [video]

[Kenny]

End of Season Report

Standings

------------------------------
EAST TOP 8

Cleveland 58-24
Washington 50-32
Orlando 50-32
Boston 46-36
New Jersey Nets 45-37
Philadelphia 44-38
Atlanta 43-39
Milwaukee 40-42

WEST TOP 8

LA Lakers 59-23
Denver 56-26
Houston 49-33
Sacramento 48-34
LA Clippers 46-36
Oklahoma City 46-36
Portland 41-41
San Antonio 41-41
-----------------------------------

Birdman and Bonner amongst the award recipients



Denver have capped off a great year by having two individual award winners and good representation in the All teams. Chris Andersen won the Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in rebounds and blocked shots, while Matt Bonner got recognition for his efforts by winning the 6th man award.

Amongst the team recipients, Andersen and Anthony were announced in the first All-NBA team, while Beasley was a shock selection for the second team. Birdman once again appeared in the All Defensive First team, while Anthony was also there after leading the league in steals. An honor most people would never pick Melo to win.


The Award Winners

MVP: (previous winner: Lebron James)

[LAL] Pau Gasol: Amongst the MVP race leaders throughout the season, however I thought it was going to be between Wade and Melo. Thought D-Wade might have gotten robbed here, but Pau put up a great season with 16.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.

Most Improved Player: (previous winner: Channing Frye)

[DET] Ben Gordon: I wasn't quite sure how much he could of improved since I already thought he was a star of the game, but obviously the judges in the game thought otherwise. He put up numbers of 16.9 points, 2.7 assists and 1 steal per game.

Defensive Player of the Year: previous winner: Josh Smith)

[DEN] Chris Andersen: The Birdman has been outstanding in protecting the nest this year. He led the league in rebounds per game (10.1) and blocks per game (2.3).

Rookie of the Year: (previous winner: Stephen Curry)

[MIA] Reuben Walker: Whilst D-Wade didn't win MVP, Walker ended up with the highest rookie honor. He had great competition from Stanley Alston the whole year, but in the end, Reuben won it by a narrow margin, with averages of 10 points and 5.6 assists per game.

6th Man: (previous winner: Malik Allen)

[DEN] Matt Bonner: Bonner has become a fan favourite, and why not? He provides points off the bench when Denver need it, which includes an excellent 3 point stroke. He averaged 7.3 points and 2.5 rebounds per game.

Scoring champion (previous winner: Dwyane Wade)

[MIA] Dwyane Wade: Although Melo had a strong chance towards the end of the season, D-Wade lead the points all season long and ended up a little over 200 points more than Anthony. One of the game's elite offensive players.

Coach of the Year: (previous winner: Doc Rivers)

[LAL] Phil Jackson: What's there left to say about this guy? He's one of the all-time greatest coaches in the history of the game and he took his Lakers team to the top of the Western Conference. As much as I hate to say this about the rival team's coach, the man is a legend.

Team Selections

All NBA First:

Chris Andersen
Pau Gasol
Carmelo Anthony
Dwyane Wade
Deron Williams

All NBA Second:

Yao Ming
Michael Beasley
Lebron James
Kevin Martin
Mo Williams

All Defensive First:

Chris Andersen
LaMarcus Aldridge
Carmelo Anthony
Dwyane Wade
Delonte West

All Defensive Second:

Dwight Howard
Tim Duncan
Josh Smith
Tracy McGrady
Rajon Rondo

All Rookie First:

[MIA] Reuben Walker
[OKC] Stanley Alston
[MEM] Jon Hunt
[SAC] David Andersen
[SAC] Bart Harvey

All Rookie Second:

[DAL] Brice Bradford
[NOH] Lucian Palmer
[MIN] Evan O'Shea
[WAS] Stanley Garner
[IND] Duncan O'Farrell
------------------------------

Denver's player-by-player analysis

[STARTERS]

Chris Andersen: Had a great season and played well in the all-star game. Got the highest honors defensively as well as the All team selections. Can't ask anything more from one of your players.

Michael Beasley: Managed to surprise everyone with his all-star and second all-nba selection. Had a solid year with moments of brilliance. Definitely worth acquiring at the end of the day.

Carmelo Anthony: Absolutely electric! He had a career year and the nights where he was on fire, all the opposing teams could do was sit back and watch the show. Deserved his All-NBA first team selection... his All-Defensive first team selection was a surprise though.

Earl Smith III: Had an excellent start to the year with an All-Star selection, but faded away a bit towards the end. Inconsistency tends to plague him a little at the moment, but on his day, he is a very important member of the organisation.

Chauncey Billups: His scoring production has gone down considerably, but he's become a great team player. He led the league in assists and was amongst the lead leaders in steals. Although he doesn't score as much as he used to, he can still hit a big shot (All-Star game).

[THE BENCH]

Matt Bonner: Acquired to the team for his range, he didn't disappoint. In fact, he picked up the 6th man award. One of the best 3 point shooters in the league, and this coming playoffs, he's on the right side of the Denver bench.

Mario Chalmers: Took a bit of time to adjust to his new role in Denver, but when he did, he began to provide a great scoring presense on the bench. Got a season high of 27 points against Utah. He was first seen as an after-thought of the Beasley trade, but now, he could very well be Chauncey's successor.

Ben Wallace: Doesn't provide much offensively... but did he ever? The man knows one thing: tough defense. He still grabs rebounds and blocks shots amongst the best of them. It's just a shame he's inept on the offensive end.

Arron Afflalo: Had a much improved season, as he saw more minutes. In the games he played, he looked sharp, scoring in double figures several times. He's brought his game just in time, as his contract expires this off season.

Ty Maximilian: Being behind Melo in the rotation, you're not going to see much game time. He showed great potential in the minutes he did get, however, he also showed he's a bit of a selfish player whose prone to turnovers.

Ty Lawson: Went from being an All-Rookie second team selection to practically getting no minutes at all. He might want to look for a new home in the off-season, because his career is not going to go anywhere whilst he's behind Billups and Chalmers in the rotation.

Robert Swift: Was mainly signed to the team to give Big Ben a rest on road games. He had an impressive debut game for the Nuggets and if he plays his cards right, he might get a contract next season.

Lou Williams: He had a season to forget. He fell behind Afflalo in the rotation and was seldom used. I wouldn't be surprised if he demands a trade next season.
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Next update will be the preview of the upcoming playoff series between Denver and Portland.

Last edited by Kenny on Mon Jan 11, 2010 7:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Nice work with the end of season reports, loved the collection of videos. Good luck in the Playoffs!