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05-14-2009, 11:47 PM
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NUGGETS REACH FIRST WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS SINCE 1985
DENVER -- The Denver Nuggets are collecting converts across the country with their uncommon blend of freakish athleticism, superb strength and unparalleled speed, qualities that might very well deliver this band of former malcontents and misfits to their first NBA finals.
The Nuggets earned their first trip to the Western Conference championship series in 24 years by dispatching the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
They blitzed the Mavs the same way they did the New Orleans Hornets in Round 1, with a dizzying array of Chauncey Billups (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=chauncey+billups)' leadership, Carmelo Anthony (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=carmelo+anthony)'s clutch play, Nene's unmatched post presence, Kenyon Martin (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=kenyon+martin)'s toughness and Dahntay Jones (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=dahntay+jones)' peskiness.
Combine all that with a blazing bench that features Chris "Birdman" Andersen's energy, J.R. Smith (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=j.r.+smith)'s athletic artfulness and Anthony Carter (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=anthony+carter)'s cunning along with a rejuvenated coach in George Karl and NBA insiders are starting to tout the Nuggets as championship contenders.
Charles Barkley, a longtime critic of Denver's play, is among those singing the Nuggets' praises now and the chorus is growing louder across the league.
"These guys are legit. They've got a legitimate championship-calibre team," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said after Denver's series-clinching 124-110 win Wednesday night, the Nuggets' seventh double-digit victory in the post-season.
"They have great balance. Their activity and athleticism and ability to generate second-chance opportunities is a huge factor. This building is a great building and a great homecourt advantage, especially when you factor in the altitude. So, they've got the pieces. They really do," Carlisle said. "And they've got an experienced coach that's been down that road and gotten to the finals. They've got a great shot."
Since Billups' arrival, the Nuggets are 61-27. They tied their franchise record with 54 regular-season wins and advanced past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 1994 and into the conference championship for the first time in 24 years.
For all those expecting a Kobe Bryant (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=kobe+bryant)-LeBron James (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=lebron+james) tussle for the title next month, hold up, Dallas guard Jason Terry (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=jason+terry) said.
"This is a team that's going to be a tough out. I don't think it's going to be an easy walk to a Kobe-LeBron final," Terry said. "They've been playing well since the all-star break."
Actually, they've been playing well since Nov. 7, when Billups arrived from Detroit in the lopsided Allen Iverson (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=allen+iverson) trade and transformed his hometown team almost overnight.
"I love this team," said the Nuggets' Mark Warkentien, the NBA's executive of the year, clicking off all the feel-good stories besides Billups' return as a hometown hero:
-- Nene beating testicular cancer.
-- Martin returning from microfracture surgeries on both knees.
-- Anthony bringing his Olympic lessons home and becoming an all-around threat.
-- Jones' startling rise from the D-League to playoff pest for opponents.
-- Andersen's comeback from a drug suspension to become a fan favourite.
Twelve months ago, the Nuggets were angry, reeling and lost. They had just been bounced out of the first round of the playoffs for the fifth straight season and Anthony accused his teammates and coaches of quitting. Soon, they would say goodbye to their best two defenders, Marcus Camby (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=marcus+camby) and Eduardo Najera (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=eduardo+najera), for financial reasons, along with veteran assistant coaches Doug Moe and Mike Dunlap.
There were rumblings that this town wasn't big enough for both Karl and Anthony, but Warkentien said neither was going anywhere, and Karl decided after two years of trying to run up scores that he would return to his roots and coach a defensive-first doctrine.
The Pistons wanted 'Melo but when Warkentien told Joe Dumars that his star forward was off-limits, the talks shifted to Iverson, whose big contract comes off the Pistons' books this summer and gives Detroit huge flexibility in free agency.
Billups returned to his hometown and transformed the team he grew up rooting for.
"The culture was changing before Chauncey came, and then Chauncey comes and here's the spokesperson for everything I was basically saying," Karl beamed. "So I don't have to talk anymore. I have enough guys in the locker room saying what I want to be said. So I'm not fighting, ego-managing, moulding and frustrated."
And the Nuggets aren't starting their summer break as soon as they used
NUGGETS REACH FIRST WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS SINCE 1985
DENVER -- The Denver Nuggets are collecting converts across the country with their uncommon blend of freakish athleticism, superb strength and unparalleled speed, qualities that might very well deliver this band of former malcontents and misfits to their first NBA finals.
The Nuggets earned their first trip to the Western Conference championship series in 24 years by dispatching the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
They blitzed the Mavs the same way they did the New Orleans Hornets in Round 1, with a dizzying array of Chauncey Billups (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=chauncey+billups)' leadership, Carmelo Anthony (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=carmelo+anthony)'s clutch play, Nene's unmatched post presence, Kenyon Martin (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=kenyon+martin)'s toughness and Dahntay Jones (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=dahntay+jones)' peskiness.
Combine all that with a blazing bench that features Chris "Birdman" Andersen's energy, J.R. Smith (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=j.r.+smith)'s athletic artfulness and Anthony Carter (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=anthony+carter)'s cunning along with a rejuvenated coach in George Karl and NBA insiders are starting to tout the Nuggets as championship contenders.
Charles Barkley, a longtime critic of Denver's play, is among those singing the Nuggets' praises now and the chorus is growing louder across the league.
"These guys are legit. They've got a legitimate championship-calibre team," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said after Denver's series-clinching 124-110 win Wednesday night, the Nuggets' seventh double-digit victory in the post-season.
"They have great balance. Their activity and athleticism and ability to generate second-chance opportunities is a huge factor. This building is a great building and a great homecourt advantage, especially when you factor in the altitude. So, they've got the pieces. They really do," Carlisle said. "And they've got an experienced coach that's been down that road and gotten to the finals. They've got a great shot."
Since Billups' arrival, the Nuggets are 61-27. They tied their franchise record with 54 regular-season wins and advanced past the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 1994 and into the conference championship for the first time in 24 years.
For all those expecting a Kobe Bryant (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=kobe+bryant)-LeBron James (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=lebron+james) tussle for the title next month, hold up, Dallas guard Jason Terry (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=jason+terry) said.
"This is a team that's going to be a tough out. I don't think it's going to be an easy walk to a Kobe-LeBron final," Terry said. "They've been playing well since the all-star break."
Actually, they've been playing well since Nov. 7, when Billups arrived from Detroit in the lopsided Allen Iverson (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=allen+iverson) trade and transformed his hometown team almost overnight.
"I love this team," said the Nuggets' Mark Warkentien, the NBA's executive of the year, clicking off all the feel-good stories besides Billups' return as a hometown hero:
-- Nene beating testicular cancer.
-- Martin returning from microfracture surgeries on both knees.
-- Anthony bringing his Olympic lessons home and becoming an all-around threat.
-- Jones' startling rise from the D-League to playoff pest for opponents.
-- Andersen's comeback from a drug suspension to become a fan favourite.
Twelve months ago, the Nuggets were angry, reeling and lost. They had just been bounced out of the first round of the playoffs for the fifth straight season and Anthony accused his teammates and coaches of quitting. Soon, they would say goodbye to their best two defenders, Marcus Camby (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=marcus+camby) and Eduardo Najera (http://tsn.ca/nba/teams/players/?name=eduardo+najera), for financial reasons, along with veteran assistant coaches Doug Moe and Mike Dunlap.
There were rumblings that this town wasn't big enough for both Karl and Anthony, but Warkentien said neither was going anywhere, and Karl decided after two years of trying to run up scores that he would return to his roots and coach a defensive-first doctrine.
The Pistons wanted 'Melo but when Warkentien told Joe Dumars that his star forward was off-limits, the talks shifted to Iverson, whose big contract comes off the Pistons' books this summer and gives Detroit huge flexibility in free agency.
Billups returned to his hometown and transformed the team he grew up rooting for.
"The culture was changing before Chauncey came, and then Chauncey comes and here's the spokesperson for everything I was basically saying," Karl beamed. "So I don't have to talk anymore. I have enough guys in the locker room saying what I want to be said. So I'm not fighting, ego-managing, moulding and frustrated."
And the Nuggets aren't starting their summer break as soon as they used