Chauncey Billups Q&A: Continuity Helps Make Nuggets a le Contender

[duncan228]

Chauncey Billups Q&A: Continuity Helps Make Nuggets a le Contender
SportingNews

When Chauncey Billups was traded to Denver a year ago, he helped transform the team into a contender, eventually reaching the conference finals. Now, the Nuggets have much of the same group back, and for Billups, that means another deep playoff run is expected. Sporting News’ Sean Deveney caught up with Billups to talk about this season, Carmelo Anthony and the importance of getting to the free throw line.

Sporting News: Where do you see your team at this point, in relation to last year?

Chauncey Billups: I think we got a really good team. If we can win the games when we don’t play great, that is what is going to separate us. That’s big in the NBA. There are nights when we come out great and we are playing great and we can beat anybody. All teams have those nights, when everything is going right. But squeaking it out on the nights when you are not playing your "A" game, that is what makes a really good team. We can do that.

SN: You got to the West finals last year. How do you make sure the team doesn’t get complacent? How do you make sure they look at a year as 82 games and not focus on the playoff run you had last year?

CB: That makes a big difference. I was just talking about that with some of the guys, how you have to look at it as, all right, we are playing well, but we have to find a thing to work on—pick-and-roll defense or transition, all of that. And once we get that, we have to find another thing to work on. You have to look at a season as a chance to get better, night by night. It’s not automatic that we’re going to be good because we were good last year.

SN: Do you consider this a championship contender?

CB: Yes. I know a lot of people are talking about other teams and other moves that teams made, but we’ve got a year together now under our belt and that is going to make a big difference. And when it comes down to the playoffs and all of that, there is a lot of luck involved, who is injured, stuff like that. Some of it is just going to be, who gets the luck at the end of the year?

SN: There are a lot of good young point guards in the league now. You had a couple of matchups, earlier in the year, against two of the better young point guards, Derrick Rose and Brandon Jennings. What was your impression of them?

CB: Rose is so quick, and he is such a good passer, you can look at him and see that despite his age, he knows how to run a team. You know he is in charge out there. Jennings, too, I like his game. You can see that he is going to be a really, really good point guard in this league. He is very shifty, he moves very well. And him and Derrick both have a toughness around them that is impressive.

SN: How about the young guy on your team, Ty Lawson?

CB: Very mature, and very talented. He was a steal in the draft. He has already been big for us.

SN: One of the things you do especially well is draw fouls and get to the line. How did you develop a knack for that?

CB: Well, it’s not like I try to get to the line. I just try to be aggressive and get layups. I don’t like to settle. If you are going to get layups, you’ve got to go to the rim. Obviously that is going to put pressure on defenses.

SN: Why do you suppose more guys don’t do that?

CB: I don’t know. I mean, one thing about it is being smart. Knowing the rules, knowing when you’re in the bonus, knowing your defender. It does surprise me that more guys don’t take advantage of that. I know how to attack, how to get the bigs to step out and foul. It’s experience.

SN: What do you make of the way Carmelo Anthony has started the season?

CB: Melo has played like an MVP, on every level this year. It’s great to see. He can score, but he is taking a responsibility for the team, too. He is showing that he is a natural-born leader.

[duncan228]

Top 5 Not-So-Over-The-Hill Point Guards
SportingNews

Sure, there has been a pleasant influx of good, young point men in the last few years. But that doesn’t mean there’s no place for the aged at the lead guard spot. In fact, some of the best point guards in the league are part of the 30-plus crowd:

1. Steve Nash, Suns. Nash is 35, but with the Suns running and winning, he is once again garnering MVP talk. Shooting over 50 percent from the field and dishing out 11-plus assists per game will do that.

2. Jason Kidd. He doesn’t shoot much anymore, but that’s just fine with the Mavericks. Kidd remains one of the best passers in the league and a respected locker room leader.

3. Chauncey Billups. Given that he’s 33 and is known for his willingness to take a hit in the lane, you’d think Billups might be slowing down. But he’s shown no signs of it.

4. Andre Miller, Blazers. It was a rough transition in Portland for Miller, but he seems to have found his stride and has earned the trust of coach Nate McMillan.

5. Mike Bibby, Hawks. Bibby, 31, isn’t a big penetrate-and-kick point guard, but he is smart, experienced and he’s been knocking down 3s with precision. He fits Atlanta’s offense perfectly.

[Culburn369]

One f'in ring in the whole gd 150 year shebang.

[mingus]

Billups is going to be one of those pgs like Cassell that can play at a high level for a while because he doesn't rely on athleticism. from a mental aspect, i think he's a underrated; very high iq player. he'll make a good coach when his playing days are over.

[JamStone]

SN: One of the things you do especially well is draw fouls and get to the line. How did you develop a knack for that?

CB: Well, it’s not like I try to get to the line. I just try to be aggressive and get layups. I don’t like to settle. If you are going to get layups, you’ve got to go to the rim. Obviously that is going to put pressure on defenses.

Love Chauncey, but that was never his philosophy in Detroit. That must be new for him.

[lefty]

Q: so, Chauncey, what's up with Conference Finals Billups?

A: Well, you know, I...

Q: next question: do you think AI will be back in the NBA one day?

[Culburn369]

Billups is going to be one of those pgs like Cassell that can play at a high level for a while because he doesn't rely on athleticism. from a mental aspect, i think he's a underrated; very high iq player

skinnin'--grinnin' thru the WCF withstanding. Next time play it straight, if they got the snut.

[Basketballgirl25]

I pretty much use to hat Billups because he owned Kidd in the playoffs one year, now I respect Billups