Pickaxe Pulse for April 18, 2013

April 18, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets at the end of the season

The Nuggets went undefeated in the last week of the season to clinch the third seed in the Western Conference.  Kenneth Faried sprained his ankle early in Sunday’s game against Portland and sat out the rest of the week; he is listed as day-to-day entering the playoffs.  In a closer than expected game against the Trailblazers, Evan Fournier capped his career high 24 point night with two late three pointers to seal the 118-109 win.  The next night in Milwuakee, Ty Lawson hit a go-ahead jumper with nine seconds left and the defense held on for a 112-111 victory.  The Nuggets jumped out to a big lead early against the Suns in the season finale on Wednesday, giving the end of the bench a chance to show their stuff.  All twelve healthy Nuggets players made at least one basket and grabbed at least one rebound in the 118-98 win.  Andre Iguodala averaged 20 points, 6.7 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 2.3 blocks for the week.

Record this week: 3-0 (2-0 home, 1-0 road)

Overall record and standings: 57-25, third seed in the West.

Upcoming: the Nuggets have home court advantage in a first round playoff series against Golden State.  Game 1 is on Saturday.

Posted on April 18, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Analysis, Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , — 27 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for April 13, 2013

April 13, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

The Nuggets tied their NBA franchise record for wins in a season by defeating San Antonio on Wednesday, and had a chance to break the record in Dallas on Friday, but came up short in overtime.  Andre Iguodala led the way against the Spurs with a triple double and JaVale McGee’s four blocks helped spark the bench in the comeback win.  In Dallas, Corey Brewer’s tying basket off of an Andre Miller steal brought up memories of the previous week’s heroics against the Mavericks, but in the end, poor shooting and poor defense were the Nuggets’ undoing.

Record this week: 1-1 (1-0 home, 0-1 road)

Current record and standings: 54-25, third seed in the Western Conference, tied with Memphis and 1 game ahead of the Clippers.  The Nuggets hold the tiebreaker over Memphis due to head-to-head play, while the Clippers hold the tiebreaker over both Memphis and Denver due to winning their division.

Upcoming games: Sunday vs Portland, Monday at Milwaukee, Wednesday vs Phoenix

Posted on April 13, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Analysis, Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , — 25 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for April 7, 2013

April 7, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

The Nuggets lost Danilo Gallinari to a season-ending knee injury this week and Ty Lawson has not yet returned to action, but the team rallied behind the play of Corey Brewer, Andre Igoudala, and rookie Evan Fournier to go undefeated over three games.  Wednesday’s game in Utah showcased the Nuggets depth, with seven players scoring in double digits in a seventeen point win.  Gallinari tore his ACL just before halftime the next night against Dallas and the Nuggets looked to be on the way to defeat after trailing for most of the game, but a late offensive rebound by Corey Brewer set up Iguodala’s go-ahead bucket and a last-second block by Brewer sealed the win.  Denver fell behind the Rockets by double digits in the first quarter on Saturday, but Evan Fournier and Corey Brewer sparked two big runs that turned the game into a fourth quarter blowout.

Record this week: 3-0 (2-0 home, 1-0 road)

Current record and standings: 53-24, third seed in the Western Conference, 1.5 games ahead of Memphis and 2.5 games ahead of the Clippers

Upcoming games: Wednesday vs San Antonio, Friday at Dallas

Posted on April 7, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Analysis, Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , , — 13 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for March 30, 2013

March 30, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

The Nuggets’ franchise record winning streak of fifteen games came to an end Monday in New Orleans.  The team looked disinterested in a 110-86 blowout loss, giving up 17 offensive rebounds and 14 made three pointers.  JaVale McGee led the way with a double double in San Antonio on Wednesday, and the Nuggets had a chance to win, but Andre Miller missed a tough shot at the buzzer and the Nuggets dropped their second straight, 100-99.  Back at the Pepsi Center on Friday, Evan Fournier and Kosta Koufos helped the Nuggets get back on track against the Nets in a 109-87 win.  Ty Lawson played sparingly all week due to a foot injury.

Record this week: 1-2 (1-0 home, 0-2 road)

Current record and standings: 50-24, third seed in the Western Conference, 0.5 games ahead of the Clippers and 1 game ahead of the Grizzlies

Upcoming games: Wednesday at Utah, Thursday vs Dallas, Saturday vs Houston

Posted on March 30, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Analysis, Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , , — 19 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for March 24, 2013

March 24, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

The Nuggets extended their franchise-record winning streak to 15 games, and the team’s depth was on full display this week as bench players played key roles in all 4 victories.  Wilson Chandler scored a game high 35 points to go with 9 rebounds and 4 assists in an overtime win in Chicago.  Andre Miller celebrated his 37th birthday the next night, helping the Nuggets cruise to a win over the Thunder.  With Ty Lawson and Wilson Chandler sitting out with injuries, the Nuggets looked to be on their way to defeat against Philadelphia, but Corey Brewer finished off a career high 29 points with a late three pointer and three free throws to complete a 101-100 comeback victory.  Julyan Stone, in his first NBA game since January, provided a spark on both defense and offense to help the Nuggets get past the Kings.

Record this week: 4-0 (2-0 home, 2-0 road)

Current record and standings: 49-22, third seed in the Western Conference, 0.5 games ahead of the Clippers and 1 game ahead of the Grizzlies

Upcoming games: Monday at New Orleans, Wednesday at San Antonio, Friday vs Brooklyn

Posted on March 24, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Analysis, Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , , — 59 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for March 16, 2013

March 16, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

Current record: 45-22

Last week: 3-0 (2-0 home, 1-0 road)

Current playoff seed: #5, 0.5 games behind #4 Memphis and #3 LA Clippers.  The Clippers hold the tie breaker over both Memphis and Denver (due to winning their division), while Denver holds the tie breaker over Memphis (due to a 3-1 head to head record).

The Nuggets finished another undefeated week by taking down the Memphis Grizzlies in a slow-paced, grind-it-out game, picking up an important tiebreaker in the process.  They also embarrassed the Knicks in Carmelo Anthony’s return to Denver, and picked up a road win in a blowout in Phoenix.  Denver has the longest active winning streak in the Western Conference at 11 games.  Kosta Koufos had the best week of his career, averaging 15.3 points and 12 rebounds over three games.  Coach George Karl had the team ready to play all week and made good substitutions in the face of individual players’ game-to-game inconsistency.

This week’s games: Monday at Chicago, Tuesday at Oklahoma City, Thursday vs Philadelphia, Saturday vs Sacramento

Posted on March 16, 2013 at 12:00 pm | filed in Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , , , — 34 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for March 10, 2013

March 10, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

Current record: 42-22

Last week: 4-0 (3-0 home, 1-0 road)

Current playoff seed: #5, 1.5 games behind #4 Memphis, 2 games behind #3 LA Clippers, and 7 games ahead of #6 Golden State

The Nuggets picked up a potentially important playoff tiebreaker by defeating the Clippers to take the season series 2-1.  The team has won 8 in a row overall, and 13 straight home games.  Danilo Gallinari appears fully recovered, averaging 18 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists over his last 3 games.  Ty Lawson, named Western Conference player of the week at the start of last week, averaged 24 points and 7 assists in this week’s games.  Corey Brewer continues to struggle on three point shots, making only one of eight attempts over the same timespan.

This week’s games: Monday at Phoenix, Wednesday vs Knicks, Friday vs Memphis

Posted on March 10, 2013 at 11:00 am | filed in Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , — 9 Comments

Pickaxe Pulse for March 2, 2013

March 2, 2013
by Tom

Taking the pulse of the Nuggets every weekend

Current record: 38-22

Last week: 3-0 (2-0 home, 1-0 road)

Current playoff seed: #5, 1.5 games behind #4 Memphis and 4.5 games ahead of #6 Golden State

The Nuggets made a strong showing through a difficult stretch of games, defeating the surging Lakers and the division-leading Thunder at home and picking up a tough road win in Portland.  The Nuggets have gained separation from the West’s lower playoff seeds, but Memphis’ recent eight game winning streak has kept the Nuggets trailing slightly in the race for homecourt in the first round.  Ty Lawson saw his streak of 20 point games end against the Thunder, but he had plenty of reason to celebrate after hitting the game winning jumper with 0.2 seconds left.  Danilo Gallinari has played sparingly over the last four games due to a deep thigh bruise.  Wilson Chandler has filled in admirably, leading the Nuggets in scoring twice in that stretch.

This week’s games: Monday vs Atlanta, Tuesday at Sacramento, Thursday vs LA Clippers, Saturday vs Minnesota

Posted on March 2, 2013 at 11:25 am | filed in Pickaxe Pulse | Tags: , , , — 27 Comments


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