Rapid Reaction: Denver Nuggets 108 Chicago Bulls 91

March 26, 2012
by Charlie
Denver Nuggets 108 Final
Recap | Box Score		 91 Chicago Bulls
Wilson Chandler, SF 35 MIN | 3-10 FG | 1-1 FT | 7 REB | 4 AST | 7 PTS | +19

Offensively, he was bad. Chandler made only three of his ten attempts and nearly all of them were incredibly difficult or ill advised shots. However within the scope of Chandler getting integrated into the flow of the lineups and the defense, tonight was a huge step forward. For the most part he was solid fighting around screens and keeping his man in front of him. Chandler was contesting shots and even came up with a nice weak-side block on a wide open Joakim Noah.

Kenneth Faried, F 19 MIN | 3-6 FG | 2-3 FT | 6 REB | 2 AST | 8 PTS | +7

Faried had an up and down night. He got off to a poor start defending Carlos Boozer but eventually picked up his energy and aggression as the game wore on. Faried’s perimeter defense remains a concern but he continued to a good job providing a physical post presence without fouling. Faried is coming around as a good power forward and a solid post defender, but he’s still searching for consistency in other areas to fill out his game.
JaVale McGee, C 24 MIN | 5-11 FG | 0-2 FT | 8 REB | 0 AST | 10 PTS | +13

McGee put up a solid stat line and fit in well with the starting lineup. His decision making and shot selection aren’t the greatest but he does find his way to a lot of hustle points. McGee is contributing solid all-around production in limited minutes which is all you can ask for only three games into his tenure with the Nuggets.
Arron Afflalo, SG 38 MIN | 8-12 FG | 4-4 FT | 3 REB | 4 AST | 22 PTS | +14

A great night for Afflalo, who not only produced at a high level but was also extremely vocal on the floor. Much like Lawson, Afflalo came out with a focus and determination we haven’t consistently seen out of him. Arron was rested and ready to go, but did a masterful job working off of his teammates and impacting the game in multiple ways. His energy was a key factor to winning this difficult game on the tail end of a back to back.
Ty Lawson, PG 37 MIN | 11-21 FG | 2-2 FT | 9 REB | 2 AST | 27 PTS | +11

Really, really good. I’m surprised Lawson had only two assists but this might have been the most aggressive I’ve seen him play all season. Even more impressive is the fact this came against a good defensive team. From the moment he entered the game, Lawson was a force on the court and made his presence felt.
Al Harrington, PF 29 MIN | 6-14 FG | 2-2 FT | 5 REB | 0 AST | 17 PTS | +10

Harrington got off to a quick start before his play trailed off late, but it still was probably one of his best overall efforts in weeks. He was extremely difficult for the Bulls bench to match up with and his jump-shooting was a key factor in opening the Nuggets’ attack.
Andre Miller, PG 29 MIN | 6-8 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 10 AST | 12 PTS | +5

Miller played great. This is the second game in a row his usual mopey attitude has been replaced with high energy play and enthusiasm. These past two games it seems like Miller has hit the fast forward button and he’s moving around with a lot more zip. More than anything, he’s showing a tremendous amount of effort.
Corey Brewer, SF 10 MIN | 0-3 FG | 0-0 FT | 1 REB | 2 AST | 0 PTS | 0

Brewer was a non factor on the offensive end but his forgettable first half stint coincided with a run that erased the Nuggets early deficit. He needs to shoot less, defend more, and just work harder for his opportunities on the offensive end. Brewer ran around with a lot of energy but wasn’t particularly useful on the defensive end, where he needs to make his mark in order to stay on the floor
Timofey Mozgov, C 19 MIN | 2-3 FG | 1-2 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 5 PTS | +6

Mozgov’s defense was inconsistent, but he started the game well and helped stabilize a bench rotation that was solid all night. His production wavers too much from game to game, but when the Nuggets are moving the ball and scoring he’s a pretty reliable defensive presence down low. Mozgov has played poorly as of late and it’s nice to see him bounce back with a solid performance that earned him the right to close out the game.

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Posted on March 26, 2012 at 8:14 pm | filed in Analysis, Game Recap, Rapid Reaction | Tags: , , , , , , , , , — 93 Comments

Denver Nuggets 2011-2012 Schedule Released (UPDATED)

December 7, 2011
by Charlie

This post is a compilation of analysis and breakdown of 2012 schedule in the hours after it was released. To view the official schedule visit the Nuggets website at NBA.com. If you prefer a printable version of the schedule to reference click here for a link to the PDF. Scroll down to read updates and new developments on all things schedule related.

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Posted on December 7, 2011 at 1:10 am | filed in Analysis, Breaking News, Game Preview, News | Tags: , , , , , , — 7 Comments

Examining the 2011-12 schedule and Carmelo Anthony’s return to Denver

July 19, 2011
by Kalen

The 2011-12 NBA schedules were released early Tuesday morning in the event that an NBA season does in fact transpire next year. The Nuggets, as usual, will open up on the road against a heated division rival (Portland) on national TV. Two weeks later, Carmelo Anthony will return to Denver in a non-Nuggets uniform on November 16. The crowd reaction that night will likely be the best gauge to date of how the Nuggets fan-base feels in regards to Anthony’s departure from Denver. Would you boo? Would you cheer? Would you — as I would — sit in silence, counterbalanced by an equal amount of appreciation and disappointment? Or would you simply, and nonchalantly, clap slowly just as you would any other player? (more…)

Posted on July 19, 2011 at 6:55 pm | filed in Analysis | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — 8 Comments

Encore to a Basketball Renaissance

April 17, 2011
by Kalen

With the first round of the 2011 NBA playoffs already underway and the Nuggets opening series against the Thunder not far behind, it’s time to look back, forward and all around at the season that has been and the playoff season that might be. (more…)

Posted on April 17, 2011 at 12:43 am | filed in Feature Stories | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , — 4 Comments

Merry Christmas Nuggets Fans…and some other thoughts

December 25, 2010
by David

First of all I’d like to wish a Merry Christmas to RMC’s founder and main man Jeremy Wagner for bringing me on board and running THE best Nuggets blog out there-it’s been a great couple of months and I’m looking forward to many more in the future.

I’d also like to say thank you and Happy Holidays to all of our devoted readers here on Roundball Mining Company. Without you guys all this is just words on a page-here’s to a great 2011 for the Nuggets!

But now for the juicy stuff. A week ago today I had the good fortune of attending the Nuggets-T-Wolves game at the Pepsi Center, and for the first time in my 22 years I got to sit courtside at an NBA game (big shout out to John and Liz Fitzgerald for the seats), right next to Mrs. Chauncey Billups nonetheless! I’ve seen hundreds (probably thousands) of games on TV and many up in the nosebleeds, but let me tell you, if you’ve never seen a game from that up close, you get a chance to appreciate professional basketball like never before.

My girlfriend asked me who she should watch out for on the other team, and I said number 42, aka mister Kevin Love. After dropping a 30-30 game earlier this season, I was hoping for another masterful performance on this night (and a Nuggets victory of course), and he (and the game) did not disappoint. K-Love scored a career-high 43 points to go with 17 boards, but the Wolves rally late fell short and the Nuggets won 115-113, a margin that should have been much larger. No Chauncey, Bird, or K-Mart was disappointing but J.R. had a decent offensive game, Afflalo added 17 and Ty, “The Law”-son was the player of the game, dropping 23 points to go along with 9 dimes and 3 steals. As quick as the guy looks on television, triple it from up close. He had his way with first Luke Ridnour, then Johnny Flynn, getting to the hoop with ease.

But alas, not all was merry on this night, as the Nuggets bigs (especially Nene) were in foul trouble the whole game and were dominated down low by Love and Kosta Koufos. Yes, Kosta Koufos.

Yet the Nuggets did just enough to win, and I will again emphasize a point I made in my last post- this can be an above average NBA team without Carmelo Anthony. If they can get a solid return for Melo, a trade should be the way to go. I know you may want to hold onto those number 15 jerseys for as long as possible, but we have to face the reality that Melo will sign with the Knicks this summer (lockout pending) and that getting nothing in return is not an acceptable end result.

Who Should Denver trade Melo to?

Here’s the rub Nuggets fans. Melo wants to go to New York. New Jersey has the pieces to trade for him but doesn’t want a three-month rental. And the contenders that might (Dallas, Orlando) either don’t have the pieces or won’t part with them. So let’s analyze the possible scenarios:

Melo and Renaldo Balkman to Dallas for Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and Dallas’ 2011 1st-round pick

Looking at this trade on paper it might be as good as the Nuggets could do. Yes it may require another draft pick from Dallas, and yes Denver would probably have to trade either K-Mart or Birdman in a separate trade to free up the frontcourt logjam, but it could work. Dallas adds Melo to an already solid core of Kidd, Nowitzki, Chandler, Terry and Marion and gets rid of Haywood’s contract and uninspired play (and allows youngsters Ian Mahinmi and Alexis Ajinca to see time at backup center). Denver gets a solid starting three to replace Melo (which keeps J.R. as the super-sixth man), and can move Nene to power forward (where he truly belongs) alongside Haywood in the starting lineup.

Melo and Shelden Williams to Chicago for Luol Deng, Taj Gibson, Kyle Korver and 2011 1st-round pick

Korver has to be thrown in to make the salaries work, but also gives Denver a three-point shooter off the bench (Korver is much more efficient from downtown than J.R.) that they could throw into another possible trade with K-Mart or Bird. Obviously Nuggets fans would like to see Joakim Noah wear the powder blue and gold but it’s evident that the Bulls will not part with their young center. In this deal the Nugs would get stuck with Deng’s extremely bloated contract, but also get a decent small forward who can score along with another solid player in Gibson who can play at either the 3 or 4 (and is an upgrade over Forbes off the bench). I’d prefer the Dallas trade over this one, but if Chicago offers this before the deadline, Denver might have to take it (if there are no better offers).

Melo to Philadelphia for Andre Iguodala, Darius Songalia and two first-round picks

OR

Melo to New Jersey for Derrick Favors, Troy Murphy and three first-round picks

This is when things get interesting. If you’re Masai Ujiri, would you rather have Igoudala (who becomes the small forward and team headliner for the foreseeable future), Songalia’s $5 million expiring contract (to go along with Smith [$6 million], Martin [$16 million] and possibly Billups [$13 million team option]) and picks, or the young big man in Favors, Murphy’s $11 million expiring deal, and possibly a third first-rounder? I predict New Jersey (who now has five first-round picks in the next two drafts) will throw a third first-rounder in to sweeten their offer, which may end up being as good as Denver will get. It’s either one of these two options, or take 50¢ on the dollar from the Knicks. Which brings us to this:

Melo and Renaldo Balkman to New York for Wilson Chandler, Eddy Curry, Anthony Randolph and Knicks’ 2011 1st-round pick

As each day passes, Nuggets fans get closer and close to this becoming a reality. The Nuggets just don’t have a lot of leverage here (the impending lockout and Melo leaving $65 million on the table being the only reason for Melo to sign an extension) and knowing there’s a 99.9% chance he will bolt to New York this summer, Denver may as well take what they can get from the Knickerbockers. Now, if the Nets can convince Melo to sign an extension with them or the Sixers, Mavs, et al, are interested in a short-term lease then Denver may be able to get a better haul. I just don’t see it happening. Chandler is playing some great ball right now and I see him as a better fit with Denver than Gallinari (who wants to stay in New York); Randolph is getting absolutely no playing time with D’Antoni (surprisingly) and could fill in for Harrington and/or J.R. at the backup forward positions; and Curry’s 500 pound corpse (an exaggeration, but not by much) is clearly a salary dump.

But back to Randolph for a second. If the kid is given a chance, he could pan out to something. Those glimpses of explosiveness he showed at Golden State were not a fluke, and if his mid-range game can stay consistent, he could be a heck of a player. Could be the steal of this trade if given the chance by Coach Karl.

Anyways, hope you all have a great holiday weekend and hopefully the Nugs can pull out a tough road win tonight at the Thunder. Westbrook has been MVP-caliber at the point so far, Durant is on pace to win another scoring title and their role guys (like Collison, Ibaka, Green) do their jobs really well. These two squads always play each other tough and the outcome usually comes down to the wire (who can forget Melo’s game winner in Oklahoma City two years ago). Again, this one could come down to the play of Nene in the post, whose erratic play ranges from All-Star one game to fouling out with a 5 point, 5-rebound line the next (which he did against Minnesota). No Melo tonight, but J.R. should fill the scoring void nicely, and with K-Mart and Chauncey back in the starting lineup, I predict a Nuggets victory with a defensive stop at the finish-here’s hoping that’s not the eggnog talking! 

Posted on December 25, 2010 at 3:55 pm | filed in Analysis, Game Preview, Random Stuff, Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , — 2 Comments

2010-11 Game 15: Denver Nuggets 98 Chicago Bulls 97

November 29, 2010
by Jeremy

Box Score | HoopData.com game stats | Highlights

In a game missing its two all-star point guards, with another star sick to his stomach and a enough ebbs and flows to choke the big asteroid snake thingy living in the asteroid that swallowed the Millennium Falcon in Empire Strikes Back, Carmelo Anthony was able to summon enough strength to drain a game winning 21 foot jumper to give the Nuggets a much needed home win over the Chicago Bulls.

Denver jumped out to a 17 point lead in the first quarter and a 19 point bulge in the third only to see the Bulls fight back behind C.J. Watson to take a late lead. The two biggest keys to the game was Joakim Noah’s inability to defend Nene and the flat out disinterest from the Nuggets bigs in providing any semblance of resistance on the pick and roll.

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Posted on November 29, 2010 at 1:47 am | filed in Game Recap | Tags: , , , , — 1 Comment

2010-11 Game 7: Denver Nuggets 92 – Chicago Bulls 94

November 9, 2010
by Jeremy

Box Score | Hoopdata.com Stats | Highlights

There Denver Nuggets 94-92 loss at Chicago was one of the most fascinating hideous games I have seen in a long time.  Both teams posted big runs as momentum appeared to be an actual physical force on the floor at times.  The Nuggets looked both unbeatable and wretched depending on what time you were watching.  The game came down to an open shot from the corner by one of the best corner three shooters in the NBA and we even get to toy around with the do you foul at the end of games to avoid a three point attempt.

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Posted on November 9, 2010 at 2:39 am | filed in Game Recap | Tags: , , , , , , — 1 Comment

Does Luck Run the NBA?

August 9, 2010
by Jeremy

ESPN.com recently ran a feature where Chad Ford and John Hollinger ranked the potential for future success of all 30 NBA teams (Insider required). Every team was ranked based on five important characteristics, players (weighted 40%), management (weighted 20%), money (weighted 20%), market (weighted 10%), and draft (weighted 10%).

As a Nuggets fan and observer I believe they forgot one very crucial category, luck.

Whether you call it luck or intangibles, mojo or fortune it comes down to the fact some teams seem to have things go their way a little more often than others. Look at the teams that have dominated the NBA over the previous two decades. Chicago, San Antonio, Los Angeles and Boston had at least one tremendously lucky break that has paved the way for their success.

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Posted on August 9, 2010 at 2:18 am | filed in Analysis | Tags: , , , , , — 12 Comments

Take Heart, the Nuggets Appear to Have Some Afterall

November 23, 2009
by Jeremy

Nuggets/Clippers Box Score | Highlights

Nuggets/Bulls Box Score | Highlights

Although you guys might not like it if I do not come up with a post dedicated to each and every game this season, I think it gives us a chance to avoid jumping to conclusions over any one singular game. The two games the Nuggets played in this weekend is the perfect example of how looking at two or more games at once can provide a more complete picture than picking apart each individual performance.

Had I concocted a post following the embarrassing loss to the Clippers it would have gone on and one about how the Nuggets lacked heart. The complacency they exhibited during the 19-0 run the Clippers dumped on them was shocking to me. I kept waiting for someone to get angry, and call the team together and demand a more determined effort be put forth. Not one Nugget player did anything of the sort. Either they did not take the Clippers seriously or they did not care. Neither alternative is acceptable, but the lack of any trace of anger about the proceedings made me fear it was the latter more than the former. Even after the run, we did not see any kind of increased effort to show the Clippers that the Nuggets were going to take back control of the game. It was not until the end of the third quarter that Denver showed signs of life and by then it was too late.

Fortunately for Nuggets fans, the story does not end with the loss to the Clippers. The next night Denver faced the Chicago Bulls in a game where the Bulls were the well rested squad. To make matters worse, they were eager to gain revenge on Denver for the one point loss they suffered at the hands of the Nuggets earlier this season in Chicago.

From the beginning the Bulls looked like the fresher team as they rode some hot shooting to an early 14 point lead. Things looked bleak for Denver, especially considering they were victims of the dreaded back to back game where they played a late game in the Pacific time zone only to fly east to the Mountain time zone, losing an hour on the way, to play the next night.

However, the Nuggets were playing hard, just not well. It was a good test to see if the lack of heart they exhibited in Los Angeles the night before was going to be a onetime frustration or an ongoing issue.

Midway through the second quarter the Nuggets announced that they would not be content to lose. They chose to not let the circumstances dictate the outcome of the contest.

Lead by a suddenly red hot Chauncey Billups in the second quarter and an equally scorching J.R. Smith in the fourth the Nuggets took it to the Bulls and by the end of the night, there was no doubt who the better team was.

Additional Nuggets

  • Carmelo played two stellar offensive games against the Clippers and Bulls. He did not force shots as he had done earlier in the season, he was doing a good job of taking what the defense was giving him and he passed the ball well. He had four assists in L.A. and seven in Denver versus the Bulls. What I liked best though was seven of those 11 assists lead to layups or dunks. Anyone can get an assist on a swing pass to a hot shooter, but making a pass that leads to an easy score for a teammate is even more valuable. That is part of the nebulous ability great players have to make the men playing with them better.  Against the Bulls, Melo was burned more than once trying to cheat over the screen.  Doing so puts pressure on your teammates to cover for you if the offensive player sees what you are doing and adjusts.  Plus Carmelo has become a little too quick to switch screens.  He is trying to get away with putting in the minimal amount of work into his defense as necessary to succeed and it is hurting the team.
  • However, as well as Melo played on offense, he was just as miserable on defense. Against the Clippers he was at best disinterested in playing defense. At one point after getting a dunk attempt blocked, he may or may not have been over half court when Rasual Butler hit a wide open three. What I do know is he was not in the picture and he forced his teammates to play four on five. He completely turned his back on Al Thornton at one point allowing him to cut behind Melo for a dunk. Carmelo is completely passive in allowing baseline drives, knowing he has help. He gives up on plays such as after playing solid defense on Thornton for a couple of seconds, he gets beat off the drive baseline and instead of staying with him, he stands back and watches losing a chance to trap Thornton after Kenyon seals off the baseline and Al is forced to spin back to the middle. Instead of running into Melo, he has a clear path to the rim for a three point play. Carmelo is absolutely having an MVP season on the offensive end, but he must play with more focus on defense if he is to truly be an MVP caliber player.
  • The Nuggets struggled with their rotations in the first half against the Bulls, but Chicago deserves credit for playing well offensively. The Bulls did a very good job of making unorthodox diagonal passes which made the Nuggets’ rotations more difficult. For example early in the first quarter Derrick Rose had the ball on the left wing past the coach’s box. He dribbled towards the baseline off a screen from Taj Gobson. Melo and Afflalo trapped him near the corner. Chauncey then pre-rotated towards Gibson. This cut off the pass out to the left wing that would normally trigger a swing pass that the defense would rotate to cover as the ball swings to the corner. Rose, having the regular passing lane closed off to him made a pass to the right wing where John Salmons was waiting wide open.

    • Typically it would take two passes for the offense to get the ball to that point, but because Rose made a direct pass, Nene, who was guarding Joakim Noah on the right block, had no time to run out to cover Salmons. In addition to Nene being a pass behind, Kenyon, who was on the strong side block had one fewer pass to get to the corner to cover Luol Deng. Salmons could have taken the shot, but made the unselfish play to pass to a wide open Deng who nailed the open jumper.

    The real mindbender is who do you blame the defensive breakdown on? Did Afflalo and Melo not trap hard enough allowing Rose to see the diagonal pass to Salmons? Does the blame lie with Chauncey for committing to Gibson too soon? Then again perhaps Nene and Kenyon, seeing that Rose had given up his dribble and Chauncey was already covering Gibson, should not have waited for the pass to Salmons to trigger their rotation.

    Great defensive teams know how to read each other and react when the unexpected happens.  The Bulls took advantage of that diagonal pass two or three times in the first half.  If they are going to become a formidable defensive team, Denver has to be able to put up a cohesive front immediately when the opponent does something unusual.  It requires communication, understanding of the defensive principles you are implementing and a trust that if you leap, your teammate has your back.

  • Chauncey had some very poor shooting nights over the previous week or two. He was still dishing out assists and playing solid defense, but without his scoring Carmelo, Nene, J.R. and Ty Lawson have to carry more of the load on offense. Plus, Chauncey is a deadly threat from behind the arc and his ability to shoot opens the floor up for his teammates. Billups finally broke out of his shooting slump in the second quarter against the Bulls as he nailed two threes and a long two on the way to scoring 14 points over the final seven minutes of the quarter. Chauncey had some poor showings in the preseason and now dealt with a significant slump in the regular season. Maybe Billups is back and will continue to hit shots, but we need to be careful with pronouncing him back after just one game. He is far too good to shoot poorly all season long, but after some slippage in his play last season, we need to be prepared for another slip this season. The question is how big of a slip will we see?

The Nuggets now enter what is probably the easiest portion of their schedule all season. They face the Nets, Knicks, Timberwolves twice and the Warriors. Those teams are currently a combined 8-43 right now and out of those eight wins, four have come against one of the other three teams (the Wolves and Knicks beat the Nets and the Warriors beat the Knicks and Wolves). As long as the Nuggets make sure they learned the lesson from their loss to the Clippers to take every team seriously and do not allow themselves to be complacent, even if they get off to a good start as they did in Los Angeles, they should win all five of those games which would make them 14-4.

Featured Blogs: ClipperBlog | Clips Nation | TrueHoop | By the Horns | Blog a Bull

Posted on November 23, 2009 at 1:42 am | filed in Analysis, Game Recap | Tags: , , , , — Comments Off

2009-10 Game 8: Denver Nuggets 90 – Chicago Bulls 89

November 11, 2009
by Jeremy

Box Score | Highlights

Before we get to the controversial ending in Chicago tonight, I need to address the game itself.

I cannot go as far as to say the Nuggets did not deserve to win, they earned their lead that barely held up in the end, but I was seriously disappointed in their play in the fourth quarter.

Primarily I feel like a dolt for getting caught up in the Carmelo hype after his great first two games. Tonight, in a very important game based on their two game losing streak, he made awful decisions on offense, played lackadaisical on defense and in my opinion nearly cost Denver the game.

To his credit even in the games at New Jersey, Miami and Atlanta Carmelo did seem to be trying to get to the rim more. Tonight in the second half he had three straight drives result in misses and all three times Melo thought he was fouled. After that he seemed to rely more on his jumper. When it was not falling he did try to get to the rim, but again, the Bulls were ready to collapse on him and the results were not good.

To his credit though, as we have seen time and again, Melo hit the shot he had to. With the score tied and 33 seconds left J.R. Smith entered the ball to Melo on the left wing. Melo took two dribbles towards the baseline, picked up his dribble and with Luol Deng still hanging on him pump faked and drained a fifteen footer.

His shot selection was not the only problem. As I discussed in the Daily Dime Chat I do not know who to blame more, Carmelo for forcing bad shots or his teammates for doing their best impression of the Washington Monument. Was Melo not passing because his teammates were not cutting, or were they not cutting because he was going to shoot?

I suspect blame is to be laid at the feet of all involved.

The offensive problems were not all Melo though. On at least three, and maybe four, occasions Denver was able to collect an offensive rebound and immediately hoisted a shot. Chauncey did it once, J.R. did it once, Nene did it once (although he did drive to the rim before taking his shot) and I think Afflalo was guilty as well.

Nene was very effective when he could get a shot off, but he turned the ball over five times. J.R., or Earl, sorry J.R., I mean Earl, is off to his typical slow start shooting 1-9 in his first action of the season. Even his arms-at-his-sides-with-his-hands-held-out-in-disbelief protest was not quite as angular as usual. Although he did compile five assists and played solid defense. Chris Andersen was outworked by Joakim Noah.

As bad as most of the fourth quarter was, the final seconds were even worse.

The Nuggets tried to do the smart thing twice in the final 11 seconds and nearly were beaten because of it. Up two and with a foul to give Chauncey tried to grab Derrick Rose, but the foul was not called until Rose was in the act of shooting. Rose made both free throws to tie the game and then Chauncey was fouled with 0.6 seconds remaining.

After he made the first free throw to put Denver up one, I commented that he should miss the second one on purpose. He did and it nearly cost Denver the game. Noah pulled the board cleanly as every member of the Bulls team and coaching staff yelled for a timeout. It was determined that three tenths of a second would come off the clock which gave Chicago another three tenths to get a shot off. Had the rebound been tipped or mishandled, and Earl Smith III nearly got a finger on it, the game would have been over.

After the timeout Brad Miller caught the inbounds pass and quickly flipped the ball at the rim. The shot went in and it was initially ruled a basket on the court. However, NBA rules mandate the play be reviewed. After about five minutes led official Mark Wunderlich declared that the ball had not completely left Miller’s hand before the buzzer.

I can certainly understand why Bulls fans are upset. In my opinion if there is enough evidence to overturn the call, it should have been apparent quickly. However, as J.A. Adande pointed out, who cares how long it takes as long as they get the call right.

Regardless of whether or not you agree with the decision, you have to give the NBA credit for doing everything they can to get these calls correct. Starting with the rebound off Billups’ missed free throw to the review of Miller’s final shot the NBA has stipulated exactly what can and cannot happen.

From the Official NBA rulebook (page 57):

“NO LESS than :00.3 must expire on the game clock when a player secures possession of an unsuccessful free throw attempt and immediately requests a timeout. If LESS than :00.3 expires in such a circumstance, the time on the game clock shall be reduced by at least :00.3.”

“The game clock must show :00.3 or more in order for a player to secure possession of the ball on a rebound or throw-in to attempt a field goal. Instant replay shall be utilized if the basket is successful on this type of play and the clock runs to 0:00.”

“Regardless of when the horn or red light operates to signify the end of period, the officials (as aided by instant replay, if required) will ultimately make the final decision whether to allow or disallow a successful field goal. THE CREW CHIEF MUST TAKE CHARGE OF THE SITUATION.”

Between the rules which dictate how long actions, such as securing a rebound and calling a timeout take, the use of instant replay and the implementation of the lights along the backboard and along the scorer’s table the league has tried to idiot proof the process as much as possible. Even so I find it intriguing that the crew chief can overrule the audible evidence of the horn and the visual evidence of the lights that come on and declare a basket no good.

I think Adande had the best line of the night when in response to my comment that there was no way Milller got the shot off in time he wrote “I’m not sure Brad Miller could even blink in that time.”

It may have been ugly and controversial, but the Nuggets won and as long as they can clean up their many mental and physical mistakes that have plagued them the past three games they are still in a great position after the first tenth of the season.

Additional Game 8 Nuggets

  • Melo’s problems did not exist only on the offensive end. On two occasions in the third quarter Melo did not rotate on defense. He was at the top of the lane and the ball was swung to the top of the circle. On both occasions he should have run to the ball. The other acceptable option would have been taking the player on the wing, who received another swing pass from the man Melo should have been covering. Had he run at the wing player, all would have been well. Instead he stood in between the two players. On the first occasion he then floated to the three point line on the shot and gave up an offensive rebound because of it. On the second Nene had to run out of the lane to cover the wing, even though Melo was three times closer, and that left Noah open at the rim for a dunk. I guess it is good that Denver could win on the road against a good team with Melo playing so poorly, but I would much rather have Melo play great and Denver win by 15.
  • With Earl Smith III returning to action tonight I was intrigued to see how George Karl would handle the rotations, i.e. how much he would play Anthony Carter. Karl put Carter in the game along with Lawson and then Billups in the first half. He proved that he could not stay in front of John Salmons and despite dishing out a couple of nice passes, was generally driving me crazy. Carter did not get in the game in the second half and it will be interesting to see if Karl sticks with giving Carter a handful of minutes a game while keeping more talented players on the pine.
  • Despite a couple of really bad shots in the first quarter Kenyon had a very nice game. Denver is undefeated when Martin plays more than 12 minutes. He appeared to reinjure his shin at one point, but it did not seem to bother him as the game wore on.
  • The Nuggets played very good defense for the most part, but there were a few too many mental mistakes that allowed Chicago to stay in the game. Along with the two instances where Melo failed to rotate mentioned above, there was a possession where with the shot clock running down Chauncey looked away from Rose and allowed him to cut to the lane, receive a pass and score. On more than one occasion Birdman chose not to block Noah out at all. With 3:48 left in the game and Denver up five Derrick Rose came off a high screen and Nene just laid back in the lane allowing Rose to drain an open jumper to make it a one possession game. As with their losses in Miami and Atlanta, they are making numerous small mistakes that add up over time. Fortunately the Bulls did not shoot as well as the heat or Hawks, but the Nuggets are definitely not playing their best ball right now.

Advanced Game Stats

Pace Factor: 89.9 – very slow
Defensive Efficiency: 99.0 – very solid
Offensive Efficiency: 100.1 – very average

Featured Blogs: By the Horns | Blog a Bull | Denver Stiffs

Update: Here is a pretty conclusive view of Miller’s shot (hat tip to Blog a Bull).

Posted on November 11, 2009 at 1:35 am | filed in Game Recap | Tags: , , , , , , , , , — 1 Comment

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