Game 20: Denver Nuggets 122 – Dallas Mavericks 109

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Box Score 

The Denver Nuggets have their first signature win of the 2007-2008 season.  They played with purpose and focus.  After showing the mental strength of a group of teenage boys sniffing glue in their previous few games they possessed a tremendous mental fortitude that had been sorely lacking.   

Coming into tonight’s game I said I wanted to see the Nuggets react with some backbone when the Mavericks put together a second half run.  The Mavericks run came late in the third quarter as they were able to whittle the Nuggets once plump lead down to one point on a couple occasions.  I began to wonder if the Nuggets would fold as they have on more than one occasion this season.  They most certainly did not.  From the time the Mavs got within 92-91 the Nuggets went on a 30-14 run to seal the game.    

They were constantly looking to push the ball up the floor even when they did not seem to have numbers.  By running the ball up the floor instead of walking it up opportunities can be created that would not have been there even though the defense is not outnumbered.  A true running team will can They had 22 fast break points in the first half alone and even though they only added two more in the second half, they played at a  good tempo.   

When they had to run their half court offense they took their time, were active cutting to the basket and took good shots.  They definitely played a very smart offensive game from start to finish. 

The best statistical proof that they were being patient and taking good shots is the fact that despite the fact they were hitting their threes early, they only took ten for the entire game making five.  The ten attempts was easily a season low.   

Other impressive stats that came out of the game are the Nuggets shot 50.5% from the field, they outscored the Mavs 64-36 in the paint and they absconded with the ball 13 times as opposed to only seven turnovers.   

The Nuggets were not just better on offense.  They scrambled much better on defense and they were intelligent with their defensive positioning.  The Mavs are very good about reversing the ball from the strong side to the weak side.  Last night against the Lakers the Nuggets weak side positioning was atrocious and it allowed the Lakers to take advantage of a bevy of wide open threes.  Tonight against the Mavs they were much more disciplined and made sure that they were able to react to any pass the Mavs made.   

They also played very little zone defense against Dallas.  I understand the need to mix it up a little from time to time, but the less zone the Nuggets play the better.   

Other Observations From Game 20: 

 - Melo had a terrible shooting night, but he did continue to attack the rim more than he had in the past.  There were a couple of situations where he probably should have gone to the line, but did not get the call.  In fact, he was great in the third quarter when the Mavs made their run.  He worked the offensive glass and hit a couple of nice jumpers.   

 - Melo started the fourth quarter on the bench and watched Iverson close the game out as the Mavs could not handle his ability to penetrate.  He drove on Devin Harris, Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse on successive possessions early in the fourth.  It seemed almost every possession he scored or made the assist.  From what I hear Phil Jackson would have called it a “Brokeback Mountain Quarter.” 

 - One of my pet peeves in basketball right now is the two for one at the end of quarters.  How often do you see a player throw up a bad shot just with the hope that they can throw up another bad shot with the clock winding down.  Notice how often a bad shot is taken and how often there end up being more than two possessions left in the quarter.  I know it makes sense on paper, but so does Communism.   

 - I do not think I am a big fan of Reggie Miller as an announcer.   

 - In the fourth quarter Iversom bumped Dirk on the elbow on a layup and the way Dirk reacted made me very concerned that he was potentially going to miss a few games.  He grimaced, yelped at the refs and waved his arm around like Rodney Dangerfield in Caddyshack when his drive bounced off the ball washer and hit him.  (“My arm…it’s broken!”)  Dirk has been accused of a lack of toughness and I wonder what his teammates think when they see him react like that.   

There was a kid I grew up with who always cried every day at Young America soccer practice when he was kicked in the shin.  He cried in football, even in high school.  He cried on the playground.  When we made it to high school he ended up being a state champion heavyweight wrestler.  Despite his accomplishment did I ever think of him as tough?  Absolutely not.  I remember the whining and crying. 

Dirk won the MVP last season, a tremendous accomplishment, but what are the chances his teammates think of him as tough?  I may be wrong, but I think demonstrations like the one tonight stick in their heads. 

 - Allen Iverson was absolutely amazing again tonight.  Once again he shot a high percentage from the floor, 12-19, and made it to the line continually, 11-13.  He also played 43 more minutes.  The man is a physical marvel.  After seeing him play in person over the past few months, nothing he does from here on out will surprise me.  He could be averaging 40 minutes a game in ten years and I will not be shocked.  Well, maybe a little shocked, but I am not going to put it past him.

 - I always have to complain about something so here it is.  The Mavs outrebounded the Nuggets by 12 and they grabbed 16 offensive boards.  Had the Mavs shot better the game might have turned out differently.  Of course, the Nuggets defense was a big reason why the Mavericks did not shoot better.

 For insight into tonight’s game from a Maverick centric point view check out Mavs Moneyball.