Wednesday night Carmelo Anthony surpassed one of his long bad streaks as an NBA player. He finally won more than one game in a playoff series. 'Melo played admirably, and did so in about every stat category. 'Melo had 22 points on 10 of 20 shooting, while hitting 2-5 three pointers, and had 9 assists. Cool stat of the night; 'Melo surpassed his playoff high assist mark at 5 in the first quarter! You know that you are playing well if you have pass you single game record in the first quarter. 'Melo hit his first jumper that he took, and from then on he couldn't be stopped. Shooting 50 percent by 'Melo is a very good mark for him, considering the high difficulty of shots that he takes on a regular basis. One other interesting stat; Melo didn't get to the free throw line once. Just for your information, 'Melo gets to the free throw line on average of about 4 times a game. So far he has only been there 3 times in two games, so you can see that while 'Melo hasn't been getting to the line, he has still been able to put up points at a good rate. This is a good sign for 'Melo. If he is able to knock down his jumpers at a 50 percent rate, he will open up the lane, and inevitably get layups or trips to the free throw line. Game 2 was a great game for 'Melo, and I expect this 'Melo to show up more times than not. When this happens, and other guys are knocking down shots, the Nuggets are just about unbeatable.
But the guy that changed the game for the Nuggets was Dahntay Jones. Dude is just a pest, and he is really getting under the skin of the Hornets; especially Chris Paul. Paul is only shooting 40%, and is averaging an abysmal 4.5 turnovers a game. And not only is Dahntay playing well on the defensive side of the ball, but he is also putting up good numbers on the offensive end. In game 2 Dahntay put up 11 efficient points shooting 5-5 from the field. His production has really been valuable for the Nuggets in the first two games of the series.
Kenyon Martin played like a stud once again. He held David West to 9 of 20 shooting, even though West sat much of the fourth quarter. I keep praying that West keeps shooting. Martin also forced West into 4 turnovers. Kenyon's defense on the pick and roll has been the most impressive for me though. Chris Paul just can't get into the paint, and when he does, Kenyon is there. The proclaimed X-factor by myself for this series has gone above and beyond my expectations. Kenyon has practically shut down the Hornets' two best players. Can't ask for anything more than that. Add to the fact that Kenyon is putting up points on the offensive end as well, and you have a force out there.
And once again, Chauncey B-B-B- Billups came through. Mr. Big Shot is playing like a stud, and the Hornets have absolutely no answer for him. Chauncey had 31 points on 8 of 15 shooting, 4 threes on 6 shots, and hasn't missed a free throw all series; he is 19 for 19 in his FT attempts. The biggest asset that Chauncey has brought to the team in this series though is his leadership and veteran presence. I recalled a fast break last night where JR was open for a three. Billups looked at JR, looked at the clock, realized that they had the last shot of the quarter, and pulled it back. Years before, I'd expect Iverson to give JR that ball, and who knows, it might have gone in? The great thing about this though, is that even in the midst of an intense playoff game, Chauncey never losses his control of the game. Years before, that was the Nuggets' achilles heal; make bad decisions under pressure. But not anymore. Smooth is the new sheriff in town. K, I'm done with the nicknames now.
The bench as a whole played pretty good as usual, but not as good as game one. Luckily 'Melo showed up, and we didn't need the extra points. The thing that I love about this bench though, is that while they may not put up the greatest numbers all of the time, they change the facet of the game. The energy that exudes from The Birdman, AC, and JR is invaluable to the team. Birdman's dunk last night was just phenomenal. The Can just lit up, and the game shifted entirely in the Nuggets favor from that point. The Nuggets' bench is the largest advantage that the Nuggets have over the Hornets, and these first two games have proven so.
So now the Nuggets took care of business at home court. I heard a great quote by George Karl saying that a series doesn't change until a team wins on the road. Well, it's the Nuggets' golden opportunity to put a stamp on this series in the next two games. I just ask for one win. One win in New Orleans and I'm a happy camper. Make it two in New Orleans, and I will bring out a broom and sweep for maybe the first time in my life, and have a hell of a time doing it in the process.
So I'm supposed to be writing a final paper that is due tomorrow, but F it. Some things are just a little more important ya know? Like... Let me think... Oh yeah, the Nuggets are playing tonight! Game 2. Hornets. Nuggets. Rocky. It's on!
So ever since the game on sunday night I have been looking at some of the press conferences given; particularly by the hornets. Apparently Byron Scott, the Hornets' head coach, was asked what he thought about the defensive pressure put on by Dahntay Jones and Kenyon Martin. He had plenty of praise for Kenyon Martin's job done on David West, and gave him all of the credit in the world. As for Dahntay Jones, Scott? "I don't give him no credit, not really." Wow, is all I have to say. I mean, I guess he praised Dahntay? It was a double negative after all, so maybe he does give him credit? No. I'm not so sure about his grammar, but I got his message. The funny thing here is that if Dahntay Jones isn't getting in his or Chris Paul's head, then why is he talking about him in the first place? Why would you even let a guy like Dahntay Jones amount to something in your press conference? So I would actually go out and say that Byron Scott did mean what he said; he actually did not give him NO credit. If you're confused, so am I.
Aside from the grammar crap, I really think that Dahntay Jones got inside the Hornets' heads, and I love it. I will admit that I have really harped on Dahntay all year, and questioned why he even got the 4 minutes in each half that he did in the regular season, but he actually played really well. I knew that he could guard Chris Paul, but I didn't think that he could get away with some of the physicality that he used. If Chris Paul gets in the paint, I expect what Erick Dampier has said, and Dahntay to knock him on his ass. You can't let these point guards get in the paint at will, and not inflict some pain. So far the Nuggets have done that; especially Dahntay.
Now, for what I said would be the X-factor in this playoff series; Kenyon Martin (You can see a few of his defensive possessions in the youtube clip that should be located right below this post). He was nothing short of phenomenal the entire game on the defensive end. David West looked flat out flustered and lost out there on the offensive end. In one of the opening possessions of the game, Kenyon Martin established himself. David West made a good move, beat Kenyon, and went up for a turnaround fade. Martin came down with the hammer on his wrists. A foul was called, but from that point on, David West feared Kenyon. We'll see tonight if it carries over.
I absolutely can't wait to see this game tonight, and I just hope that the Nuggs can pull it off again. I've said this before, and I'll say it again; Melo will need to show up. If Melo puts up another performance like he did on sunday, the Nuggets could be in trouble. I do hope that Melo knows that he will not get easier shots unless he passes the ball. Let the game come to him, and I know Melo can score.
Win or lose though, it will be a long night for your neighborhood scholarly blogger.
Check out these custom highlights of game 1 done on youtube. Very good stuff. The format of this video doesn't fit the page, so just click on this link if it bugs you.
The Nuggies pulled it off in convincing fashion tonight against their series foe; the New Orleans Hornets. With the final score being 113-84, Chauncey Billups went off for a game high 36 points which included 8 three pointers on only 9 attempts. Lets just say Denver finally got to see what "Mr. Big Shot" is all about.
Chauncey took over the game-basically-the entire game. Scoring 16 points in the first quarter alone, and finishing the game with 20 more. This was a very good sign for the Nuggets, and we all hope that Chauncey can put a show like this every night, but I find that highly unlikely. The good thing is that it couldn't have come at a better time. Carmelo struggled mightily in this game early and often. In total Melo only shot 4-12. As a fan of the Denver Nuggets I am very concerned with Melo's play, but I am also amazed that we won this game despite him basically not even showing up. But, I will say that Melo shouldn't expect luxury every night, because I don't believe that Chauncey can pull this type of performance every night. Jump shots in the NBA are never a given. Just because one night you're just hot, doesn't mean that it will continue. Just ask JR that question.
Speaking of JR, he also had a great night tonight. Like Melo, his night didn't start off too well giving up a few turnovers, and taking ill advised shots. The difference was in the second half though. JR just pulled the game away for the Hornets. Yeah Billups was hot, but it was JR that also fueled what was a 21 point run by Denver that pretty much ended the game for the Hornets. New Orleans did a very bad thing tonight in allowing JR to feel comfortable. If he gets comfortable, he can take over an entire series. That's bad news for New Orleans.
As far as what I believe will follow this game? I think that Karl had a very solid game plan to stop the Hornets, and I think that we'll see more of what we saw tonight. Karl decided to make Paul become a scorer. He would switch or trap any pick and roll that involved paul, and would limit Paul's options to one, which inevitably was score. Paul is still a pass first point guard, and he is not used to being the full load scorer for the Hornets. When Paul is at his best, he's getting a few buckets here and there, but also taking advantage of the defense focusing on feeding the rock to his teammates for easy buckets. Denver limited that second option. Another aspect in this game that I was glad to see was that the Nuggets were much more physical than the Hornets. The Nuggets beat the Hornets up from the opening tip, and about 3 quarters in, the tempers started to flare for the Hornets that led to some poor decisions. After a few techs, the game was about in the books, as the Hornets started making unforced errors and frustration fouls. The Nuggets actually were the mentally tougher team for once in a playoff game. Sounds crazy, I know.
If the next game on wednesday goes any where near as well as it did tonight, I would expect this series to end quicker than most people thought. I mean, how many blowouts like this have you ever seen in the playoffs? Especially in the first game. That's not a good sign if you're a Hornet fan. I still stand by my prediction of the Nuggets in 5, but the Nuggets need to come out like they did tonight on wednesday, and don't take any game for granted. You lose one game at home, and the entire series shifts. Need to go 2-0 in Denver, and go from there. But overall, I was very pleased with the performance tonight, and I can't wait for wednesday to come. Until then, go Nuggs!
Friday, April 17, 2009
In the spirit of Jim Mora, were talkin' about playoffs, damnit! Not just winning games. The Denver Nuggets have done plenty of that in the regular season for the past 5 years, but when the wins need to come in the playoffs, it's a whole different story. I think the Nuggets add to their record breaking season, and finally make some noise in the postseason.
I honestly cannot believe that the Denver Nuggets are the number 2 seed in the western conference. It seems like only a year ago we were just fighting to get into the playoffs. Oh wait, we were. If someone would have told me that the Nuggets would be the number 2 seed in the playoffs, have Chauncey Billups, and playing the number 7 seed Hornets, I would have slapped the hell out of them. Truly a remarkable turnaround for the Denver Nuggets, and no one could be more happier than I am. I've been one of the biggest followers of this team basically since they drafted 'Melo in 03. Let's just say that not all of the 5 previous years have been all that pleasant. I can tell you one thing though, my girlfriend loves it when the Nuggets play good ball. I'm a dick when they lose. Haha.
So in the first round the Nuggets are facing the New Orleans Hornets. The Hornets are 49-33 this year, and have been considered as a major disappointment after their fantastic 08-09 campaign. They're, of course, led by the best point guard in the NBA (in my opinion) in Chris Paul, and have a solid, but injured supporting cast in Tyson Chandler and Peja Stojakovic. David West is also a very good ball player, but he doesn't fit into the injured category. I really liked this team going into this year, but for some reason, they never gelled like they did last year. Injuries are a major part of it, but it's not like they're getting much healthier. Chandler is back from his foot injury, but has only played one game in the past month.
As far as the matchups:
Billups vs. Paul:
I love this matchup. You have the old blood vs. the new blood. Billups' veteran savviness, vs. Paul's unbelievable skills. Chauncey won't be guarding paul all that much, because Dahntay Jones will have that assignment. On the other hand Paul will be guarding Billups, and I see this as a possible mismatch for the Hornets. I believe that Billups will use his strength and height to post up Paul on numerous occasions, which will inevitably get Paul into foul trouble. On the offensive side, Paul will have to go against Denver's version of Bruce Bowen in Dahntay Jones. Inevitably I see Paul doing most of his damage in the assist column, as I see the Nuggets trapping Paul out of Pick and Rolls to get the ball out of his hands, as they have done in the previous games.
Advantage: Push
Jones vs. Rasual Butler
This matchup is about as boring as it gets, because basically neither of these guys will be guarding each other. I foresee Jones guarding Paul as I said before, and I see Butler guarding Melo for as long as he's paired with Stojakovich on the wings. Butler's a pretty decent shooter, and will probably be waiting on the wings to sink a few when Paul gets doubled, but I don't see him having that big of a series. If he does, the Nuggets will lose. Can't let the shooters get hot if you're a Nugget fan.
Advantage: Push
Carmelo vs. Stojakovich
Again, I don't see Stojakovich guarding Melo. He'll probably be guarding Jones to start the game. As for Melo? He will most likely be guarding Stojakovich on the defensive end. Just get a hand in the guy's face early on, and Stojakovich will take himself out of the game real fast, if not the series. Dude is streakier than JR. Melo should have his best series to date against the Hornets, especially if Chandler isn't playing up to par.
Advantage: Nuggets
K-Mart vs. David West
I think this is the most important matchup for the Nuggets. K-Mart needs to walk the fine line in the Paul/West pick and roll. Help enough on Paul, so that he doesn't get into the paint, but not too much so West has an open jumper. If there is any man that can do this, it's K-Mart. I've been critical of K-Mart all year long, but he will be very valuable to the Nuggets if he holds his end of the bargain. I think K-Mart is the X-Factor in this series. Still, West will get his points, and that's okay. Just need it to a minimum.
Advantage: Hornets
Chandler vs. Nene
Coach Karl better drill this into his players heads: "Give Nene the ball!" We need this guy to gain his confidence back to where he had it at the start of the season. With Nene balling, this team is very hard to beat. Chandler, healthy or not will have a hard time guarding Nene. He's basically a carbon copy of Camby for all of you that don't know. Maybe a little more explosive than Camby, but you get the picture. Lanky dude, but a good shot blocker. Nene has a huge size advantage, and is the much more physical player.
Advantage: Nuggets
Bench vs. Bench
The Nuggets have one of the best benches in the league, and we can actually thank our current foe: The Hornets. New Orleans took it in the rear when trading JR Smith to us for 2 2nd round picks (technically went to Chicago), and just handed the Birdman to us- thanks to a few drug convictions by the Birdman :) The Hornets have James Posey, Sean Marks, Antonio Daniels, and Hilton Armstrong. Easy choice here.
Advantage: Nuggets
So, in my "unbiased" opinion, I think the Nuggets win this handily if they get on the Hornets early. Melo needs to feel comfortable early, and if he does so, I see this team going really far. As far as my prediction? I have the Nuggets in 5. Win the first two at home, steal one in New Orleans, and finish it off here at The Can.
Jay Cutler is a baby and he got traded tonight Blinded by the light the Bears gave up too much for Jay and we got the better end of the trade Blinded by the Light
So it's official! The Denver Broncos have traded Jay Cutler and a 5th round pick to the Chicago Bears for, count them, TWO first round picks AND a third AND Kyle Orton. I love this trade and I think we came out as the winners and the Bears will ultimately regret doing this. My phone has been ringing off the hook and all my fellow Broncos fans have been yelling "Cutler for Kyle Orton!?!?! Are you kidding me?? Man we screwed up." Now, to the untrained eye I can see their displeasure but let me break to you why Jay Cutler is overrated:
1) If everyone would stop jerking off to Cutlers arm strength and actually look into the numbers then Cutler is nothing special. Cutler was 16th (that's dead middle of the pact) in the league in QB rating. Guys like Shaun Hill, Seneca Wallace, Matt Schaub and rookie Matt Ryan all had better ratings... He was also 15th in the league in completion percentage, 8th in touchdowns (despite throwing more then any QB last year except Brees) and a blistering 18th in yards per attempt. So what did Jay lead the league in? Well, he was 2nd in the league in interceptions, right behind the interception king Brett Favre, and he was 3rd the league in total passing yards. But trust me folks, don't buy into total passing yards as a productive stat because it is just an indication that he threw a lot. He was second in the league with 616 pass attempts and that came partly because A) we had a very good passing offensive line B) we had no running game and C) we were always playing from behind so we always had to throw. Just to put this into perspective, if rookie Matt Ryan (who's an average NFL QB) would have throw the ball 616 times then his total passing yards would have been projected around 5013 yards. Not to mention that Jay Cutler had an Offensive line that only allowed a league leading 7 total sacks all season and a wide receiving core that arguable had the best one, two, three punch in Marshall, Royal, and Stokley.
2) Cutler is going to exposed in Chicago. You throw Cutler on a Bears ball club that has the worse wide receiver corps in the league and a questionable O-line and Cutler is going to struggle. Jay is a gambler and that’s the last thing the Bears need right now with their strong defense leading the way. Here an interesting stat to look at: during windy games Jay Cutler has a QB rating of 74.2, 55 % completion percentage and a 1:1 TD to INT ratio. Have fun in the Windy City Jay. Not to mention that Chicago is the second coldest city to play in right behind Green Bay. Especially in the playoffs, where history has shown that the average Bears game temperature is right around 10 degrees fahrenheit. Jay doesn't play well in cold weather. In games less than 21 degrees, Cutler is 0-2 with a 72.4 QB rating, 55 percent completion percentage and has never thrown a touchdown. Brrrrr.
Before the Orton injury last year, Cutler and Orton put up nearly identical numbers. Kyle Orton, 2008 through seven games: 1, 669 yards; 10 TDs; 4 ints (5 games without an interception); 143 completions; 230 attempts; 62.2 completion %; 7.26 per attempt; 4-3 team record.
Jay Cutler, 2008 through seven games: 1, 862 yards: 13 TDs; 7 interceptions (2 games without an interception); 163 completions; 254 attempts; 64.2 completion %; 7.33 per attempt; 4-3 team record.
3) Cutler is not a leader. Period. Leaders are born, not made, and Cutler wasn't born a leader. He constantly lets his emotions get the best of him and it would get in the way of his play. How many times did you see him yelling at receivers for dropped balls or pouting by himself at the end of the bench when he should be firing up his teammates? Or how about overthrowing touchdown passes to Eddie Royal and Brandon "sure hands" Stokley in the final minutes of the Bills game that would have put the Broncos in the playoffs?
This whole month long "he said, she said" saga with the organization further proves my point that Jay Cutler is too emotionally unstable to lead an NFL franchise. You can't go cry and then lock yourself into your room when your names appears in trade talks. That's what Jay Cutler did and now he is being shipped to a big city that doesn't take that sort of crap. Broncos fans are very passionate but they are also very mild. Bears fans are very passionate but will throw you under the bus the minute you show signs of weakness. They did it to Rex Grossman and they will do it to Cutler. If football fans were hot sauces then the Bears would be Mad Dog 357 Ghost Pepper Hot Sauce and Broncos fans would be the mild sauce at Taco Bell. If he doesn't grow up then he won't last in Chicago.
If he can't keep his cool in a post game interview after a game that didn't even mean much then how is he going to keep his cool when a playoff game is on the line? This is clearly not the guy I want in my huddle. Grow up.
Enough of Cutler, let's do what I do best and talk Bronco football. Now there are some things in this world that I just will never understand: trigonometry, The Big Bang Theory, George Karl, clouds, The Jonas Brothers, and the Davinci Code to name a few but I just don't get how we ended also landing Orton and third round pick. Not that I am complaining on bit but all the talks that I heard were for just either 1 first round pick and a player or possibly just 2 first round picks. But the Bears then throw in a quality third rounder and a quality veteran, SYSTEM, quarterback in Orton. I'm jumping for joy over here.
Sure Orton isn’t a long term solution but he is a mentally tough QB that can thrive in a McDaniels system. He won’t be anything too special but with if he can fully grasp the system and make good reads then our O-line and wide outs will allow him to move the ball effectively. Another thing I like is that Orton throws a softer ball then Cutler. Why is this a good thing? Well, because softer balls are easier to catch and when you have a wide receiver like Brandon Marshall who drops a lot of passes (third most drops in the league last year) then you want a QB with a Snuggles tissue soft touch. Ask Roddy White how much he benefited from Michael Vick's laser arm leaving the team:
Roddy White stats: 2 years with Vick: 952 yards and 3 TD's 2 years without Vick: 2584 yards and 13 TD's
And unlike Cutler, Kyle Orton is a winner. Orton is 22-13 in his career and has led a team to the Super Bowl. Yes, I know the Bears wonderful defense had a lot to with that but the fact is that Orton didn't screw up games. He's a system QB that follows instructions well and doesn't make high risk throws. That's exactly why Josh McDaniels was targeting Orton in this trade.
Plus, Orton is a mans man. He's a neck beard wearing, Jack Daniels swizzling, girl banging man. Lindsay Lohan even said he was "super hot" and she herself is "super hot" and Orton is not "super hot" by male standards. Playa? I think so. Meanwhile, Cutler had none of those traits. Cutler was the dorky virgin kid who sat by himself at lunch eating a PB & J with the crust cut off while he sat on his laptop playing War Craft. War Craft playing - PB&J eating - virgins don't translate into winners. . Finally, I love this trade because of the picks we got. We have FOUR first round picks in the next two years and at least three of them will be used on defensive players. Do you know how many former first round picks are on our starting defense right now? Three and those three are our best defensive players in Champ Bailey, DJ Williams, and Brian Dawkins. So building our defense, while McDaniels develops a young QB, sets us up for a promising future. Thus is why I wasn't Blinded By the Light of Jay Cutler and thought this trade worked out in our favor.
