(Denver-CO) Today, Nuggets Nation, you are in luck because this article is a double-dip recap sans Carmelo and the Denver Nuggets are the hottest team in the NBA! That’s right, Mile High City, the Nuggets have won eight straight games and are having guys step up in the absence of Carmelo (as they have all year long when players have gone down with injury) as the team keeps the W’s stacking up.
We start off with getting caught up on the Charlotte Bobcats who came into the Pepsi Center on Monday night and were defeated, 104-93. I give the ‘Cats a lot of credit though because this game was a whole lot tighter than the final score indicates. Through the first half, the Bobcats never trailed by double-digits and were able to close each of the first two quarters down by less than a handful.
That’s not to say there wasn’t fireworks in the first half. Kenyon Martin was hit with a technical foul after Gerald Wallace hit J.R. Smith in the face with an elbow on the low block and Martin came into the make Wallace stand down. After Stephen Jackson missed the T (the ball never lies, especially when Smith was tagged with the foul), Martin then adamantly applauded the miss so that Referee Ken Mauer could clearly see him and was hit with his second technical foul and the early shower.
Now down Kenyon Martin and Carmelo Anthony, the Nuggets could have faltered and had plenty to blame it on, but instead they showed some tremendous character and put the Bobcats down in the third quarter with the help of guys stepping up. Joey Graham scored eleven of his 13 points in the third quarter and Arron Afflalo scoring six of his career-high tying 24 points in the quarter and handing out a career-high seven assists when all was said and done led the Nuggets to victory.
Major kudos need to be given to Arron Afflalo for his play as of late. Earlier in the season, “Double A” was flying a little bit under the radar and as a result was not getting the attention or praise he was due. However, his defense and fluidity in the starting line-up has never faltered and now that his offense has come around it really has been a pleasure having him here in Denver. He’s made the Nuggets Nation forget all about Dahntay Jones on the defensive end and has given the Nuggets a new dimension offensively that DJ never could. Afflalo is averaging 13.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, and two assists over his last five games despite notching just two points and six rebounds against the Rockets.
There was a scary moment at the end of the third quarter for the already shorthanded Nuggets when the Birdman Chris Andersen got his legs tangled up in the paint and appeared to twist his ankle, but the Bird came back last night to help the Nuggets win again over the Rockets so the injury must not have been serious.
Chauncey Billups led all scorers against the ‘Cats with 27 points and finished with a double-double of eleven assists and an economical two turnovers. Also of note is how the Nuggets picked up the rebounding slack with five players grabbing five or more rebounds with Kenyon ejected
In last night’s victory over the Rockets, Denver looked like a team that had traveled the night before and came out very sluggish. The Nuggets managed to put up only 16 points in the first quarter and trailed by 15 at the end of one after their defense was basically a mirror image of their lethargic offensive start.
Thankfully, Denver got back down to business in the second quarter by getting to the rim early and with the help of high-percentage shots and by making 15 of 16 of their combined free-throw attempts in the quarter were able to rally all the way back and take the lead, 40-38, after a pair of free-throws by Chauncey Billups with 5:16 remaining in the half.
The Nuggets trailed by one, 51-50, at the start of the second half and played the third quarter tight to trail by two heading into the fourth, 74-72. But, witht he game's outcome in the balance, Denver didn’t dilly-dally long in the money period taking control of the tempo of the game. Denver dominated the fourth quarter with defensive effort that held the Rockets to just 18 points after they missed ten of their first twelve field goal attempts and laid the foundation for a 10-0 run capped off by back-to-back three’s by J.R. Smith to take a nine-point lead, 89-80, with under six minutes remaining in regulation.
It’s reassuring to see the Nuggets, minus the league’s top scorer, find a way to win with their defense. It shows that this team is adaptable to not only the teams they are facing each night, but also to the team they are able to field. This aspect of the Nuggets’ identity is going to pay dividends in the final half of the regular season and should provide the Nuggets some solidarity come playoff time when it’s not the opponent who changes every night.
J.R. Smith scored a game-high 22 points and chipped in five rebounds, three steals, and two assists in a Nuggets’ best +18 overall +/-. It was a breath of fresh air to see J.R. bounce back with a solid performance after all the negativity swirling around his attitude on the bench and his decision to skip an optional practice last weekend. And on a side note that I was unaware of…
ESPN’s game recap stated that, “Smith had an eventful day (in Houston), making a last-minute payment to Houston attorney Rusty Hardin before the game to stall a lawsuit. Hardin was seeking unpaid legal fees after representing Smith in 2006, when Smith was accused of breaking a player's jaw in a pick-up game. Smith paid a chunk of the fees, and has 30 days to settle the debt and void the lawsuit.” Why trouble seems to swirl around J.R. like a cloud of dust does to Pig Pen of the Peanuts gang, I’ll never know.
Kenyon Martin also had a great performance coming off of the ejection on Monday night. Martin added his twelfth double-double in his last 16 games with twelve points, 15 rebounds, two blocks, and a steal without a single turnover in 35 minutes. Chauncey Billups continues to also be a rudder for this team with another steady performance against the Rockets. Mr. Big Shot finished with the cascading line of 21 points, four assists, four rebounds, and three steals. If Chauncey’s 19.2 points, six assists, three rebounds per game averages and a 90 free-throw shooting percentage don’t warrant him a coach’s decision to the All-Star game then maybe the Nuggets sporting a 31-14 record overall should!
The Nuggets have now won five out of seven games without Carmelo Anthony this season and own a four-game lead over the Utah Jazz in the Northwest Division.
Go Nuggets!
Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics. 
The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.
The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. Here are some of our high-priority areas that we're specifically looking to grow. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.
The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account! 