Denver Stiffs

And the Award Goes To...

2012-05-17T15:15:04Z

Introducing your first annual Denver Stiffs 2011-12 Award Winners!

Well, it's over. A lockout-shortened offseason, followed by 66 torturous, compressed games, clawing into the playoffs, only to be sent fishing in the first round - again.

With the Nuggets' defeat at the hands of the hated Lakers, the Nuggets move on to an offseason in which there are some big questions to be answered. Will Masai Ujiri use the Nuggets' amnesty clause on Chris Andersen or Al Harrington, or will they be included as a part of a trade? How much money will be offered to the precocious JaVale McGee? Are Timofey Mozgov and Rudy Fernandez as good as gone, or will one or the both of them be back? Does Andre Miller want to remain a Nugget, and do the Nuggets want to resign him? What will happen to Julyan Stone and Jordan Hamilton?

We'll find out soon enough. But first, presenting this year's Denver Nuggets award winners, carefully selected by the committee for your perusal. In no particular order...

Rookie of the Year: Kenneth Faried (aka "The Manimal")

(via www.nba.com)

Kenneth Faried has truly been a blessing for the Nuggets. Taken 22nd overall in the 2011 draft, Nuggets fans were thrilled that the front office was somehow able to swindle the Portland Trailblazers into taking guard Nolan Smith instead of everyone's favorite 6'8" ball of energy. Although it took some time for him to prove that he deserved his playing time - as it does for all rookies under George Karl's system - Kenneth made an impact whenever he had time on the floor. He plays with an energy and athleticism that is rare in the NBA and never stops moving. He can elevate above the rim, is constantly muscling his way to rebounds all over the court and plays with an infectious positive attitude, always smiling and cheering on his teammates. From constant highlight-reel dunks to ripping down boards with ferocity, no rookie on the Nuggets this year made as much of an impression as did the Manimal.

Averaging 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, Kenneth Faried finished the regular season with a 21.94 PER - highest of all rookies - and was fourth in the ENTIRE NBA in PER at the power forward position. It's still too early to tell, but I feel that there are lots of positive signs pointing to Kenneth Faried potentially becoming the next superstar to don a Nuggets uniform.

Nate's Thoughts: I can't wait to see what Jordan Hamilton (and perhaps Julyan Stone too) does with more playing time next season, but the obvious choice is Kenneth Faried, unless you've been in a coma for an extended amount time.

Andy's Thoughts: Considering Kenneth Faried finished in the top three for NBA ROY voting, he's certainly a no-brainer pick for the Nuggets' ROY. If Faried continues to improve, this 22nd overall pick may prove to be one of the great steals in recent NBA Draft history.

Jeff's Thoughts: Julyan Stone! wait....Kenneth Faried. Sorry, I spelled that wrong. It's fairly self explanatory why Faried is the Rookie of the Year.

Chris's Thoughts: Kenneth Faried. Not much to say about this - Manimal exceeded expectations in every way imaginable and brought aggressiveness, tenacity, and energy night in and night out. Despite being undersized, Faried had a better total rebounding rate than guys named Love, Bynum, Duncan and Noah. He also created easy and efficient offense (a ridiculous 61% TS%) on put backs, lobs and run-outs. He hit countless clutch free throws and towards the end of the year he started developing both a post up game and a spot up jumper . Faried needs to do a better job of understanding team defensive concepts and rotations but the future looks bright.

Honorable Mention: Jordan Hamilton

Jordan Hamilton - affectionately known as "J-Ham" - was taken just four spots behind Faried (at 26th), yet has also shown flashes of brilliance. The 6'7" shooting guard out of Texas had a few breakout games when the Nuggets were fraught with injuries, scoring a career-high 18 points on 6-11 shooting in a losing effort at the Clippers. Though his minutes were sparse and inconsistent, "Ham" showed an excellent shooting touch and could be an important backup for Arron Afflalo next season.

Defensive Player of the Year: Arron Afflalo

(via cdn.bleacherreport.net)

Arron Afflalo had his ups and downs this past season, to be sure. He had an abysmal start to the year, seemingly unable to find his range and playing ineffective basketball after much offseason praise and finally landing a very lucrative contract extension. There were times when some Stiffs readers even called for trading the Bruin due to his disappointing play. But one thing that has always impressed me about Arron has been his tenacity. His constant drive to get better, even if he isn't playing well at the moment. He gradually righted the ship over the course of the season, ending up shooting 47% from the floor, 41% from 3 and 80% from the line during the regular season (the playoffs were a different story, unfortunately), a very efficient offensive line from any shooting guard.

To me, though, "AAA" or "Trip" will always be a better defender than he is an offensive weapon. Despite his struggles scoring in the postseason, Afflalo will and always should be valued more for his defensive contributions to the success of the Nuggets. Throughout the year, he chased other teams' guard around screens, through picks, under the basket, beyond the arc - wherever his man went, Arron was right there with a hand in his face. Although there were nights in which Afflalo was burned, it certainly wasn't frequently. Afflalo always responded with a tighter close-out, a better rotation, more active hands or a blocked shot, and that is what I admire most about him. With a full offseason and training camp and his future with the Nuggets secure, the Nuggets will be counting on his defensive presence on the wing for years to come.

Nate's Thoughts: Andre Miller!! Joking! JaVale McGee. The Nuggets didn't play a ton of defense last season, but when McGee came aboard, the lane finally got some protection. Danilo Gallinari also should get some consideration as he had some big time games on the defensive end versus some difficult opponents ... namely LeBron James.

Andy's Thoughts: While it may have taken him a while to find his offensive game, Arron Afflalo was a defensive stalwart all season long and had the thankless task of guarding premium opposing two-guards and small forwards nightly.

Jeff's Thoughts: Danilo Gallinari. What you say? Why not JaVale McGee? I strongly considered McGee...but I don't think he was on the team long enough to determine that. I'm saying Gallo because, outside of some periodic mental lapses, Gallo was given tough assignments on Rudy Gay, Lebron James and Kobe Bryant and did a very respectable, if not downright great job on each. Despite what Kobe said in the playoffs ... Gallo was in his head.

Chris's Thoughts: No one. The difference between this year's Nuggets team and last year's post-trade Nuggets team? Defense. When your defense is 4th worst in the league in defensive eFG% given up and you give up the worst shooting percentage in the league on 3 pointers everyone shares responsibility. If I had to choose, it'd be Gallo because our team defense was best when he was on the court. While he wasn't the best individual defender on the team, his ability to alter shots with his length, play good fundamental defense without fouling, and finally securing a defensive rebound a good percentage of the time to end the possession made him super valuable from a team defense perspective.

Most Improved Player: JaVale McGee

(via thebiglead.fantasysportsven.netdna-cdn.com)

Despite being acquired mid-season for longtime center Nene, JaVale McGee has at times looked like a completely different player than the oft-ridiculed center he was with the Washington Wizards. McGee's acquisition by the Nuggets seems to have, in some ways, wiped his tarnished slate clean, and he's played with the intensity and dedication on the Nuggets that many suspected was there, just hidden behind the veil of terrible that was the Wizards. McGee went from a perennial loser to a perennial playoff team and seems to have realized that if he wants to be a star, this is the place where he will become one.

At 7 feet tall and 250 pounds with a wingspan that rivals Mr. Fantastic's, JaVale has greatly improved even in the short time he spent with the Nuggets. He cut down on boneheaded plays and silly fouls - though there were still some, to be sure - he started listening to his coach and teammates, and more than anything, started playing INTELLIGENTLY. In the postseason's game 3 against two All-Star players in Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, McGee played the best game of his career - going for 16 points (on 12 shots), 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks with just one turnover. If McGee can somehow find a way to consistently put up lines like that, the Nuggets may have found the center to regularly compete with towers of the Spurs and Lakers.

Nate's Thoughts: Ty Lawson - he grew as much during the playoffs as he did during the regular season. He finally took over the offense and was a full-time starter this season and flourished. I'd say JaVale McGee was a close second and if he's re-signed, he could have a breakout season next year.

Andy's Thoughts: I have to go with Al Harrington here. After a sub-par (by his own standards) 2010-11 campaign, Big Al got himself into better shape entering the 2011-12 season and was the Nuggets' staple off the bench while providing solid veteran leadership to the youngsters. Harrington was so good this season that he garnered some Sixth Man of the Year Award attention. I can't say enough about what the Nuggets got out of Big Al this season!

Jeff's Thoughts: I'm going to say Al Harrington here. Despite being ridden into the ground like a circus elephant by his coach, until the end of the year Big Al showed remarkable improvement from the previous season where he was all but useless. Good job Al!

Chris's Thoughts: JaVale McGee - I don't think I've seen a player as bad as JaVale was his first few games in a Nuggets uniform (he had a couple games where his +/- was -15 or more while Koufos' was +15 or more). On offense, he was either committing a dumb foul or throwing up a shot that was allergic to even touching the rim. On defense he was jumping at everything and either goaltending, committing a defensive foul, or leaving himself out of position by fanning on the block. Not to mention he'd never box out when a shot went up and rely on jumping over a guy to get a rebound. Fast forward to the Lakers series and JaVale was boxing out more than 50% of the time (he wasn't when he was tired), trying to block a shot when he actually had a chance at the block, playing defense without fouling, and even contributing on offense. The key for JaVale going forward will be how consistently he can do the things I mentioned above. He went from a guy who never did them to a guy who does them about a 3rd of the time.

Least Improved Player: Timofey Mozgov

(via www3.pictures.zimbio.com)

I didn't initially want to include this "award", but there's no player more deserving of it than Mozgov. When the Nuggets insisted on acquiring Mozgov as a part of the Carmelo Anthony trade, it was with much anticipation and expectation that Mozgov would become an important part of the Nuggets' frontcourt rotation. Instead, the 7'1" center has shown that he's the same clumsy, foul-prone player he always has been. He showed no improvement in his ability to catch and finish at the rim, appeared as though he was wearing cement shoes on many of his defensive rotations and never showed the level of improvement that the Nuggets front office expected (and needed) from him. Beset by ankle injuries, Mozgov was even benched late in the year when it became clear that as low as the ceiling was, even Kosta Koufos was outplaying him. I would like to think that with a full offseason regimen Mozgov will show up for the 2012 season ready to become the bruiser the front office was counting on, but I'm not hopeful.

Nate's Thoughts: Chris Andersen. He was relegated to a bench role after Kenneth Faried broke out as a must play and couldn't get on the floor over Kosta Koufos or Timofey Mozgov.

Andy's Thoughts: Timofey Mozgov was quite a disappointment this season. In fact, had Moz stepped up the Nuggets may not have had to make the trade for JaVale McGee (although, thankfully they did ... the Nuggets don't push the Lakers to 7 without McGee ... period). I keep hearing that "Moz is young, give him time" but he has played two-and-a-half seasons now and we're not seeing the upside that we envisioned when he got here. One more year?

Jeff's Thoughts: Timofey Mozgov. I seriously thought that Moz would make a big leap forward this year by consistently starting. Yet, despite starting for most of the year, he proved to be confused and inept on offense. So much so that players stopped throwing him the ball because of his stone hands. While Moz was able to play some stout defense on Andrew Bynum, he was too frequently abused.

Chris's Thoughts: Danilo Gallinari. I'll answer this from the perspective of guys who are on the right side of the age curve (under 27) who you would expect to steadily improve rather than look at it from the perspective of who declined the most from last year. If you look at Gallinari's offensive production he has been steadily regressing since his rookie year when you would expect him to steadily improve. Some of it is increased usage leading to decreased efficiency and some of it is injuries. While he still does tons of things on offense that are super valuable, the lack of improvement is disappointing and this team will need his career to follow a typical age curve to become a contender.

Most Valuable Player:Ty Lawson

(via layupline.com)

As Lawson goes, so goes the Nuggets. It's really as simple as that. When Ty is playing aggressively, getting out on the break and taking the ball to the rim, the Nuggets are virtually unstoppable. When Ty turns it on, his speed is unrivaled in the NBA and he can blow by nearly any defense. He has shown the ability to hit the long ball, forcing teams to close out on him, and has developed a nifty midrange game to supplement his skill at the rim. Without a doubt, Ty Lawson was the force that propelled the Nuggets to a 38-28 regular season record and a major factor in their sole postseason victory.

But as Lawson goes...so go the Nuggets. It is impossible to discount how valuable Ty is to the Nuggets, which is both praise and admonishment to the speedster when looking at the season in retrospect. Since being drafted, Ty has been mentored by two of the best guards of this generation in Chauncey Billups and 'Dre, but still has yet to show the "killer instinct" that many are looking for - that unwavering desire to win, to be the player who'll put his team on his back when they need it, and at times simply will them to victory - consistently. He will have amazing performances, games where one wonders "is this the All-Star Lawson?" and then virtually disappear the next game, shooting poorly and timidly deferring even when given open looks. Can Ty continue to improve, or have we seen as much of the Blur as we're going to ever see?

Nate's Thoughts: They didn't have one. Everyone was pretty important and different guys stepped up at different times all season. In the same sense - every player was the most valuable. A true team.

Andy's Thoughts: This is a tough call, but I'll go with Ty Lawson because it seemed as though when he played well, the Nuggets won games. And when he disappeared, the Nuggets lost games. This was quite evident during the Nuggets playoff series against the Lakers. But it's tough when your team's MVP is a guy who disappears occasionally!

Jeff's Thoughts: This one is hard. I'm inclined to say Ty Lawson ... and this is primarily because the Nuggets offense was so anemic when he was passive. So it's not exactly a ringing endorsement but there it is.

Chris's Thoughts: Ty Lawson. As mentioned many times in post game write-ups, the Nuggets fortunes tended to rise and fall with Ty's aggressiveness. Among PGs who played more than 25 minutes per game Ty Lawson ranked 4th with better than a 58% TS%. Ty did a great job of using a lot of possessions very efficiently, creating for teammates, and made huge strides becoming one of the Nuggets' primary options on offense. He did this while turning the ball over fairly infrequently and rebounding at an above average rate for a point guard.

Coach of the Year: Pamela McGee

(via www.sportsgrid.com)

If this award seems like a shot at George Karl, good - it should be taken that way. Aside from being a good mother, WNBA star and JaVale McGee fan, Pamela McGee has always had her son's back and supported him, despite the adjustments that he needed to make. Watching her cheering loudly for JaVale in games 3 and 4 of this past series while staring down a fan who was clearly not impressed with McGee the younger will be seared into my brain for years to come. Her mere presence seemed to improve the play of the Nuggets, especially McGee, who was at his most effective when mom was nearby.

Nate's Thoughts: The Nuggets fans on Denver Stiffs. Come to the site after a loss and you'll see what needs to change ... TRADE FOR CHRIS BOSH, GET RID OF GALLO, AFFLALO NEEDS TO GO! We heard it all this season ... But a great season nonetheless. Thanks for reading the site and for making Denver Stiffs a place where you come to talk about Nuggets basketball!

Andy's Thoughts: For all the heat George Karl took here at Denver Stiffs and elsewhere in the Denver media, he deserves credit for guiding the Nuggets through a tough season and getting a great effort out of his squad in the playoffs. Karl's Nuggets have historically folded in on-the-road Game 5 situations, but this year they pulled off an upset in Game 5 and forced a Game 7. In Karl's 8 years as Nuggets head coach, I rank this season as his third best coaching performance (first being the WCF run in 2008-09, second being his debut season when the Nuggets went 32-8 after he took over for Jeff Bzdelik and Michael Cooper).

Jeff's Thoughts: Keorge Garl, the alternate reality George Karl who always plays the correct rotations AND doesn't run his veterans into the ground. COY!

Chris's Thoughts: Andre Miller - Andre did so many little things this year that were really sharp. Little things like fouling on defense when the other team had numbers in transition, trying to get 2-for-1's at the end of quarters, getting in Andre Iguodala's head by saying his free throw percentage to him right before he shot two clutch free throws. In addition to the easy baskets he created for his teammates, his smarts and on the floor coaching were probably responsible for a few extra wins.

Honorable Mention: George Karl

I truly like George Karl. For all his faults as coach, and there are many, Karl is an upstanding person and has been a big part of Denver for nearly a decade. He's a fixture of Denver sports, to be sure.

But at the same time, something has got to change, either with Karl's style or with the leadership of this team. I cannot count how many times I have been left shaking my head when I see the Nuggets fail to execute in the half-court, as Karl simply does not assign half-court play with as much importance as he does simply "playing basketball". From head scratching lineups to uneven distribution minutes to a failure to gameplan for the opponent appropriately, Karl seems to not so much coach at times as he does simply to offer occasionally helpful suggestions.

As we've now seen for 8 out of the last 9 years, Karl's coaching methods are satisfactory to get the Nuggets to the playoffs, but totally unacceptable once there. It's no coincidence that the Nuggets simply did not have an inbounds play until the arrival of Chauncey Billups. It's also not a coincidence that despite much regular season success, Karl has an abysmal 75-99 playoff record. He relies too much on worn-down veterans without placing enough trust in younger players to prove they are up to the task. He stubbornly refuses to "play the matchup", frequently forcing his team into situations in which the tallest player on the floor for the Nuggets could be Al Harrington.

Most damning, though, is the talent that Karl has had at times in his career - coaching the likes of Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and Chauncey Billups most recently - and yet has still done virtually nothing with it. Out of 23 seasons coached, Karl has made it out of the first round just 8 times. Is it really that the pieces just weren't there, or that Karl was simply incapable of using them to their fullest potential?

Make no mistake about it, this year will either see the Nuggets with success and beyond the first round or Karl out the door. I believe that it would be premature to dismiss Karl without a full offseason working with this freshest Nuggets crop of talent, but postseason success for the Nuggets is long, long overdue.

That's a wrap for this year's Denver Stiffs Awards, folks. Have an excellent summer and stay tuned to Denver Stiffs for Nuggets news, notes and offseason developments. See you at the draft!

Off Topic Wednesday: Spurs grab early 1-0 lead over Clippers

2012-05-16T14:37:20Z

The NBA playoffs are rolling along ... the Lakers got blown out in Game 1 by the Thunder. The Spurs had their way, with 13 three-pointers, the Clippers in Game 1 and the Pacers tied up their series with the Miami Heat 1-1 with a three point last night.

Podcast: CSG #41 Jeff Morton wraps up the Nuggets' season

2012-05-15T15:02:59Z

Last night Jeff joined the Colorado Sports Guys podcast to discuss all things Nuggets. He was asked specifically about Arron Afflalo, Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried, JaVale McGee, and Ty Lawson. Also some talk about Chris Andersen and the role new media is playing in journalism today.

You can also find the podcast (free) on iTunes here.

Golden Nuggets: Denver future is bright!

2012-05-14T17:48:27Z

After a disappointing (but not altogether unpredictable) loss in Game 7 to the Lakers, it's time to look forward to what proves to be an interesting off-season for the Nuggets. There may be changes to this roster, but is that the right thing for this club?

Let's find out ...

In the postmortem of the Nuggets heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Lakers, there was emotion, there was anger, and there was people throwing kittens against a wall of porcupines. People weeping in the streets and flogging themselves on the corner. The thing is, however, this needs to stop.

NOW

This Nuggets team has a bright future regardless of what people or various ESPN-paid pundits tell you. This seven game series against the Lakers went more to help the young team's development than anything else they encountered this season. In fact I'd wager to say that this team's resilience in the face of injury and the way they picked themselves off the mat versus the Lakers should give every Nuggets fan encouragement that this team can win for the future. I know I'm encouraged.

With that being said, as of this last March, we may have seen the last of Chris Andersen on the floor for the Denver Nuggets (more on that in the coming days). Regardless of the result of his legal issues, I just don't see the Nuggets spending $4.5 million a year to retain a player they have no intention of playing.

What will the Nuggets then do with Rudy Fernandez? I think they should bring him back. His three point shooting and perimeter defense was definitely missed.

We know, of course, the Nuggets desire to retain JaVale McGee (hopefully at a reasonable price), but if some foolish team backs a dump truck full of money up to McGee's door what will the Nuggets do?

Ty Lawson looks to be extended soon, and if the Nuggets manage to retain McGee then I think priority number one is for Ty to improve his lob passing ability. One of the reason McGee came off the bench was because he worked better with Andre Miller ... if Ty improves his lobs the Nuggets will be lethal.

That brings us to Miller. If you go by his comments after Game 7 in Los Angeles, the Nuggets chances of keeping Miller are small. He's an unrestricted free agent, and stated he will only "come off the bench" for a contending team. That pretty much puts the nail in the coffin for the Nuggets chances of re-signing Andre. You can understand his point of view, I don't begrudge him whatsoever, and if he can latch on with a contender then thank you so much for what you did for the team this season Dre.

In the grand scheme of things, I can't see the Nuggets making any major moves this off season. It seems like they really do like their team, and outside of filling some holes I just can't see the Nuggets making any significant changes until the trade deadline (if that). I think the Nuggets need to give this team an opportunity to grow. There's no package deal or major trade that will be an upgrade over the roster they have now and I for one am excited to see how this roster matures after another off-season of development. The team has learned alot about itself these playoffs, and I like what I see.

The future is bright Nuggets fans, and it's very likely the roster you see before you will be mostly intact next season. For that, I'm encouraged.

Links

Nuggets upbeat about future prospects after pushing Lakers to seven games - Benjamin Hochman, Denver Post
Benjamin Hochman talks about the Nuggets prospects in the off season and their sunny outlook after their playoff series versus the Lakers.

Nuggets' Andre Miller says he will keep options open - Chris Dempsey, Denver Post
Looks like Dre' may have played his last game as a Nuggets point guard.

Ty Lawson, Nuggets playoff star, in position to get contract extension - Benjamin Hochman, Denver Post
Ty Lawson may get paid this off season after three great games in the first round.

NBA put its thumb on the scale for the Lakers - Dave Krieger, 850KOA blog
Dave Krieger from 850 KOA talks about Metta World Peace coming back for game seven, and how the scales were tipped toward the Lakers in the last game of the series.

Twitter: @jmorton78 https://twitter.com/#!/jmorton78

mortonagency@juno.com

A eulogy for the 2011-12 Denver Nuggets season ...

2012-05-13T19:31:17Z

The Denver Nuggets' 36th NBA season concluded on Saturday night with a heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, ending a season that gave us much to be proud of and much to be hopeful about for the future.

Before it began, the 2011-12 Denver Nuggets season was destined to be a peculiar one full or surprises, ups, downs and everything in-between. This, of course, was because the season started right after Christmas - nearly two full months later than an NBA season typically starts - thanks to a labor dispute between NBA owners and players that chopped the normal 82-game schedule down to 66. And those 66 games were to be played in a tight 120 days.

Kicking off the season, this Nuggets team appeared to be one of the few in the NBA that would actually benefit from the lockout-shortened season. After all, these Nuggets were young, healthy and could play big or small - depending on what their opponents threw at them. Opening the season, the Nuggets possess a roster that was 11 deep. The newly re-signed Arron Afflalo and Nene Hilario would anchor the starting shooting guard and power forward positions, respectively, with youngsters Timofey Mozgov (center), Ty Lawson (point guard) and Danilo Gallinari (small forward) rounding out the starting five. Off the bench, the Nuggets had arguably the best backup point guard in the NBA in Andre Miller (a reluctant backup, by the way), one of the best backup forwards in Al Harrington (who admirably worked his ass off in the off-season to get into great shape) and some energy guys: Rudy Fernandez, Kosta Koufos, Corey Brewer, Chris Andersen and rookie Kenneth Faried. None were superstars - heck, none were even All-Stars - but the Nuggets had the overall talent to overcome whatever the lockout-schedule was going to throw at them.

And overcome the scheduling and short training camp they did ... at least initially.

Nuggets head coach George Karl told us to judge him on his first 20 and his last 20 games. Well, Karl's Nuggets delivered an exciting 14-6 record through their first 20 games, beating the defending champion Mavericks (in Dallas!) to begin the season and besting the likes of the Lakers, Heat and Jazz in Denver. During that stretch, Karl's Nuggets did something that no Nuggets squad had ever done before: win five straight road games, including two overtime thrillers - at Philadelphia and at New York (a double-overtime game that featured the Nuggets first rematch with former Nugget Carmelo Anthony). Coming off that stellar road trip, Nuggets fans had visions of a Western Conference two-seed assuming that the aging Spurs, Lakers and Mavericks would fade into the background as the season went on.

As it turned out, the Nuggets' 14-6 start was a bit of fool's gold. For their "middle 26" games, the Nuggets went 11-15. Besieged by injuries (at one point, Afflalo, Lawson, Nene, Mozgov and Gallo all missed games), poor home play and a myriad of other issues, the Nuggets plummeted downward in the Western Conference standings and at times it seemed as though they might miss the playoffs altogether. Meanwhile, the Spurs blitzed their way to the top of the conference standings while the Lakers and Mavericks stayed afloat. As February ground on, it became painfully obvious that the Nuggets weren't going to take advantage of the lockout schedule and would have to fight just to make the playoffs at all.

Not knowing who he had to play for him on any given night, Karl continued to tinker with the rotation and just couldn't find the right formula to keep the Nuggets consistently winning. Especially at home. So with the mid-March trade deadline looming, Nuggets vice president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri decided to make a big change and pulled the trigger on a trade that most of us didn't see coming: the recently re-signed Nene was shipped to the lowly Washington Wizards for a quirky, 24 year old, seven-footer named JaVale McGee.

Nene had given the Nuggets 9 1/2 solid seasons, but after being rewarded with a five-year, $67 million contract Nene didn't repay the favor, allowing minor injuries to keep him out of games and not playing hard when playing in games. Knowing that Nene's contract would quickly become a bad one, Ujiri gambled and brought in the oft-troubled McGee (a restricted free agent to be) and simultaneously brought back Wilson Chandler, who had been playing professionally in China. With McGee and Chandler on board, the Nuggets had even more depth and versatility going into those final 20 games that Karl asked to be judged on.

The Nuggets didn't get much from Chandler as he injured his hip after just 7 games and had to get it surgically repaired. A month earlier, Fernandez was lost for the season due to needing back surgery. And somewhere along the way, Andersen was just lost and was routinely DNP-CD'd by Karl. So Karl's 11-deep rotation was now down to 10: Lawson, Afflalo, Mozgov, Gallinari, Faried, Koufos, McGee, Miller, Harrington and Brewer.

If there was one silver lining to the injuries to Nene, Mozgov and Gallinari it was that Karl was forced to give Faried playing time. And unlike Nene, Faried immediately rewarded Karl for the playing time ... and then some. The 22nd overall pick in the draft, Faried - appropriately nicknamed "The Manimal" - had 11 double-doubles and re-energized the team with his relentless energy, enthusiasm and hustle. On every possession. Faried was so good so fast, that most NBA pundits regarded him as the second best rookie in the NBA (behind the great Kyrie Irving) and, simply put, the Nuggets don't make the 2012 playoffs without Faried's nightly effort.

With McGee on-board, Faried learning and Afflalo improving, the Nuggets finished up the season's final 20 games with 13 wins, including 8 of their last 10. As we've seen with many Karl-coached Nuggets teams these past 8 years, the Nuggets were one of the hottest teams heading into the post-season as a sixth-seed.

Having advanced past the first round just once in seven tries as head coach in Denver, Karl faced another up hill battle by drawing the favored Lakers in Round 1. And when the Lakers beat the Nuggets in Game 4 at Denver to take a 3-1 series lead, it seemed as though Karl and the Nuggets were doomed to another 4-1 exit . But not this year. Somehow, someway Karl found the right formula to deliver a thrilling Game 5 Nuggets victory at Los Angeles, and followed that up a blowout Nuggets victory in Game 6 at Denver two nights later. With a Game 7 looming, Nuggets Nation was getting nostalgic with memories of the 1967-77, 1977-78, 1982-83, 1984-85, 1985-86, 1987-88, 1993-94 and 2008-09 Nuggets dancing in their heads - i.e. previous Nuggets teams who had a chance to advance far in the playoffs.

But, alas, it wasn't meant to be.

Despite coming back from a 16-point deficit in Game 7 to take a fourth quarter lead, the Nuggets didn't have the rebounding acumen to defeat the Lakers for a third consecutive time and dropped their final game 96-87. As we had seen all season long, when the Nuggets don't break 100 points they don't win games. And 87 points - especially in a Game 7 playoff game - wasn't going to cut it.

But even with that heartbreaking loss fresh in our minds, there was much to be proud of and positive about this season. And just by taking the Lakers to seven games, the 2011-12 Nuggets leaped into the "favorite Nugget teams of all time" conversation, alongside those late-70s, mid-80s, 1993-94 and 2008-09 teams. Even better, with much of the 2011-12 roster under contract and due to come back next season, the future of Nuggets basketball is bright. The Nuggets core of Lawson, Afflalo, Gallinari, Faried, McGee and Chandler is a great starting place to build from or trade from, two scenarios that I'm sure Ujiri is looking at. Melo who?

I know we'll be spending the next few months pontificating about what the Nuggets "need to do" in the off-season. And it's a conversation I eagerly welcome. But for now, let's look back at the 2011-12 Nuggets and applaud management, the coaching staff and the players for delivering a fine season and post-season. The good guys - yet again - didn't finish first. But they put up a hell of a fight trying to.

Go Nuggets!!

Golden Nuggets: Reaction to the Nuggets' devastating Game 7 loss ...

2012-05-13T15:34:48Z

I'll be serving up my annual eulogy for the Nuggets season in addition to Game 7 commentary later this afternoon. In the meantime, here is a rundown of what the national media is saying about the end of the thrilling Nuggets versus Lakers first round series ...

Bill Plaschke: Lakers-Nuggets Game 7: Lakers never make it easy, but they escape with win - latimes.com

The Lakers pulled a city off a ledge and themselves back into the NBA championship contention Saturday with an energizing, exasperating 96-87 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of a first-round series that should not have lasted this long.

Woody Paige: Nuggets fight to finish vs. Lakers, but 'ain't gonna be no rematch' - The Denver Post

In previous series against the Lakers, the Nuggets always played scared, always played weak, always played from behind. Not this team.

Marc Spears: Metta World Peace answers Lakers' call for help - Yahoo! Sports

Metta World Peace returned from his exile to save the Los Angeles Lakers' season. He helped fight off the Denver Nuggets in a thrilling Game 7 victory, and as he walked off the Staples Center court late Saturday, the crowd roared its approval, granting its conquering hero a standing ovation.

Mark Kriegel: Metta World Peace returns to rescue Los Angeles Lakers from Denver Nuggets in Game 7 - NBA News | FOX Sports on MSN

Good thing for Brown — the Lakers’ prematurely embattled coach — that the suspension was lifted. If not, Denver would be playing in Oklahoma City on Monday night.

Steve Quinne: Baby Blues in the Night - M ile High Sports

On George Karl’s 61st birthday, in the team’s first game seven since the year the eighth-seeded Nuggets knocked off the No. 1 seed Sonics (who were coached by Karl), with a chance to be only the ninth team in NBA history to bounce back from down 3-1 in a series, against a team Denver has never defeated in the playoffs, with all the momentum in their favor, fate, it seemed, was on Denver’s side.

J.A. Adande: Working For Tips, Gasol is Money in Game 7 - D aily Dime - ESPN

It's nights like Saturday's Game 7 that force the issue and serve notice that the two most recent championships in the Lakers' storied history came when Gasol played the way he did Saturday, with his Laker legacy on the line.

Game 7 Nuggets At Lakers Recap

2012-05-13T05:22:02Z

Sometimes, evil just wins.

The Nuggets fought hard, they forced a game 7 down 3-1, and came up just short. I don't have the heart to write a full recap right now. Postmortem analysis to come in the next few days. Go Thunder.

Game 7 Nuggets At Lakers: Second Half Thread

2012-05-13T03:45:02Z

Leave your second half thoughts here. GO NUGGETS!!