(Denver-CO) If the Denver Nuggets could play like they did last night against the Lakers in their, 105-79, dolly mopping of the defending champs every night. The Mile High City will be enjoying their first NBA title in about seven months. I’m not even sure how to describe last night’s win other than perhaps it being the best Nuggets game I’ve even seen in my 27 years of watching Nuggets basketball. Seriously.

I’m not even going to go through last night’s trouncing of the Lakers in my traditional fashion because I won’t be able to cover all the great things the Nuggets accomplished as a team or individually. Instead, I’m going to  run down every player’s contribution and what it meant overall.

Arron Afflalo - First things first, “Double A” did an absolutely marvelous job on Kobe Bryant defensively. He forced Kobe into tough shot after tough shot last night mainly because of doing his work before Kobe even got the ball. Afflalo was keeping Bryant as far from the goal as possible so when he did get the basketball he wasn’t able to just make one quick move and get to the rim. This caused Kobe to take nearly impossible turnaround fade-away jump shots in the first half (some of which he made because he is Kobe), but for Bryant to have 19 points at the half in the manner he scored them is something the Nuggets could easily accept. Kudos for a job well done defensively on a nearly indefensible player individually, and to the Nuggets for collectively holding a frustrated Kobe Bryant scoreless in the second half.

Chauncey Billups - Mr. Big Shot didn’t need to be as he was getting everyone involved offensively via heady passes. Billups handed out nine assists by my count, but interestingly enough, by ESPN’s box score finished with eight after they originally had him pegged for nine as well through three quarters. Either way though it doesn’t matter. Chauncey Billups realized that he wasn’t having a great shooting night (he finished just 1-8 for six points), but his facilitation was just as crucial as scoring and his leadership offensively was invaluable. Billups commandeered Denver’s offense about as good as it can be and his four assists in the first quarter alone set the tone for a very unselfish offensive atmosphere for the Nuggets.

Carmelo Anthony - As I pleaded in my preview, ‘Melo found other ways to contribute to his team other than scoring. In fact, I personally thought ‘Melo played some of his best defense that we’ve seen in his entire six-year tenure in Denver in last nights game.  He had three steals, handed out a couple of assists, and pulled four boards, but what’s more important than the raw numbers ‘Melo accumulated is the numbers that he didn’t allow. Ron Artest finished with only eleven points in 25 minutes and backup small forwards Luke Walton and Adam Morrison combined for a paltry four points. Offensively, sure, he got his 25 points, but he didn’t force his way to them and shot an economical 11-20 from the field. Just what this Doctor ordered!

Kenyon Martin - Kmart elevated his game against the Lakers and supplied the defensive toughness Denver so desperately needs right from the opening tip. Along with that toughness, Martin’s outlet passing was amazing. The Nuggets were able to get their fast break going whenever Kenyon grabbed the rebound because Martin was hitting streaking guards near half court with his bullet passing. So true is it that when the Nuggets hit the defensive glass their offense is the end beneficiary because Kenyon Martin is truly the catalyst for Denver’s transition scoring. Martin finished with ten points, nine rebounds, five assists (four of them the result of GREAT outlet passes), two steals, and a block. I also thought that Kenyon was the spark that fueled Denver’s complete and utter 29-8 undressing of the Lakers in the third quarter because once the rest of the Nuggets took Kmart’s defensive cue it was off to the races. By the way, the Lakers scoring just eight points in the third quarter tied a Nuggets’ franchise record for points allowed in a quarter and was just two points more than L.A.’s lowest quarterly output in their franchise history too.

Nene - Big Brazil might have the most unassuming performance in last night’s game, but nevertheless still played great. He had a huge (pardon the pun) defensive assignment in Andrew Bynum and for the most part did an admirable job with the biggest seven-footer in the league. Let’s face it, Andrew Bynum is a force of nature with what seem to be go-go-gadget arms and a nice touch offensively around the basket, but Nene played smart defense - knowing when to foul and when to concede - and countered Bynum’s 19 points and 15 rebounds with 13 points, six rebounds, and four assists. And, in combination with the Birdman on the boards, more than did his part to nullify the giant.

Chris Andersen - Speaking of the Bird… he’s still the word in Denver! It’s too bad that the NBA doesn’t keep track of shots altered because I’m sure Andersen would lead the league in that category. In last night’s game, Birdman finished with only one blocked shot, but changed countless others and notched a team-high eleven rebounds. Additionally, the Bird gave the Nuggets a nice little offensive boost with a couple of jump shots with the shot clock running down and had a really special dunk tip in the second quarter on his way to eight points overall. Tweet-tweet!

Earl J. Smith III - I‘ll let you in on a little secret. My buddies and I have a new rule that states if you call Earl by his former moniker, J.R., then you have to take a drink. Our reasoning? If his Momma named him Earl, then we’re going to call him Earl (shout out to Eddie Murphy in Coming to America)!  In last night’s game, “The Earl of Swish” played fantastic. He gave the Nuggets just what they needed off the bench by means of 20 points off of 4-10 from the land of plenty, three rebounds, and three assists.  Smith scored his in bunches and his hot shooting hand in the third quarter got the Pepsi Center faithful worked up into a frenzy of energy that the rest of the Nuggets fed on and the Lakers collapsed under. With that point fresh in your mind, Earl may be the most electrifying player coming off of any bench in the NBA and as long as Arron Afflalo is playing at the level he is there should be no worries about who starts because as a tandem they are superb.

Ty Lawson - I saved the best for last for a reason. Ty Lawson may very well be the best change of pace guard in the league. His mentor, Chauncey, plays with such a collected poise and omniscience of the game within the game, but when Lawson gets the rock he just pins his ears back and floors the throttle. We’ve all heard the reports from George Karl saying Lawson has the unique ability to become faster with the ball in his hands, but now we have to add one more unique ability to Lawson’s repertoire: Crazy sick hops that would make a brewmaster wake up in the morning with a tent pitched! Not sure what that means? Next time you see D.J. Mbenga ask him what kind of springs 5’11” Ty Lawson has and if it’s a good idea to hang around underneath the basket when the little man raises up off the cross over… With his facial of Mbenga, Lawson finished with 13 points, six assists, a rebound, and a steal in 22 minutes off the bench. Did I mention what he did to D.J. Mbenga should be against the Law-son?

Now, it’s important to remember that in the NBA no loss is as bad as it seems and no win is as great as it is remembered, but with that being said I think this could be a signature win for the Nuggets and one that propels this team through the next leg of their schedule.

Go Nuggets!

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