For proof George Karl isn’t overly worried about the Nuggets’ 104-76 loss to San Antonio in Game 2 of their opening-round playoff series, check the verb tense of the coach’s analysis of Game 3.
“When we win that game, we will put a lot of stress on San Antonio,” Karl said Thursday.
Karl insisted he was not borrowing a page from former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath, who guaranteed a Super Bowl victory, but from his former North Carolina coach, Dean Smith, a man who preached optimism.
Considering how Denver has played at home in Karl’s tenure, that optimism is understandable. The Nuggets went 19-1 at the Pepsi Center under Karl, winning all but one game by nine points or more.
Furthermore, the Nuggets ran in a way that became their signature style. Denver even ran well in its only home loss in that stretch, to Phoenix (106-101), and finished the regular season on a 12-game home winning streak that saw them average 116.4 points per game.
“We have a personality to run better here,” Karl said. “I would like to see us be a little more disruptive here. Our defense isn’t creating a lot of offense.”
San Antonio slowed Denver to a halt Wednesday, holding the Nuggets to 32 first-half points. The Nuggets on Thursday were uniformly enthusiastic about reuniting with a fan base that snatched up tickets to this series’ three games in Denver in half an hour.
Asked what he expects Saturday, forward said: “Crazy. Full of energy. They already sold out the home games. The fans are coming out to support. It’s on our end to do what we need to do.”
Recalling what the Pepsi Center was like last spring against Minnesota in the playoffs, point guard said: “It’s one of the loudest environments I remember. It definitely gives the home team an advantage.”
The Spurs, similarly dominant at home, were an ordinary 21-20 on the road this season, though point guard Tony Parker attributes part of that record to the time forward Tim Duncan missed to injury.
“With Timmy back and the way he’s playing now, he’s going to help us on the road and make sure we have the inside dominance,” Parker said.
Duncan certainly was back Wednesday, dominating the Nuggets with 24 points in 28 minutes.
Denver center said his team is well aware that home-court advantage means nothing if the Nuggets play as they did in Game 2.
“We can’t rely on the crowd and the altitude,” he said. “We have to play better defense. We have to execute (our) offense. We have to figure a way to control Duncan’s touches and control the 3-point line.”
As ugly as Game 2 got, Karl said having a 1-1 tie is “a result we would have sold our souls for a week ago.”
Before the team’s practice Thursday, he told the players about his first sports memory.
When Karl was 9, in 1960, his hometown Pittsburgh Pirates beat the New York Yankees in one of baseball’s great upsets. The Pirates won the World Series in seven games, despite being outscored 55-27 in the series.
Comparing that series to this one, Karl said: “Usually the higher-seed team has a tendency to have a blowout in a series more than a lower-seeded team. Did I want that? No, I didn’t want that. Come on, man, don’t overreact. We have some things we know we can do better. We’ve had a great home court, 19-1.”
Karl added he does not expect San Antonio to be fazed by the Pepsi Center crowd.
“But I think it’ll give us more juice and some more energy,” he said. “It’s our turn to show the NBA and the NBA world that we have pride too.”
Staff writers Chris Dempsey and Marc J. Spears contributed to this report.
Adam Thompson can be reached at 303-820-5447 or athompson@denverpost.com.
