Denver Post sports writer Adam Thompson posts his Nuggets Mailbag every other Tuesday during the 2005-06 NBA season on DenverPost.com. The next installment is slated for Feb. 7.
To drop a question into the Nuggets Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
Can you enlighten us Nuggets fans who are frustrated by the lack of movement as far as trading players on the roster for players who could help the team?
— Rory, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Rory – I feel your pain. NBA reporters feel like they’ve been on a stakeout with no action for months. We’re just sitting and staring out the window for hours, with no interruption save the occasional bathroom break.
The most likely explanation is the Ron Artest Domino Theory, which posits that everyone is waiting for Indiana to deal its talented but kooky small forward. If and when that does happen – the Pacers have about a month before the Feb. 23 deadline – expect a cascade of other deals that were held up as teams tried to save their pieces for the Artest sweepstakes.
The Nuggets certainly have been stifled in other deals by their desire for Artest, which may have turned out to be a blessing in disguise. If they had shipped someone by now, it probably would have been Earl Watson, and he’s had everything to do with their recent hot streak.
Hey, Adam. Any chance at MVP for Carmelo Anthony?
— Andrew Labenz, Hutchinson, Kan.
Andrew – Slow down there, buckaroo. Let’s see Melo make an All-Star team before we trot out those three big consonants. Yes, he’s having a terrific year, but the general consensus at the season’s midpoint is that Dirk Nowitzki, Kobe Bryant, Chauncey Billups, Kevin Garnett and defending MVP Steve Nash are the favorites.
Who could the Nuggets possibly get for Voshon Lenard?
— Jeff Sarceno, Longmont
Jeff – More than you might think for a guy who, as of this publication, hasn’t stripped off his warm-ups since mid-December. One of the screwier offshoots of the NBA’s salary-cap structure is how players who aren’t contributing become more valuable in the last year of their contracts. Vo’s deal is worth $3.5 million, which would come off the books of any potential suitor looking for added cap space to pursue free agents or a lower payroll to avoid the league’s luxury tax this summer. Don’t be surprised if someone somewhere gives Lenard a short-term shot in exchange for a player with more years on his contract.
Adam – I am simply stunned by the mounting injuries to the Nuggets players this season! What is the total number of games missed by Nuggets players this year, and is there an NBA record for most games missed in a season due to injuries by any one team?
— Andrew Cieszynski, Harrisburg, Pa.
Andrew – I love a challenge. But I don’t love failing challenges, as I did in this case. I checked with both the NBA offices and the Elias Sports Bureau, and neither had the kind of records you seek. Even if they did, the numbers could be easily skewed by an end-of-the-bencher missing an entire season.
I can tell you anecdotally that, as full as Denver’s training room has been, Houston’s had it worse this year. Starters Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming and Bob Sura each have missed huge chunks (and in Sura’s case, all) of this season. As a result, the Rockets, a team projected in the West’s top four, need a prayer to reach the postseason. Utah had it just as bad last year with the loss of starters Andrei Kirilenko, Carlos Boozer and Raul Lopez.
Is Ricky Sanchez doing well, and what are the possibilities of him joining the Nuggets next year or even this year?
— Jeff Sarceno, Longmont
Jeff – This is an epic first. Never before have two questions from the same reader made the same final cut in the long, illustrious history of the Mailbag. Your plaque’s in the mail.
Anyway, the young Puerto Rican is getting his fair share of time in the wilds of Boise. As of this publication he has started 21 of 28 games, averaging 8.4 points and 3.8 rebounds for the CBA’s Idaho Stampede. The good news is he’s shot 40.7 percent from 3-point range, which is excellent for any 6-foot-11 player, much less an 18-year-old. The bad news is he’s shooting 40.8 percent overall. In other words, he’s far from NBA material yet, but he’s off to a passable start.
There’s no way he joins the Nuggets this year, and though I’d be surprised if he were ready by next fall, you never know if he really tears it up in summer league. There’s no rush, since Denver holds on to his rights either way.
I heard Nuggets coach George Karl comment that he doesn’t think there’ll be much separation at the top of the division until April. Do you agree?
— Danny, Denver
Danny – I do. Denver, Minnesota and Utah, the Northwest’s three contenders, have not shown themselves to be consistent enough yet to predict that one will run away with the division. You could say the Nuggets and Jazz have the bigger upsides, since both await the infusion of a key starter into the lineup – Marcus Camby here and Carlos Boozer there. If I were a betting man, I’d still pick the Nuggets based on depth; but with bad luck, injuries can always return. In short, it’s anyone’s guess.
Adam Thompson is a native of New York City, where he spent his senior season in high school as the last man off the bench on a basketball team that won three games. To drop a question into his Nuggets Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
