Denver Post sports writer Chris Dempsey posts his Nuggets Mailbag each Thursday this NBA season on DenverPost.com.
To drop a question into the Nuggets Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
Do you think Carmelo Anthony will end up the league’s scoring champion? There’s some tough competition out there.
— Kayla Osby, Denver
Kayla – For a while I thought he would, but with the current configuration of the Nuggets offense and his role in it, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Anthony slip down to third or so. The premium isn’t on him to score as much as he had to in the past, mostly because of the presence of Allen Iverson to take some of the pressure off, but also the emergence of a host of other players who have risen up to have big scoring nights recently.
Anthony fell behind the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant this week in the scoring-title chase, and I’d expect he’ll stay there. Kobe is being allowed to shoot and score a bit more at will than Anthony is, and that will be the biggest determining factor. Gilbert Arenas has a similar green light in Washington, and he may have a shot to overtake Anthony as well. Going into Thursday’s games (March 22), Anthony had scored 30 or more points five times in 14 games after the all-star break. He scored 30 or more points in 12 of the Nuggets’ first 15 games to start the season, so you can see what I mean.
Denver might secure that No. 6 spot in the West. However, I feel that this is not to the Nuggets’ benefit. They have a chance vs. the Suns, but it’s hard to see them beating the Spurs. I can also understand that they must strive to win every game. What are your thoughts on the subject?
— J., Baltimore
J. – Well, first off the Nuggets just have to continue to play as well as they can so that they make the playoffs, and then if they do, so that they are entering the postseason with some momentum.
Having said that, I agree with you. I think a series with Phoenix gives Denver its best chance to win simply because Phoenix doesn’t do anything to take a team out of a game; they rely on the opposing team to take themselves out. San Antonio has probably been the single best team at stopping the Nuggets’ running game and disrupting what Denver likes to do on offense in the past few seasons. They will take the Nuggets out of the game with defense. Dallas can do the same thing. It will lean on defense to separate itself. Phoenix, however, doesn’t do that. It entices jump shots and concedes baskets at times to keep the pace of the game high. The danger in that is if the opponent gets hot, the Suns can be beaten. They’ve had a number of players put up big numbers against them in losses, the latest being Denver’s Allen Iverson with 44 points and 15 assists. When you play Phoenix, your success level pretty much depends on how well you’re shooting that night and that is a lot easier to navigate than the Spurs or Mavericks, who are going to fight tooth and nail for every basket the opponent makes.
Why does Marcus Camby insist on shooting jump shots from the top of the key? Has he ever made one? He’s much more valuable in the paint. When he shoots jump shots, he barely hits rim. What gives?
— Anthony Masterson, Powell, Wyo.
Anthony – This is going to sound funny … but at this point, the perimeter is the best place for Camby to be. I know, I know. He’s a big man. And aren’t big men supposed to be on the block? Normally, yes. But Camby’s role as shot-blocker and rebounder keeps him in the paint enough, and he’s among the NBA’s leaders in both of those categories. He’s not the kind of player you can throw the ball to on the block and expect him to deal against the defense. He’s really rarely been that during his career, even dating back to college at UMass. But in recent years, he’s faded more and more to the perimeter on offense where he’s comfortable.
The interesting thing is the Nuggets’ offense is comfortable with him there. Nene is the primary post player, so that need is filled. And Camby has been such a good passer – particularly lob passes – from the top of the key, it’s advantageous to have him out there, pulling the opposing center out of the lane. His jump shot isn’t the best in the world, but it is good enough to make him dangerous, and you have to remember he’s also been playing with a still-healing broken shooting hand.
If the Nuggets get the sixth seed, and Utah wins the division but has a weaker record than San Antonio (in this scenario, Dallas wins the division), who will the Nuggets play in the first round?
— David, Atlanta
David – In this scenario, the Nuggets would face San Antonio. The new NBA seeding format takes the top four teams – the three division winners, and the second-place team with the best record – and then seeds them according to their win-loss total. So, if San Antonio has a better record than Utah in this case, it would be the No. 3 seed, Utah No. 4 and the Nuggets would face the Spurs.
I have seen most of the Nuggets’ games on TV since Melo got back from his suspension. It looks to me like he has gained a little weight. He doesn’t look as lean and quick as he was before the suspension. Is anyone else noticing this?
— Mike, Las Vegas
Mike – I think there was something to this a few weeks ago, but now there is no doubt that Anthony’s conditioning level has improved exponentially in recent weeks since he’s been back from suspension. It just took him longer than expected to get it back. That might raise questions on just exactly how hard he was working during his 15-game suspension, but either way, there is no substitute for playing in the games to get a player’s conditioning back and weight down.
Why do the Nuggets play better on the road than at home? Does the altitude affect them more than it affects the opposing team?
— Josh, Naga City, Philippines
Josh – I think the Nuggets’ focus was a bit better on the road than it was at home. Now, recently they have seemed to rectify that problem, but it is always their intent to use the altitude to their advantage. We’ll see how long it lasts.
Chris Dempsey is in his first year on the Nuggets beat. To drop a question into his Nuggets Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
