The Nuggets knew going into their first game without Carmelo Anthony that it might be a pain.
“When you lose Melo, your offense is, how are we going to play?” coach George Karl said. “Can we get a tempo-and-flow game, which gets us into the open court?”
But then it wasn’t. In fact, the only pain inflicted was on the overmatched Hawks.
Who needs Melo? Not the Nuggets on Wednesday night, in an easy, 107-100 win over Atlanta at the Pepsi Center, their sixth straight home win.
Seriously, it wasn’t that simple, though it appeared that way. It always helps to get the Hawks on the road, where they were 5-11 coming into the game. It helps to get balanced scoring, and unlike Denver’s visit to Atlanta on Jan. 15, the Nuggets got more than just five players into the scoring column, led by Allen Iverson’s 29 points.
And it helps the Nuggets to play at home.
It has been a different story at the Pepsi Center this year than it was a year ago, when the Nuggets struggled to put wins together. Denver recorded its 18th home victory Wednesday, nearly three months faster than it did last season. The Nuggets didn’t get 18 home wins until the 63rd game of the season, and finished with only 23 all year.
Against the Hawks, the Nuggets played perhaps their best defensive game of the month. They clamped down on Hawks leading scorer, Joe Johnson, limiting him to 14 points.
