PHOENIX — The tantalizing win was right there, just waiting for either team to seize it. The Nuggets’ hands were cold; the Suns’ hands were cool.
With Saturday’s game tied and three minutes left, the Suns went on a 7-0 run to close it out, featuring two 3s from Steve Nash, and the Nuggets left Phoenix the way they arrived — on their longest losing streak since Chauncey Billups joined the lineup.
“We were bad down the stretch, they were great,” Denver guard J.R. Smith said after the 108-101 loss. “Steve Nash is a great player, he’s going to make big shots. And we didn’t.”
The loss was Denver’s third straight — they hadn’t even lost two in a row with Billups — and this was frighteningly uncharacteristic. Denver had 15 assists and made 22 turnovers. And in those final three minutes, Billups missed all three field-goal attempts and committed two turnovers.
“I had seven turnovers — I don’t do that,” said Billups, who also had 18 points and eight assists. “It takes me, a lot of times, four or five games to get seven turnovers. It’s like that some nights. I wouldn’t say it was their defense.”
Denver (17-10) is 1-3 in this six-game stretch against quality teams. The Nuggets played exceptionally well at Dallas on Monday, but then lost at Houston on Tuesday, against Cleveland on Friday and then at Phoenix (16-11) on Saturday.
The loss prolongs a disturbing streak — the Nuggets haven’t won at Phoenix since the Suns acquired Nash. The Nuggets have lost eight straight at Phoenix, last winning on April 7, 2004, prior to the Suns acquiring Nash.
On Saturday, Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony had the rhythm of a nerdy guy slouched against a dance club wall. Anthony finished with just 10 points (he averages 20.5) on 3-for-13 shooting. And he had just one rebound (he averages 7.4).
He continues to play in pain with a right elbow injury. Asked how much his elbow hurts, 1-10, 10 being unbearable, Anthony said “eight.”
“But I can’t complain about it,” he said. “I’m still going to go out and play. Nobody cares if I’m hurt or not.”
Denver coach George Karl believes Anthony needs to get involved more when “the game is flowing.
“It seems like all of Melo’s touches are coming in five-on-five situations. In five-on-five, teams aren’t going to let him play by himself. If you post him up, they’re going to double him. You pick-and-roll him, he’s always going to see two. His isolations are going to be zone. I’d like to see him break out by running, trying to get ahead of the ball.”
Center Nene bounced back after two underachieving efforts, finishing with 20 points and 15 rebounds. Denver’s plan was to go to him early, to gain confidence, and Nene began the game 5-for-5 and finished 9-for-12.
Smith had another splurge, this time in the second quarter, when he scored 15 points in 10 minutes.
He finished the night with a team-high 23 points, but just five in the second half — and made three turnovers in the second half.
“J.R. likes to hit home runs, he doesn’t like to bunt,” Karl said. “He tries to make the tough play. He’s good enough to make a lot of them, but good defenses are also good enough to take things away from him.”
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294 or bhochman@denverpost.com
