It’s difficult to explain the inexplicable. Such is the case with a good NBA team that struggles to defeat a random bad team.
The Lakers, for instance, have lost five of their last six to the Bobcats. And the Spurs lost both games to the Bucks this season, and won the last game last season only when Milwaukee sharpshooter Michael Redd missed a free throw with a tick left.
This brings us to the Nuggets, who host the Thunder tonight. Yes, Denver (40-25) has defeated Oklahoma City twice this season, but those wins came in the final seconds — Carmelo Anthony hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 0.1 seconds left Jan. 2, and for an encore, on Feb. 4, he made a tricky layup with 5.3 seconds left.
Remember last year? Denver lost 151-147 in double overtime to the lottery-bound Seattle SuperSonics — this was the Nuggets’ sixth-to-last game of the season, and they were still fighting for the playoffs.
And while tonight looks like an easy win on paper — Kevin Durant (ankle) is doubtful and Jeff Green (back) is questionable — the Sacramento game looked pretty easy, too. So did the Chicago game. And Milwaukee. And . . .
Yes, the Nuggets have struggled lately against teams under .500, though coach George Karl pointed out that, the Kings notwithstanding, the sub-.500 teams Denver recently played “have hope for the playoffs,” whereas four of Denver’s next five opponents don’t. Still, Karl must motivate his squad to play up to its competition, not down.
As for recent losses to bad teams, the coach said he’ll tell his team: “Hopefully, we can learn from that, knowing we have 10-11 of these games left. Let’s go dominate.”
Missing Carter.
Nuggets reserve guard Anthony Carter has missed the last four games with a left hip strain, and he is questionable for tonight. Karl has often lauded Carter’s perimeter defense — “We’re not a defensive team as much as we were with A.C.” — and also misses his assists. Though Carter’s not the sole reason for this, Denver hasn’t eclipsed 20 assists in each of the past three games.
“A.C. can drive me crazy because of his decisions sometimes,” Karl said of the turnover-prone guard, “but he’s also capable of getting six or seven assists in 20 minutes of time, and we need that. His basketball feel is good for us.”
Nene struggling.
Denver center Nene has just once tallied 10 or more rebounds in the last 13 games, and that night he got 10 at Indiana. For the season, Nene averages 7.9 rebounds per game and has totaled 10 or more rebounds 17 times.
Benjamin Hochman, The Denver Post
Oklahoma City at Denver
7 p.m., ALT, KCKK 1510 AM
Spotlight on Russell Westbrook: Earlier this season, when all the rookie talk was about Derrick Rose and O.J. Mayo, Nuggets coach George Karl put Westbrook in the same echelon. Sure enough, the Thunder guard has been pretty steady, averaging 15.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
Nuggets: The Nuggets have lost eight of their past 11 games. . . . Guard Chauncey Billups has scored 20 or more points in 12 of the past 14 games. . . . Denver has lost three in a row for the third time this season, but has yet to lose four straight. . . . Counting this game against the Thunder, Denver’s next five games are against teams with sub-.500 records.
Thunder: This is the Thunder’s first game at the Pepsi Center. The Seattle SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City last summer. . . . Karl won 384 games as Seattle’s coach from 1991-98, second-most wins in franchise history. . . . Reserve guard Chucky Atkins began the year with the Nuggets. Since joining the Thunder in a Jan. 7 trade for Johan Petro, Atkins has played in eight games, averaging 4.0 points in 14.1 minutes.
Benjamin Hochman, The Denver Post, The Denver Post
