NEW ORLEANS — You can’t spell “onus” without “on us,” and the Nuggets’ shooting guards know that’s where it is.
This is because, for the second consecutive game, Mr. Big Shot is unlikely to play.
In the Nuggets’ loss Friday night, the Hornets swarmed forward Carmelo Anthony with a double-team defense. The Hornets knew Denver was without the offensive prowess of veteran point guard Chauncey Billups. They banked on rookie replacement Ty Lawson coming back to earth, which he did in the second half following his 14 points in the first half.
The Hornets’ defensive strategy, surely something the Grizzlies noticed, often left the Nuggets’ shooting guards open. In the fourth quarter, J.R Smith and Arron Afflalo each missed two 3-point attempts, which Nuggets coach George Karl called “a heavy thing to accept. . . . At times, we lost our discipline in that area, forcing more shots.”
Statistically, Smith had a good game — 25 points and 11-of-17 shooting — but Karl pointed to the stretch run in the fourth quarter, saying “J.R. played great for moments, then you get (questionable) shot selection.”
There were moments, which Karl spoke of, when Smith kept Denver afloat. And Smith traditionally has some big games against the Grizzlies, who host the Nuggets today. Overall, the shooting guard knows that with Billups out, he needs to score big but also shoot wisely. Anthony, who scored just 17 points against the Hornets, said of Smith: “He’s taking more shots we want him to take, more controlled shots, attacking the rim. He gets shots off transition and also one-on-one isolation.”
Anthony will see more defenders again, and probably not only because Billups is listed as doubtful because of a groin injury. Anthony had 42 points against the Grizzlies on Nov. 1.
“With a guy like Melo, it’s tough to stop him with one person,” Hornets guard Chris Paul said. “I don’t know one guy who can stop him on a consistent basis. So we tried to trap him.”
Billups felt much better Saturday. He is shooting for a return Wednesday at home against Atlanta. Against the Grizzlies, Anthony Carter will likely start again for him.
Early tipoff time.
Facing a 2 p.m. MST start, the Nuggets practiced Saturday in Memphis and won’t have a morning shootaround today. Melo stressed the importance of getting as much rest as possible Saturday since there will be no napping today until the flight home.
Asked about the positives and negatives of playing a day game, Karl said: “Some guys love them, some guys hate them. I think it takes a little longer for the energy to get into the game. It’s going to be one of those disoriented, distraction-type games where the road team has to be a little more focused and more demanding of intensity.”
The Nuggets have lost three consecutive road games.
Rudy a rising star.
Billups knows a thing or two about being an NBA all-star, and he said Memphis forward Rudy Gay is “definitely a next-step guy, or at least has the potential.”
It’s unlikely Gay will make the all-star team this season, primarily because the Grizzlies aren’t good. But the 6-foot-8 Connecticut product has career-high averages of 20.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.8 steals and is shooting a career-high 47.1 percent from the field.
On Dec. 13, he turned a game against the Heat in Miami into his personal highlight reel, scoring a career-high 41 points with the help of five impressive dunks.
“This season so far he’s developed into a go-to player,” Billups said. “Athletically, he’s off the charts.”
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294 or bhochman@denverpost.com
Denver at Memphis
2 p.m. today, ALT, KCKK 1510 AM
Spotlight on O.J. Mayo: The second-year pro from Southern California scored a career- high 40 points against the Nuggets on Nov. 1, hitting 17-of-25 shots in that 133-123 loss for Memphis. The 6-foot-4 guard is averaging 17.7 points this season and 20.0 points in eight December games. He averaged 18.5 points last season as a rookie.
Nuggets: Denver is 7-7 on the road this season. . . . After forcing 20-plus turnovers in three consecutive games, the Nuggets forced just 10 from New Orleans on Friday. . . . After a big week, center Chris Andersen was quiet Friday against his old team, scoring four points and grabbing three rebounds in nearly 21 minutes against the Hornets. . . . Coach George Karl is still concerned about his team’s passing, saying he wants the total of assists in the mid-20s consistently. . . . Kenyon Martin has grabbed nine or more rebounds in three of the past four games (he averages 7.6), all while playing with a dislocated left pinkie.
Grizzlies: Memphis has lost eight consecutive games to Denver, including the Nov. 1 meeting at the Pepsi Center. . . . Rookie center Hasheem Thabeet has seen his playing time rise of late. And in three consecutive games last week, he had two, five and four blocked shots. . . . Hamed Haddadi, a 7-foot-2 center, is the first Iranian-born player in the NBA. He’s a bench-warmer, but last March 18 he played a career-high 18 minutes against Denver, scoring seven points and grabbing seven rebounds.
Benjamin Hochman, The Denver Post
