This season, wins such as the one the Nuggets had over Orlando on Wednesday night have been gifts and curses.
They continually show the Jekyll-and-Hyde nature of the Nuggets, who are 13-6 against teams with .500 or better records and 12-8 against teams under .500.
“We’ve been pretty good against good teams,” Nuggets coach George Karl said Thursday. “Our problem has been that switch of intensity that we play as a dimmer rather than an ‘on-off’ switch. We’ve got to stop messing around with intensity and play the same way every night. When we do, I think we have a first-class team that can figure out how to win a lot of basketball games.”
Fortunately for the Nuggets, their next game is Sunday against Utah, a team Denver has no problems getting up to play. After that, however, is a game at Golden State (Wednesday) and a home date against the rapidly improving Los Angeles Clippers the next night.
“I’m never really worried about us when we’re playing against teams like Orlando and really good division teams and stuff like that,” guard Chauncey Billups said. “But it’s the other teams that I worry about that we lack a little focus or feel like we can turn it on at any time and win the game. That is what’s really hurt us a lot this season.”
The Nuggets have won their past three games against teams with winning records, including wins over Cleveland and Orlando. They are 2-3 in their past five against teams with losing records.
“We just have to get to a point, and I think mentality is starting to come back, get to a point where we play every team like it’s a really good team and worry more about us than other locker room,” Billups said.
Lawson to return. It has been more than a week and four games since Nuggets guard Ty Lawson last played. Sunday, that should change.
Lawson (sprained left ankle) has been inching closer to a return. He has participated in the past two shootarounds, and Wednesday he pushed himself in a pregame workout on the practice court before determining he needed a few more days’ rest.
By the time he’s back in uniform and ready to play against the Jazz, it will have been 12 days.
“I think it lasted longer than I thought it would,” Karl said. “But I think he’ll play on Sunday.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
