In these comments, do not look for the usual huge amount of detail and proof that you see in the ordinary releases here at Nuggets 1. Some of this is more like everyday conversation than like top quality sports writing. On the other hand, some of the comments do include some detailed reasoning and proof that I pride myself on in the primary reports I release.
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EARLY MAY 2008 FORUM COMMENTARY ON THE NUGGETS, ESPECIALLY ABOUT THEIR MISTAKES
As time goes by, if he's like me, he'll realize that there's bad coaching and then there is Nuggets coaching. With Nuggets coaching, the team result is less than the sum of the players' results, so it is dangerous to cast blame all around the roster. Other than Nene who couldn't play and then wasn't worked in and Atkins who couldn't play and then wasn't worked in and, arguably, Camby (mostly due to his kind of crazy offense)there really wasn't any major Nugget who had a disappointing season this year, yet the team as a whole sucked in the playoffs, and wasn't as good in the regular season as it appears, because they were at least +3 games in lucky wins over unlucky losses.
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Don't know much about him, but I know he's right on the money here. A broken clock is right twice a day.
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The really interesting question is: who would gain the most by escaping the Nuggets disfunctional organization this off season? I used to think the answer was obvious: J.R. Smith. But now I am seriously thinking that C. Anthony might have more to gain by escaping the Nuggets island than would Smith.
Whether or not a better PG is brought on to the team, Anthony has become and will remain the odd man out on a Nuggets team where Karl and Iverson have been and will continue to call most of the important shots. Karl worships those who have already made history, not those who might make it in the future. And Iverson has never been one to have any faith in a forward who tends to draw the double team, unless of course he thinks he might get the ball back again from the one doubled.
Anthony's rewards for getting more rebounds, more steals, more blocks, a higher field goal percentage, and fewer turnovers this year than last was to be part of one of the all-time greatest playoff dismantlings, and to be trashed by at least 7 out of 10 basketball fans, and to be the subject of trade rumors. If that's what you get at the end of one of Karl's player maturity/reform projects, then who needs them, whatever their underlying theoretical merit might be?
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Yeah, I agree that Costa is a shock sportscaster here and does not include a whole lot of substance in his rants. By contrast, NT has substance and that's why NT is worth reading and writing. Nevertheless, I do not regret posting this because (a) Costa is more right than wrong here and (b) Denver needs in it's maninstream media, and in its organization, if not more like Costa at least more who agree with the small amount of substance that is here. You need to be intense enough to sound a little crazy about winning in the playoffs if you really, really want to win in the playoffs and not be content with just winninging in the regular season and selling tickets and merchandise. And (c) I needed a little stress relief from being destroyed in the playoffs.
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SOMEONE ELSE commented:
This is also a front office that could have traded Camby for Chandler and didn't, could have traded a bag of rocks for Artest and didn't and signed a chronically injured, underperforming, fat lazy sack of crap big man to a 60 million dollar contract when no one else in the league would have given him the MLE. Yea, I wouldn't put anything past this FO either.
My response was a little joke:
Is that big man contract you are referring to Nene's or Mr. Karl's?
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It was more like the Sonics took him to the finals; check out how loaded that team was with an incredibly deep bench to go along with quality starters. See this:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/SEA/1996.html
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The Nuggets need to stop being content with simply not being a door mat team anymore and they also need to think outside the box just a little bit and give a deserving assistant an opportunity, such as Brian Shaw who everyone knows is going to be a head coach sooner or later.
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Karl will never back a player in the media nor demand that he be kept on his team unless that player is at least a 7 year veteran and has established himself as a notable player in the basketball history books.
