Denver's gold rush By Steve Kerr, Yahoo! Sports March 21, 2007 Early in March, with the Denver Nuggets struggling to find their way through a disjointed season, George Karl pulled a frustrated Allen Iverson aside and said, "Don't worry – this is going to work, and it's going to work this season." "This" referred to Denver's ambitious pairing of Iverson and Carmelo Anthony, made possible by the midseason trade for Iverson that had yet to yield successful results. The combination of Anthony's 15-game suspension for fighting and injuries to Marcus Camby and Nene meant that the Nuggets rarely were able to put their best lineup on the floor. Inconsistent basketball followed and Denver hovered around the .500 mark for most of the season. Even with Iverson playing at a very high level, the Nuggets just couldn't put any kind of a run together. All the post-trade hype began to die down, and it didn't appear that Karl's club would be able to build enough momentum to do any damage in the playoffs. Denver fans were already talking about "next year." But the confidence Karl displayed in the team to Iverson was based on one fact that he reiterated Tuesday night before his Nuggets took the floor in New Jersey to face the Nets. "We've got talent," Karl said. "A lot of it." Do they ever. With Iverson and Anthony on the floor together, Denver has two of the top five scorers in the NBA. Camby and Nene provide athleticism and shot blocking up front, and when J.R. Smith is healthy, the Nuggets have one of the more potent three-point shooters in the league. A shrewd trade of Earl Boykins for Steve Blake gave Denver the floor leader and ball mover it needed, as Blake has been a source of stability and unselfishness on a team full of high-profile scorers. But the key to the Denver resurgence has been a commitment to defense. Karl knows that his team will never be the Spurs, but if the Nuggets defend with intensity they can cause problems for opponents. Denver's style is to ball hawk – they're second in the NBA in steals and eighth in blocks. When they force turnovers and create havoc, they run like crazy – their 20 points a game off turnovers is second best in the league – and with Iverson and Anthony attacking in the open court, opponents are forced to foul, which is why the Nuggets average almost 30 free-throw attempts (third best in the league). Despite those gaudy numbers, this has not been a good defensive team overall. The Nuggets may steal the ball, but they also give it right back to their opponents. They commit 16 turnovers per game, which gives opponents a chance to run right back at them. They give up more fast-break points than anyone in the NBA. They have also given up way too much penetration, which has resulted in 45 points in the paint allowed per game (29th in the NBA). Essentially, the Nuggets have spent most of the season simply trying to outscore opponents. That's why they've beaten plenty of bad teams, but not very many good ones. But during the current five-game winning streak, the Nuggets have been much more solid at the defensive end. They've figured out that when they give effort defensively and take care of the ball, they are very tough to beat. Despite shooting only 40 percent, they beat the Nets on Tuesday by taking care of the ball, not giving up many easy hoops and holding New Jersey to 40-percent shooting of its own. The 94-90 win marked the first time all season that Denver won a game when scoring fewer than 100 points. Can Denver keep it up? George Karl thinks so. Last week, his team blew out the Lakers and pounded the Suns by 24. Karl finally has all his horses on the floor and they're starting to click. They're also beginning to defend. Iverson's frustration is gone and he and Anthony are playing well as a tandem. And even though the Nuggets aren't going to earn anything higher than a sixth seed in the West come playoff time, they have the talent to match up with anyone. Maybe Karl was right. Maybe this can work. And maybe it can work this season. Steve Kerr is Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst. Send Steve a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast. --

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