I've been waiting on a write-up like this. Looks like Melo is getting the blame for what ails the Nuggets. http://www.denverpost.com/movies/ci_5363459 Melo must mature, or sit By Mark Kiszla Denver Post Staff Columnist Article Last Updated: 03/06/2007 01:05:19 AM MST Carmelo Anthony is too old and too rich to be bent over the knee of a basketball coach and spanked, although some tough love seems to be precisely what Melo deserves. But the stressed-out, sulking star of the slumping Nuggets is not so big that coach George Karl is afraid to bench Anthony. "I think that's the next move," Karl said Monday, revealing that Anthony will be removed from games and shown a seat on the bench if the all-star forward fails to play smart, team basketball. "I've told Melo in the last two weeks, 'I don't think you're listening. I don't think you're listening as well as you need to listen.' For me, the next step is to change the democracy back to a dictatorship." The coddling of Anthony needs to stop. It's time he grows up. Somewhere between his infamous punch in New York City and the NBA All-Star Game in Las Vegas, Anthony got lost. "One of my assistants calls this 'The Year of The Punch,' and I don't consider that a good thing," Karl said. Anthony smashed the good vibe the Nuggets had going with a fist thrown in stupid macho anger in December, and since returning from a 15-game suspension that turned the team's chemistry stale, he has been so blinded by the bright lights of personal glory that Melo can no longer see what's essential for victory. He laughs with new teammate Allen Iverson, but their work together on the court has been a bad joke. "The inconsistencies, we have excuses for. But I'm tired of seeing it," Karl said. Obsessed with scoring to the point of distraction and prone to moping when his jumpers clank, Anthony insists he is ready to become a father at age 22, but has not figured out how to be the leader Denver needs in the locker room. "I didn't expect to be seventh or eighth (in the Western Conference standings). But it is what it is," Anthony said after a late-morning practice Monday. "We just have to come together as a team. Me, A.I., Marcus Camby, everybody has got to come together ... and get it going. We only have a month-and-a-half left." Then, either bored or peeved by the subject of a team that has embarrassingly underachieved, Anthony promptly spun on the heels of his signature sneakers and walked away without so much as goodbye. Anthony stuck his nose in sweaty chests when he wanted to show he belonged on Team USA, yet cannot be bothered with something as mundane as boxing out for a rebound against the Utah Jazz. "I think what you're baffled by is you see a guy who could be a top-five player in basketball," said Karl, claiming to have discovered a statistic he hopes to use as a motivational tool. Anthony recorded more double- double games of points and rebounds in a single season at Syracuse than he has produced in nearly four seasons as a pro. While fears of the Nuggets being slimed by the bad attitude of Iverson have proved to be 100 percent unfounded, it's Melo who has grown fussier than a night at the opera, refusing to attend a news conference after a recent, humiliating loss to Houston. "If you're scoring at a high rate and your team's not winning, people come at you and want to know what more you can do. It's a lose-lose situation," said Iverson, who can empathize with Melo's plight. Anthony entered this season with ambitions the size of Mount Evans, looking forward to huge things on the court and in his personal life. Melo seemed to have the competent hands to juggle it all. He was going to lead the league in scoring and become a daddy. No problem, no worries, no sweat. Anthony can drop 30 points on any given night and the baby could arrive any minute. But remember the really big dream? Anthony also planned to show D-Wade and King James that this fresh, young prince from Denver also knew how to lead a team to victory in the playoffs. On that important count, Carmelo, we have a problem. And it's you. "Personally, I think Melo should forget about scoring," said Karl, who grows so red-hot the veteran coach practically spews lava when he is forced to watch as Anthony chucks 28 shots at the rim, finishes with one lousy assist and then pouts when Denver loses yet another game at home. What makes the situation so frustrating is Anthony genuinely wants to be liked, and cheering for him comes as naturally as his 300-watt smile. I've been crazy about this 6-foot-8 forward since he was a kid at the 'Cuse, winning a national title as a freshman. But, too often, everything that made him Melo now seems covered in a bad combination of belly-button gazing and cynicism. Who stole the baller we loved from inside the No. 15 jersey? The grief Anthony receives for being a one-dimensional player is not entirely fair, but it's hazing endured by every big scorer in the league since Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game. "It's always been like that in basketball. If you're a scorer, people always say, 'Yeah, but does he make other players better?' That's just the way it is. Can't get around it," said Nuggets assistant coach Adrian Dantley, once a scorer who could not be defended in the paint, yet now finds himself at 51 still waiting for an invitation to the Hall of Fame. So much boyish enthusiasm is revealed every time Anthony allows his eyes to twinkle that you can see the inner child, a trait destined to make him a great father. But there's a troubling immaturity that lingers in Melo's game. Karl wishes Anthony would take a look to Houston and notice that emphasizing victory above all else is what has finally made Tracy McGrady a bona fide superstar at age 27, in his 10th season after entering the NBA, ballyhooed as the next big thing. "Tracy McGrady has grown up. Tracy McGrady gets it," Karl said. "And, right now, what you're saying is basically, 'When is Melo going to get it?' Is it going to be next month?' As a coach, there's no one more frustrated, there's no one more angry than me, because I feel the pain." Anthony's lack of consistent commitment to defense, the benign neglect of teammates who stand around for a pass that never arrives, the ducking out the side door at practice while Iverson is stuck with the media nags, it all stinks. When will Anthony stop dreaming about being one of the top 10 players on the planet, get down to it and work as hard at greatness as Dr. J or Magic or Air Jordan once did? It depends on when, or if, Melo decides he's ready to grow up as a basketball player. We're all waiting, tapping feet impatiently. Staff writer Mark Kiszla can be reached at 303-954-1053 or mkiszla@denverpost.com.
I hate it when life interferes with my basketball, but I promised a response and here it goes. Notice the constant theme in those three posts? Coaching. This team needs a fire and brimstone coach, and unfortunately since George's cancer scare, he's been a pussycat. Ultimately, the Nuggets are the most frustrating team in the league. There is NO excuse for us to not be first in the Northwest. There is no excuse for us to not be mentioned with Dallas, San Antonio and Phoenix right now. Ultimately though, they're going to be first round fodder for either Dallas or Phoenix (I'm praying Phoenix, I can't handle watching Dirk EVER, let alone against my favorite team in the playoffs). Most of the heat lately has been on Melo. Ultimately, I think he deserves a lot of it, but not as much as he's getting. Is he playing as well as he should? God no. I can't count the number of times I've screamed at him to run upcourt instead of jogging with the ball. He's not crashing the boards as hard as he could and the "insider" that posts on the Nugs board I check out has posted that Melo is the worst defender in the NBA -- he just doesn't put out any effort. While I disagree with that, he's hardly anything NEAR mediocre on defense right now. The only place I will cut him slack is on assists. If we had anyone that could make a three-pointer, he'd be averaging 7+ assists per game. The player who's going under the radar when it comes to criticism that shouldn't be is Marcus Camby. Camby has been a prick since the AI deal. I found it interesting that someone here said that without Camby we'd be Golden State. Honestly, without Camby it wouldn't surprise me if we were better. Last year and earlier this year, he would get his blocked shots through solid defense. Now, he's cherry picking. He's slacking off his guys and playing a quasi-zone so he can get the easy blocked shot. Not only that, but unlike the smarter players (Okafor comes to mind immediately), he'll block a shot and send it into the 7th row. While that's a great intimidation technique at times, it's not something that should happen often. Tap it to yourself, retain control and RUN! Which brings me to another gripe I have over Marcus right now, and that's that all of a sudden he thinks he's a PG. WHY THE HELL ARE YOU DRIBBLING THE BALL UPCOURT AND CAUSING ME TO HAVE A SEIZURE AT LEAST 3 TIMES A GAME?!? A few games ago, he got the rebound, took off downcourt and did a behind the back pass to Nene for a dunk. The play worked, but that's the problem. That's the one time in his LIFE that that play will work, but now he's going to try it again. One thing that concerns me (shocks me even) is that people are blaming the slump on AI. The only thing I can say about those people (and this isn't directed towards anyone here, more of a general statement to reporters in the Denver area and even some Nugs fans) is that they aren't watching the games at all. AI has taken over the leadership position and is kicking the team's ass. He's not shooting a great percentage, and his turnover rate is a little high for my taste (remember, I'm a HUGE Dre Miller fan), but he and Najera are the only two players who are busting their ass every minute of every game right now (which is why it's going to hurt when Najera is traded this off-season... and he will be traded this off-season. Write it down). This post is, IMO, the best post in this entire thread. It's dead on. Could Melo be doing things better? Yeah. Is he to blame for all of our problems? No. Could AI be doing things a little better? Yeah. Is he to blame for everything? No. We have chemistry problems. AI and Melo have played 10-15 games together, and only about 6 of those were with the entire roster healthy (Camby and JR have both missed time due to injuries in that span). I'm curious to see what we do this off-season. Najera's gone for a future pick. Blake should be re-signed. K-Mart might finally get healthy. It wouldn't surprise me to see Camby gone. It wouldn't surprise me to see Karl resign. I like the make-up of this team. I want Melo to hang around AI and inherit his passion. I want JR & Nene to do the same. I haven't mentioned Nene yet, and I know a lot on here think he's overpaid. I got a lot of crap from you guys (and other Nugs fans and pretty much everyone I talked to), but the Nene deal was NOT a bad one. He and Melo have a great chemistry together and when they run the pick-and-roll together it's a thing of beauty. Nene is our only low post presence. Now that he's on his diet (not sure if you guys have heard about that, but he lost over 20 pounds in one month), he's been a beast. He'll never be a Yao-level center (but who will?), but outside of Yao and Stoudemire, I'm not sure there's a center I'd rather have in the West. Yeah, this off-season he could regress again, but I'm willing to roll the dice right now. So basically this season -- we cap out at the 7th seed and do what we do every year. Steal one game in the playoffs, and lose in 5. This off-season, Najera's gone (the front office is high on Axel Harville and we need the lux tax space) and hopefully we bring in another PG to help Blake out. Hopefully Diawara starts hitting the gym a little harder and refines his shot (he's an excellent defender and on this team that's a rarity). Hopefully AI, JR, Melo and Nene spend a summer together building chemistry. Hopefully Karl gets his fire and passion back (maybe drafting his son, which we will do, will do that for him). This team is a constant tease. There are times where we look like we can hang with ANYONE in the league (and I do mean anyone). Unfortunatley, the consistency isn't there and we end up crapping the bed. Next season, we either join Dallas, Phoenix, San Antonio and you guys in the elite, or we explode and Karl resigns and we pull our yearly 7th/8th seed, win one game and fold routine. My signature accurately sums up the Nugs. I still maintain that's the best deal the team has made this year, and considering we got JR for Howard Eisley and a 2nd rounder, and we got AI for Joe Smith, Dre and two firsts, that's saying a lot. Boykins is great for 13-year old girls and dumbass sportscasters, but anyone who watched him KNEW he was killing the Nugs.
Not to keep beating a mediocre horse, but, here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/si_blogs/nba/2007/03/nuggets-just-not-that-good.html Again, even with minor changes, and strict attention paid to the rotation, let me amend and say that they could top out around 55 wins next year. Any issues with this post?
Wow, Nuggets4, that was a great post. I totally agree that Najera will be traded in the offseason. Really interesting takes on Camby. Perhaps that's someone to watch in the offseason. As for Karl, I dont like him. I dont think he is all that great a coach. So from my perspective, a lot of their problems stems from there. That and the health/chemistry issues.
More on the "Melo"drama. By Chris Tomasson, Rocky Mountain News March 10, 2007 There will be a meeting with Melo. Nuggets coach George Karl said he will talk this weekend in Sacramento to forward Carmelo Anthony, who has been struggling of late. "You go in and open the door and see where it goes," Karl said of what the conversation might entail before the Nuggets face the Kings on Sunday afternoon. Anthony continues to lead the NBA in scoring with a 29.9 average, but he called his play "terrible" in the second half of Friday's 95-82 loss to Detroit. After scoring just 17 points against the Pistons, Anthony's average dropped under 30 for the first time since games entering Nov. 14. "He's had a heavy year and the fantastic thing in the NBA is you can shake it off in about a week," Karl said of Anthony, who was suspended for 15 games earlier this season for his role in a Dec. 16 brawl. "All you got to do is go out and keep working hard and keep focusing and playing hard. "He's too talented not to break out of it. It's like a baseball hitter. They all go into slumps, but they’re not very far from going 4-of-4." Anthony, who won't use as an excuse any distraction due to last Wednesday's birth of his first child, has averaged 22.3 points on 38.4 percent shooting in his past four games. "In the last couple of games, I haven't really been feeling like myself out there," said Anthony, averaging 26.1 points and 5.1 turnovers in eight games since the All-Star break. "When you know you can do so much out there and you're not living up to that, it feels like a failure in my eyes." Anthony shot just 6-of-21 and committed seven turnovers Friday. In the second half, he shot 0-of-6 and his only point came on a technical foul shot. "If I was a coach, I'd have sat me down in the second half the way I was playing," Anthony said after the game. Karl said both Anthony and Allen Iverson were excused from Saturday's light workout due to having played heavy minutes. SMITH MAKES TRIP: At least J.R. Smith has a chance to play Sunday. The Nuggets guard, who has missed six of the past seven games following left knee surgery, said Friday he didn't plan to travel to Sacramento and didn't foresee playing at the earliest until Thursday against the Los Angeles Lakers. But Smith, who went through Saturday's workout, said athletic trainer Jim Gillen recommended he travel. He's listed as doubtful against the Kings. "I don't know," Smith said of whether he might play. "It depends on how I feel (before the game)... If I have to (give the team a few minutes), I got to." Karl said after Saturday's practice he had "no idea" whether Smith might play. Smith underwent arthroscopic surgery Feb. 21, and was ruled out three-to-four weeks. But he did get in at the end of a lopsided win last Tuesday against the Hornets, admitting afterward he wasn't really ready. Denver's outside shooting has been erratic with Smith out. He's the team's top three-point threat. Even if Smith doesn't play Sunday, he called it important to have the "camaradarie" of being with the team. CHECKING IT OUT: Late in Friday's game, Anthony said a fan behind the Nuggets bench went "overboard," giving him "uncalled for" harsh criticism. Karl said Saturday he has asked Nuggets officials to look into the incident. "I think we've got to handle it professionally, whatever that means," Karl said. "I don't know the details at all.. When you lose as many home games as we have (the Nuggets are 16-17 at the Pepsi Center), you're going to have some people get rowdy." Anthony said he didn't talk back to the fan. He said the fan "said something like, 'Melo, you suck' (and) 'Why you here in Denver?' or something like that.'" ETC.: Nuggets assistant Mike Dunlap said Saturday he hasn't been contacted by New Mexico. The Albuquerque Tribune on Friday linked him to the open Lobos job... The Nuggets will face Kings forward Ron Artest, who was reinstated Saturday after being excused from the team after last Tuesday's arrest on suspicion of domestic violence... Had Boise State beaten New Mexico State in a WAC tournament semifinal Friday, Karl would have attended Saturday's final in Las Cruces, N.M., to see his son Coby play. But the Broncos fell 88-69, likely ending Coby's college career. "I think he'll be depressed for a few days," said Karl, who talked to Coby after the loss and believes Boise State only has an outside chance at an NIT bid. "I think he'll be down." ... The Nuggets (29-31) haven't beaten a team that currently has a winning record since Jan. 20 at Houston, two days before Anthony and Iverson played together for the first time. They're 0-7 in such games since then. "Everybody should be worried," said forward Eduardo Najera. "We're not playing well right now." tomassonc@RockyMountainNews.com
Kelly, When the Boykins/Blake trade went down, you said Blake was the worst player in the NBA (which I thought wasn't that far from the truth). He then lit up the scoreboards for a few weeks. About a week ago, you said Kleiza just wasn't that good (which I agreed with). He has since gotten two career-highs in the last week. As a personal request, if you could write a column right before the playoffs saying that the Nugs are the worst team in the history of basketball, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you, Nuggets4
