‘Just Don’t Sit There’
‘MeloDenver fought tooth and nail for that last playoff spot only to suffer the only sweep of the eight series around the League. But it wasn’t for a lack of effort last night. Early in the game, ‘Melo whizzed to the tin off of his post-spin move and missed a bunny off of front iron. But he pulled down a man’s rebound over Lamar Odom and Luke Walton to get the basket. He wanted that hoop. He desperately wanted to go back to L.A.
J.R. Smith also left everything on the floor. The Denver faithful might have given him the loudest ovation of the night when he came off the bench - it was as if Alex English just checked into the game. He knocked down a gritty bucket in transition while getting fouled by Odom to give Denver a late 96-95 advantage.
But as hard as J.R., ‘Melo and AI worked to find the bottom of the net, Kobe might as well have been playing in shades. Mamba came down and sunk a 21-footer 13 seconds after Denver took the lead. Bryant finished with an easy 31 points - five more than Denver’s high scorer (Smith) with far less effort needed.
After the game, AI talked about how “everybody has to get better - from the players to the coaching staff.” ‘Melo was on his best behavior after calling out Coach Karl at the end of game three, saying “Just don’t sit there” to the bench. Hmm… doesn’t that sound like the franchise is trying to send a message?
“He’s our coach. But I think we all should be evaluated in the offseason,” Nuggets vice president of player personnel Rex Chapman said. “This is the second year in a row this same crew has come up short. Everybody needs to look in the mirror.”
It was pretty cut and dry for the Nuggets’ best players: we didn’t get it done, we need to do something to make it happen next time around. But after the game, Karl blabbered about the difference between winning and losing, and ended up sounding like someone trying to protect his job. Can anyone make sense of this anyway?
“You’re a loser when you lose and you’re celebrated as a winner when you win. And the truth of the matter is, most playoff series are pretty even. And it comes down to a few plays, a few circumstances and no one’s going to write one guy’s a winner and one guy’s almost a winner. They are always going to write win, lose.”
April 29th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
bill says:
yeah i can make sense of it.. he wants sometime to call him an almost winner.
he got swept, he’s not even close to being an almost winner.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
foscheezeeee says:
Look. I really don’t care for George Karl. But when I look at this team and you have A.I.,Melo,Marcus Camby, Kenyon Martin. Much of the weight has to fall with the players, I believe that’s why Karl gives them so much freedom because all of those guys are vets with experience. Maybe they could game plan a lot better, but some players just don’t get it. Melo is one of them, he one of the most talented players in the league but doesn’t understand how to use all his talents effectively. I am no expert, so I can’t really assess what’s wrong with them, but I think the players and the coach share the weight with those problems in this case
April 29th, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Marcus Camby says:
Bill, give the guy a break. It’s been rough for everyone over here.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Mike C says:
Melo and AI are superstars. But this series showed that Kobe is in a level that’s couple notches above them. We are all watching a truly historic player right now..
April 29th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Marcus Camby says:
Mike you’re absolutely correct. It’s like playing against Jordan. You could be truly great, but he still shut you down everytime.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Three Stacks says:
Melo is not a superstar. He might have been one for a couple months at Syracuse, but the only thing the guy has done since getting into the League is maybe average a lot of points.
Sure, there are other players like Garnett and McGrady who were stuck in the first round like Melo is (McGrady still is, too), but at least those guys have all-around games and were once upon a time consensus top 3 fantasy picks. And there are probably tons of players who would be ready to go to war w/ McGrady, even with this lack of playoff success. I doubt the same can be said of Melo.
Denver needs to trade him. The Bulls? The Kings? Somebody will take him.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Tee says:
What Denver doesn’t get is that you have to play on both ends of the floor. At the end of the day defense is all about heart and hustle. Some guys have it some guys dont. Melo should be a great defender with his size and athleticism. Just like LeBron coaches and the media have let him cost on d way to long.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
GEE...Don't be mad UPS is hiring! says:
As long as George “The Plague” Karl is there, expect the same results are worst.
I said it a long time ago. No good thing can ultimately happen as long as G.K. is coaching Denver.
And this ain’t even about being right, it’s just about truth.
Dude is probably a great assistant coach but his leadership and motivation of players lacks tremendously. I am also questioning his system…whatever that may be.
Kill the head the body will follow.
April 29th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
GEE...Self Destruction, ya headed fo Self Destruction! says:
Paul Silas?
April 29th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
godfreyallstar says:
im disappointed in melo. i considered him a top 10 player at the beginning of the year, but this year has been bad. You know for damn sure JR aint gonna be back in denver next year, but whoever gets him is getting a good young player. i can see him ascending to superstar mode on the right team a la joe johnson. I really feel for AI man. dude has more heart than anyone ive ever seen. he is so ballsy on the court and he leaves it all out there. it pisses me off seeing him bust his ass but his team loses because there is no team effort, especially on defense. he really deserves better and it will be sad cuz he probly wont win a championship unless he leaves denver
April 29th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
djKianoosh says:
the TNT guys, kenny and Magic especially, were talking about the nuggets problems and they pointed out how it’s not just the defense that’s the problem. they have too many driving guards, which leaves them susceptible to the fast break, which LA was abusing them with. they have no system on offense. and that’s Karl’s fault, for babying them and telling them all year that if they focus on D, they can do whatever they want on Offense. that’s inexcusable for a professional basketball team, to not have an offensive system. Jerry Sloan, Popovich, Dantoni etc are coaches that have systems. that’s why they can take equal talent to greater achievements.
and yet, a coaching change still won’t make that much of a difference in Denver. they need an infusion of 2 or 3 defensive minded guys. that will be contagious. also, a solid defensive minded PG with three point range wouldn’t hurt, but 25 other teams are looking for that too… add it to the wishlist denver fans…
April 29th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
Three Stacks says:
Carlisle is a good defensive coach, I bet the Nuggets take a look at him if (and that’s a very big if) anything happens to G.K.’s job.
Still, on a team with outspoken vets like A.I., KMart, and Melo, I doubt someone like Carlisle (who’s famous for clashing w/ his players) can take them any farther than Karl did. Especially w/ the West being the way it is.
Denver needs a “player’s coach.” The only problem is that most “player’s coaches” can’t really coach worth a damn. If some talented, defensive minded coach can incorporate any semblance of defensive cohesion in Denver, they could become a legit threat. But I doubt that happens.
April 29th, 2008 at 3:29 pm
JayTea says:
When Larry Brown coached AI in philly they went to the finals because Brown is a defensive coach and the team played hard nosed D. When he left and coached Detroit, they won because? Brown is a defensive coach. Too bad Jordan is snatching him off the market I would love to see AI’s face if Denver had brought him in… Not questioning AI’s heart or talent, he has more than enough of both, but I don’t think the team concept works for him.
April 29th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
Mike C says:
@Threestacks
Remember that people were hailing Melo as the most clutch player in the league last year, after he hit a few game winners during the regular season.. Also, he was playing the second best basketball, after Kobe, of anyone at the Olympic Qualifiers last summer. And 4th in the league in scoring ain’t no joke. So yeah, I’d say he was a superstar coming into this playoffs. You could say that he relinquished that status during this series, but you can’t say that he has never attained the superstar status in the NBA.
April 29th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
daquest?on aka YoUnG cArLi BaByyyyyyyy says:
wow i dnt even wanna cmment im still hurt and disappointed from this series
April 29th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
MoxWestCoastRep says:
Quest? didnt you tell me AI wouldnt let this happen??
Sorry cousin, i feel your pain. I thought Kobe wouldnt let the suns bounce him out of the playoffs last year. This had nothing to do with heart. The lakers are just a far superior team and the fact that Enver never committed to playing D all season killed them because when they actually tried they couldnt buckle down.
LAKERS BOYEEEE!!!!!! Time to rest up and wait for Utah.
April 29th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Big Shot BOB says:
I want to say one thing Karl has been a great coach in this league for a long time. Think about that sonics team that had the Rainman and The Glove. They were one of the best defensive teams in the league. That could have been do to GP’s on the ball defense. But it seems to me like Karl has just lost some of the motivation to coach over the years. It’s like when you’ve been through so many battles and come up short you lose interest after a while. I also think that the team Denver has now really just doesn’t gel like you would think.
It starts with Iverson. Since he dominates the ball and is not a true point it’s always so hard for the team to get buckets. I mean ofcourse Melo and AI get there’s on iso’s but that’s there whole offense. Even if you were to put AI at the 2 and get a real point then you have a liability on defense when he has to guard the likes of Kobe and other big gaurds. They need to trade him for a big true point and a defensive specialist. Artest anyone?
April 29th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
sans says:
RonRon would be the worst idea ever for the Nuggets. How about getting a big point guard who can guard shooting guards and distribute the ball. People diss on Eric Snow nowadays, but he was a big part of the equation when Philly got waxed by LA back in the day. Look to the draft, talk to Memphis about one of their nine promising young points. Just think that Delonte West got traded for Donyell Marshall essentially, you can do a lot in this league just by bringing ish up.
April 29th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
daquest?on says:
I Think they should fire george karl, let anthony carter go and pick up carlos arroyo, hes done well with the magic and hes proven he is an effective starting point guard in the league, remember arroyo was the jazz starting point guard b4 deron williams and he average ver 12 points and 7 assists so and he shoots the three
April 29th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
MoxWestCoastRep says:
youre right on sans. I think russell westbrook(big strong gaurd) is exactly what they need in Denver. And a coach who can preach defense
April 29th, 2008 at 11:51 pm
mj>kb! says:
How do u fix Denver? Larry Brown sounded like a legit option but he going to another team now.
If George Karl is back AI HAS to opt out!!! How can Denver really keep Karl as a coach?? Seems like he has lost his passion to coach? He just sits there. Just because you have superstars doesn’t mean you just let them do whatever they want. Why have a coach at all then? KARL MUST GO!!!
I can’t see adding Artest as the answer and I will hate to hear the bs thug talk even more if he did come…those were some BS foul calls on Nene…actually quite a few questionable calls both ways…didn’t like refs changing calls or calling the fouls real late either…
The players on Denver shoot a couple 3’s here and there but then take some of the worst shots. So many missed layups. Missed free throws. So many 3’s jacked up with a full shot clock. Nene actually looked alot better, it is a shame he hasn’t been healthy as with him playing just decent they looked so much better.
Melo been disappointing this year. He is young still but he needs to get his act together. The brawl, the pouting on first Team USA, the weed in his bag, the video, the DUI have all cast a bad shadow on him in the league. He doesn’t seem to get calls from the refs like he should. Melo can be great. He has the size and skills if he could get his act together and focus on improving himself and not coasting. He may need a change of scenery and fresh start…I can see big things from him still but not if he continues to just rely on offense. Melo calling out his team was some bitchassness after he got that DUI and caused major distractions for his team.
Wonder where would Kobe be without Phil Jackson? He has been lucky to have a great coach for his career. Also DWade had a great coach too in Riley. Where would Melo be with a great coach? Karl is a good coach, not great.
JR Smith, Kleiza, and Najera all show flashes of greatness but they are all inconsistent and do take alot of crazy shots but also make some big shots. Camby looks frail and skinny, some of his shot selection is just poor though. KMart was ok considering he was on Kobe most time and he was passionate at least. AI missed some free throws in game 1, but he played pretty decent throughout the series. He would have had more assists if his teammates didn’t miss so many layups and easy shots..he hasn’t been the ballhog or a trouble maker on the team. AI maybe should have been more aggressive and shot more…just like when Kobe took over. The ball should be in his hands when it matters and he shouldn’t be on the bench in the 4th.
Thought it would be better in Denver with AI & Melo. They won 50 games but it was all for nothing now. They played the ONLY team in the league they didn’t beat at all this year but to get swept and be the only 50 win team to ever get swept in round 1…
Also Kobe is great, most likely best player in league as he is older than Lebron. But he ruins his greatness with his attitude. If you are great let your play speak for itself. They interviewed Kobe and Chris Paul and asked them the same question about who is guarding them, they gave the same exact answer, but Kobe’s answer seemed so different just off his attitude. It is the same attitude that got him into it with his team last summer calling out his teammates behind their backs, beefin with Shaq, and his legal troubles. Kobe just play the game already.
Where could AI go if he did opt out? Would like to see him get a legit chance at a championship…
April 30th, 2008 at 2:26 am
word says:
AI should go to Dallas
April 30th, 2008 at 2:27 am
promethean says:
Sorry Karl, you’re not an almost winner when you get swept in a series, especially where 3 of those 4 wins were blow outs.
April 30th, 2008 at 8:01 am
Suciniac says:
The future of the Franchise calls out the coach publicly during a timeout/game…..LIVE ON TV.GK can just start packing his shit and look for jobs elsewhere.