Can Anthony and Iverson lead the Nuggets past the Spurs?

The Denver Nuggets success will depend upon the performances of star players Carmelo Anthony (left) and Allen Iverson (right)

The Denver Nuggets will be underdogs heading into a series against the San Antonio Spurs. Still, the Nuggets will relish the opportunity to upset to upset the 3 time NBA champions (1999, 2003, and 2005). The Denver Nuggets have changed its identity by acquiring Allen Iverson, and having two star players in Anthony and Iverson who are in the top 10 in scoring.

Brief Season Recap

The Denver Nuggets started the 2006-07 seaon strong but struggled after their team had a brawl with Knicks Anthony was suspended for 15 games and JR Smith was suspended for 10 games. The Nuggets, shortly thereafter, sent Andre Miller, Joe Smith, and two 2007 first-round picks to the Philedelphia 76ers for Iverson and Ivan McFarlin. Once, Anthony returned from suspension, it took a while for the team to mesh. As of late though, the Nuggets have finally gotten their act together and have won 9 of their past 10 games.

Footage of Knicks/Nuggets Brawl

Prior Postseason Success

While the Spurs playoff experience speaks for itself, the Denver Nuggets also have their share of playoff experience. Carmelo Anthony and Marcus Camby were part of the Nuggets' teams that have made it to the playoffs for the past three seasons. The Nuggets have not made it past the 2nd round since 1994 where the Nuggets led by Dikembe Mutumbo won as an 8th seed against the Seattle Supersonics who were the 1 seed in the Western Conference. The Supersonics were coached by George Karl, who is now the coach of the Denver Nuggets.

Still, members of the Denver Nuggets have seen success in the postseason. Coach George Karl led the Supersonics to the NBA finals in 1996. He also helped lead the Milwaukee Bucks to Eastern Conference Finals in 2001. Camby was also part of the 1999 New York Knicks, who helped his team to an improbable run to the NBA finals as an eight seed where they lost Tim Duncan's Spurs in a 5 games. Iverson had led the 76ers to playoffs several times, which was highlighted with a MVP award for 2000-01 season and a trip the NBA finals against the Los Angeles Lakers in 2001. In addition, Eduardo Najera, Reggie Evans, and Steve have been role players to respective teams (Dallas, Seattle, and Washington) that have made it past the 1st round.

Keys for the Nuggets

What will work to Anthony and Iverson's advantage is their ability to score in a variety of ways. They can both create a shot by themselves and have the ability to find the open man who can convert for the easy basket. Anthony and Iverson are among the league leaders at getting to the free throw line. This will not only help them score efficiently but also put the Spur's key players into foul problems. The Nuggets also have effective low post players in Camby and Nene Hilario. Steve Blake is effective at running the team's offense, while JR Smith can provide a scoring punch off the bench. Reggie Evans and Eduardo Najera are players who bring energy who hustle for loose ball and play stingy defense.

The Spurs will be up to the challenge to stop them since they have one of the best league defenses anchored by Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen. Still, the Spurs best perimeter defender, Bowen does not match up well with either Anthony or Iverson; Anthony is too big and will use his strength to overpower Bowen while Iverson will use his quickness and ball handling skills to elude him. The Spurs will most likely have to rely on team defense to contain both of them. Still, the Spurs have to watch out for the Nuggets role players who can also find ways to put it in the basket.

The Nuggets biggest weakness as of late has been their team defense. The Nuggets have good overall team defenders in Camby, Nene, Evans, and Najera who could slow down Tim Duncan. But they will have to rely on their scorers in Anthony and Iverson to step it up on the defensive end as well. The Nuggets will likely put Iverson on Bowen in order to mask his defensive liability. Anthony will have to pick it up on the defensive end against Manu Ginobli who is capable of going off with huge scoring outbursts.

Conclusion

While the Nuggets enter the series as underdogs, they still recognize the opportunity to grow into legitimate contender. If they can take the Spurs to 6 or 7 games, they could be content going into next season with better team chemistry and higher expectations, especially with the return of a healthy Kenyon Martin. If they can somehow manage to beat the Spurs in the 1st round, they would put themselves as one of the favorites to win it all this June.