The official Denver Nuggets thread.

[beastlyskronk]

I feel like they still need another star to get over the hump. Not sure if that’s MPJ in the future or someone else. But that won’t be until a later season.

I just don’t see this team going far in April when Plumlee is such a momentum buzz kill. And as others constantly say Murray disappears too much.

They really need a super star 6th man similar to how the spurs used to always have Ginobli where they can keep on the agressive when the starters rest. Instead of always having 5-7 minutes of completely blown momentum every 2nd and fourth quarter.

Malone may be the only coach I can think of who consistently insists on resting the starters 4-5 minutes into the fourth quarter every single game no matter how bad the bench is blowing it.

Bradley Beal has been the rumor for what 2 or 3 seasons now? Maybe this is the year they pull the trigger, but I don’t think Beasley, Juancho, and finally relenting and putting in Harris gets that deal done.

Unfortunately I can’t see us making a trade for any star player. I agree that a scorer on the bench would be nice, I think ultimately that’s the end goal for MPJ this season but Malone is so erratic with his minutes he can’t find any rhythm despite playing with a ton of energy and attacking boards and getting chase down blocks. Maybe Beasley and Juancho for Bogdanovic in Sacramento?

The post ups with Plumlee are a huge problem with the bench unit. Plumlee touching the ball in general is bad unless he’s going up immediately. He’s like a bull in a china shop and is a constant threat for an offensive foul when he gets the ball and it always stops the flow of the offense. Morris is ok but a flat shot makes him inconsistent shooting deep, I think he needs to try and attack the basket more. Grant is starting to turn a corner in my opinion and Craig is just in for defense and energy, he wore down Lillard the other night when he picked him up full court.

[beastlyskronk]

Malone is going to ruin MPJ. For someone that stuck with Murray after he built a house in the playoffs you’d think he’d do the same for an uber talented rookie rather than pull him immediately after any miscue. He isn’t going to find a rhythm playing 4-7 minutes a game. A few losses here and there with MPJ in will benefit us more in the long run than having him come out and try to play perfect every single second he’s on the court

[the0rangecrush]

Malone is going to ruin MPJ. For someone that stuck with Murray after he built a house in the playoffs you’d think he’d do the same for an uber talented rookie rather than pull him immediately after any miscue. He isn’t going to find a rhythm playing 4-7 minutes a game. A few losses here and there with MPJ in will benefit us more in the long run than having him come out and try to play perfect every single second he’s on the court

Malone's resistance to MPJ is kind of strange to me. It's like MPJ is not one of his guys, so he doesn't give him any leeway.

[beastlyskronk]

Malone's resistance to MPJ is kind of strange to me. It's like MPJ is not one of his guys, so he doesn't give him any leeway.

I understand that in a way MPJ was hyped as the antithesis of what Malone wants this team to be. But every time he’s out there he plays with a ton of energy and moves well without the ball for the most part. It’s absurd that his role is to bridge between the 1st and 2nd quarter.

I wonder if there’s some lingering concern over his back injury and Porter is playing so hard to try and prove a point that it isn’t a problem. For a team that was so close to the WCF last year it makes no sense to not fast track his development to see if he can provide a spark to get us over the hump.

And honestly he’s the only creator we have on the bench. He’s a guy that can help weather the storm when Morris can’t get his floaters or when Plumlee wants to post up. Beasley and Grant are very good spot up shooters with the explosion to pump and get to the rim but at some point you need someone that can create his own shot.

[DenverBlood]

I understand that in a way MPJ was hyped as the antithesis of what Malone wants this team to be. But every time he’s out there he plays with a ton of energy and moves well without the ball for the most part. It’s absurd that his role is to bridge between the 1st and 2nd quarter.

I wonder if there’s some lingering concern over his back injury and Porter is playing so hard to try and prove a point that it isn’t a problem. For a team that was so close to the WCF last year it makes no sense to not fast track his development to see if he can provide a spark to get us over the hump.

And honestly he’s the only creator we have on the bench. He’s a guy that can help weather the storm when Morris can’t get his floaters or when Plumlee wants to post up. Beasley and Grant are very good spot up shooters with the explosion to pump and get to the rim but at some point you need someone that can create his own shot.

The only thing I’ll say about you mentioning fast tracking his development to see if it gets us over the hump is it’s still way early in the season. I’m in agreement with you guys that it’s been frustrating however we could still see his minutes increase down the stretch racing for seeding.

The team is 21-8 right now. They don’t really need him to put them over the hump just yet.

[the0rangecrush]

Craig and Juancho have been pretty bad in extended minutes more often than not. I get playing Vets who have sacrificed for the team, but at this point it's hurting MPJs and the teams future potential

[johnlimburg]

It reminds me a little bit of how Geroge Karl treated Jordan Hamilton when he was drafted here, does anyone remember him ? Hamilton wasn't the prospect Porter Jr. was, but he had an offensive skill set and had flashes some quick scoring potential in limited minutes as a rookie. But, it seemed whenever he made the slightest error on the court he was benched, while some veterans like Corey Brewer constantly made boneheaded decisions but got away with it.

[DenverBlood]

It reminds me a little bit of how Geroge Karl treated Jordan Hamilton when he was drafted here, does anyone remember him ? Hamilton wasn't the prospect Porter Jr. was, but he had an offensive skill set and had flashes some quick scoring potential in limited minutes as a rookie. But, it seemed whenever he made the slightest error on the court he was benched, while some veterans like Corey Brewer constantly made boneheaded decisions but got away with it.

Mason Plumlee bought a house in the momentum killing zone and somehow is still on the team getting more minutes. One thing I wonder about is behavior in practice that we fans never see.

And yes I remember Jordan Hamilton well.

[Bronco51]

Honestly, The Pelicans?

[DenverBlood]

Honestly, The Pelicans?

These kind of losses always happen 2-3 times a year. It’s just disappointing it happened on Christmas. But it’s similar to the Kings meltdown a couple of weeks ago.

[beastlyskronk]

MPJ starting tonight with Harris out. 12 points on 5/5 shooting with 5 boards at halftime

[the0rangecrush]

MPJ starting tonight with Harris out. 12 points on 5/5 shooting with 5 boards at halftime

MPJ hitting those 3s last night got him in a groove that's carried over IMO. It was like pressure was visibly lifted off him after the first one went in.

[beastlyskronk]

And his defense rears it’s ugly head, probably gonna get him benched soon. This is why I think he needs more minutes, he’s fine on offense but if he can’t play better on defense he probably won’t play much in the playoffs

[the0rangecrush]

And his defense rears it’s ugly head, probably gonna get him benched soon. This is why I think he needs more minutes, he’s fine on offense but if he can’t play better on defense he probably won’t play much in the playoffs

Ya with a lot of things he's like athletic puppy. He puts in effort, and tries hard, but he's not really seeing the big picture. OREBs for example instead of tipping the ball out or gaining a better position he wants the put back slam. It's little things and feel for the game he is lacking, but the only way to get those is to play.

[beastlyskronk]

Ya with a lot of things he's like athletic puppy. He puts in effort, and tries hard, but he's not really seeing the big picture. OREBs for example instead of tipping the ball out or gaining a better position he wants the put back slam. It's little things and feel for the game he is lacking, but the only way to get those is to play.

Yup, and I’d add that sometimes he gets too content to just stand around the 3 point line on offense. I’m not sure if that’s by design or not but I would like to see some more movement out of him before the ball is shot because when he does he gets good looks