Chucky Atkins says he's "looking forward to winning a championship in Denver" as he replaces Portland-bound Steve Blake on the Nuggets. Size-wise, Atkins doesn't seem like a great backcourt-mate for Allen Iverson, but he can hit the three which is a great fit for Denver's personnel. He had his best season by a large margin last year at 31, which was weird, but the Nuggets really aren't paying him very much so even if that turns out to be a total fluke they're covered. It's still probably not championship material, but it'll be fun to watch the New Nuggets play a whole season together.
« Beach Boys | Main | All-Nighter »
The Atkins Era
16 Jul 2007 05:05 pm
Comments (26)
Petey hasn't commented yet?
He must be buying champagne
I'm also waiting for Petey's three paragraph missive with italics and such explaining why replacing one mediocre dude with some other marginally less mediocre dude is actually a substantial improvement, based upon some shit I don't understand.
Kidding Petey - the Power Blue are gonna be pretty good again.
Adkins doesn't seem like a great backcourt-mate for Allen Iverson
But who would be? Obviously Jason Kidd or Steve Nash could make it work based on sheer talent, but being in the backcourt with Allen Iverson seems like one of the worst NBA jobs you could ask for.
owenz, based on the empirical evidence (who was iverson's backcourt mate on the team that went to the finals and even stole a game despite vastly inferior talent), the ideal is aaron mckie....
We're all dying to know what Dave Berri thinks of this...actually no, we aren't.
Pooh thinks it doesn't make a damn bit of difference, as the rich & creamys are going nowhere. Utah may have even passed them in terms of most attractive unis is the league. I LOVE the glacier blues, I do.
owenz, based on the empirical evidence (who was iverson's backcourt mate on the team that went to the finals and even stole a game despite vastly inferior talent), the ideal is aaron mckie....
Or Eric Snow.
It's straightforward. You want a guy who can reliably bring the ball up the court on offense, but is big enough to guard the opposing 2 on defense. Kidd would be great. Nash wouldn't. Nor would Atkins.
Nate McMillan in his prime would have been ideal.
It isn't that complex, like any undersized 2 guard what Iverson needs is a PG who can guard the other teams 2 guard.
It is indeed odd to imagine a backcourt of two sub-six footers.
That said, Steve Blake was no Bruce Bowen on defense either.
And with Iverson and Carmelo both wanting to drive to the hoop and opposing teams wanting to pack the lane, it really is absolutely essential to have other guys who can knock down the 3pt shot.
Without guys standing on the perimeter ready to play horse, it's too easy to shut down the inside on the Nuggets.
-----
On defense, I'd expect to see Linas Kleiza continue to get big minutes. Last year, he was the designated defender when they'd face the Kobe Bryants of the world, and he did a perfectly acceptable job.
It'd be nice to see J.R. Smith finally learn to play average defense, since he's got some height, but I don't expect that to happen anytime soon.
-----
I've long been a fan of Atkins, so I'm happy with the signing. My big worry is his age. Blake was playing 35mpg, and unless J.R. Smith gets his act together quick, the Nuggets will need big minutes from Atkins.
-----
At the end of the day, it seems a nice pickup to me. They essentially traded Blake for Atkins, and it seems a mildly positive transaction.
The growth or lack thereof from Kleiza and Smith probably is more important, however. The Nuggets need those two to step up to have any kind of serious hopes.
And unrelatedly, as much as I like Henry Abbot, Kelly Dwyer is god.
And unrelatedly, as much as I like Henry Abbot, Kelly Dwyer is god.
That's just sad. Dwyer's barely coherent. Anything that pops into his head goes onto the page.
How likely is it that JR Smith will step up after getting singled out and thrown under the bus by George Karl during the playoffs last year? Karl's coaching was so bad, you would have thought it was the Eastern Conference Finals.
Denver's biggest problem is its delusions of grandeur. They got whipped four straight, and then a month later Woody Paige is writing an article in the Denver Post about George Karl saying they had given the Spurs the toughest series and that they were this close to the title.
It's not as if San Antonio did something to them any one of the other playoffs teams in the West wouldn't have done, excepting possibly the Lakers. The main thing the Nuggets need to be doing is an honest assessment of where they stand in the West. Right now they are barely a playoff team.
"How likely is it that JR Smith will step up after getting singled out and thrown under the bus by George Karl during the playoffs last year?"
Karl is either an idiot or a genius for how that played out. Who knows. Maybe it was actually the right motivational move.
In either case, Karl now owns JR's career. If Smith doesn't step up, it's Karl's fault, and if he does step up, I'll never question Karl again. (Unless Karl decides to double Timmy again when he's got both Camby and Nene to defend, in which case I'll personally strangle him.)
"Denver's biggest problem is its delusions of grandeur ... Right now they are barely a playoff team."
They're obviously not elite quite yet, and given Iverson's and Camby's fragility, injuries could set them way back. But if healthy, they're not far away from the elite either.
They've got the pieces to make a serious run at it. Really and truly. That certainly doesn't mean everything is destined to come together, but you dismiss them waaay too lightly, Curtis.
Basketball? It's July! Do you ever blog about football? Or does a sport need to be over 80% black before you are interested in it?
let's talk delusions of grandeur - the Rockets get Argentina's big banger, Luis Scola (only 27 yrs old), for nothing, get Mike James' offense to relieve the pressure on Alston and Head, and their 26th pick turns out to be MVP of the summer league. And they say they're not done yet.
"let's talk delusions of grandeur - the Rockets get..."
I think it's pretty rational for both Nuggets and Rockets fans to have delusions of grandeur.
Both teams have a better short-term shot at the ring than, say, Utah.
Or does a sport need to be over 80% black before you are interested in it?
I'll blog about football, but only about defensive schemes and wide receivers. Then everyone'll be happy.
I don't know the NFL well enough to have real opinions about offseason moves. When the games are played, I'll watch 'em, and I'll probably say something.
I don't think it is far off to say the Nugz where the spurs toughest challenge. The obvious possible exception is phx., but I don't know. They always appear to me to be a really good magic trick. And the Nugz, by FAR, had more toughness and grit than any other spurs opponent.
I think the Nugz could improve their dynamic if Iverson came off the bench. He could still play 30 minutes, but it would make them deeper and explosive for longer.
If the Rockettes don't make a push this year, its on McGrady.
paper - scroll down a list of the former summer league mvp's before you get too excited. Though I will admit I think Houston has had a very good off-season, and the Texas roadtrip isn't getting any more pleasant for the poor saps that don't get to live here.
petey - just looking at the western conference, I see three teams that are pretty much locks for the playoffs (Dallas, San Antonio, and Phoenix), and I see four teams that are pretty much locks for the lottery (NO, Memphis, Minnesota, and Sacramento).
So I see there being eight teams fighting for five playoff spots. (Houston, both LA teams, Golden State, Utah, Portland, Seattle, and Denver) I don't think it is clear Denver even makes the playoffs. Even if they do, can they get high enough in the bracket to avoid getting trounced in the first round again?
Karl has been around long enough to have a track record to be relied upon, and has yet to have a team rise up and win an unexpected round. Ten years ago, maybe you would say his teams are due, but now we know they just don't.
Obviously, all this remains to be seen. But Vegas would have to be laying the Nuggets 40-1 before I would be tempted.
Your playoff predictions seem far off to me, Curtis. I think NO has a very viable shot at the playoffs, and I think Seattle is an obvious lock for the lottery, to name just a couple of the most glaring items.
Injury free, I'd put Denver into a top 6 seed using pen, not pencil. They're clearly a class above GS, Portland, and both LA teams.
And don't forget, Curtis, your team now has an average age of 52. One of these days, they're going to fall right off a cliff without any warning whatsoever. That certainly may not happen this year, but then again, it may.
As a Seattle fan I'll agree that they're a lock for the lottery next season. I'll also say that, if there wasn't the threat of the team leaving hanging over every move, I like the direction that the going in.
It was time to break up the Ray Allen/Rashard Lewis core and I'm glad that getting Kevin Durant has provided the opportunity to make big changes.
Now the trick is finding someone to agree to build an arena.
oh I know, Curtis - I gnashed my teeth when the Rockets made Brooks their 4th little guard on the roster. Still, I can dream that they've found the next version of Sam Cassell, right?
"Now the trick is finding someone to agree to build an arena."
Oh, don't worry. They'll build a new arena. It'll be located in Las Vegas, of course, but they'll build a new arena.
(Pointless snark rather than prediction or wish. I actually hope you keep your team.)
The only reason I don't love Sam Cassell is that I hate Sam Cassell. The only good news about Sam Cassell for me as a Spurs fan is that the 1995 Rockets so exposed the Spurs as frauds that we fired Hill and brought in Popovich. But that series still burns however many years later. I am an FSU grad and would love to like Cassell, but I just can't. So here's hoping there's a new Cassell in town without me having to hate him.
As for the Spurs falling off a cliff someday, I think you are right. I think this, in essence, is what made this title the sweetest yet for me as a fan, because even as I fan I realize this could be the last one of this era. At the same time, the only contracts the Spurs had for after next season were for Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili when the season ended. If I remember correctly, we have now signed Vaughn and Bonner for the next year for minimal deals. The upshot is that the Spurs will have oodles of cap room next summer to go after a player like Marion or Brand, plus their last two draft first rounders playing overseas.
The cupboard isn't as bare as it might appear. Though once Duncan retires, the party will be over for a while, no question about that.
Sometimes you have a feel for a team, and my feel for Denver is that they - and Carmelo in particular - lack the poise and the mental toughness required. In the two playoff series against the Spurs, they folded as soon as it became tough. I like their pieces; Iverson is someone I would watch play anywhere and any time. Injury free, they are probably a play-off team, but they have as much to fear from age and mileage as anyone in the West, and they make Phoenix look like a defensive juggernaut.
I don't know if it is way too lightly or not, but I am certainly dismissing them.
"Sometimes you have a feel for a team, and my feel for Denver is that they - and Carmelo in particular - lack the poise and the mental toughness required. In the two playoff series against the Spurs, they folded as soon as it became tough."
Be wary of over-personalizing a team game.
If the Nuggets don't have 3pt shooter to keep the Spurs from packing the lane, Carmelo is going to look like he doesn't have mental toughness.
------
I didn't see the first series, but last year was very much a team failure. They didn't figure out roles on the team until March. It's not difficult to see how the wheels could come off under pressure.
Carmelo's still very young, and he still doesn't get everything perfectly, but I like his mind. He just plays a position that makes it hard to really own a series.
But the team's got more than enough talent to play at top levels, and I can see how it could be put together. As Matthew said, it'll be fun to watch what they can do with a full year together.
this thread's pretty much done, but the spurs likely aren't. why do people think duncan's going to fall off a cliff like shaq? tim's built more like those guys who play into their late 30s, and continue to play well. do you seriously think an older duncan (fewer minutes), an older manu (same minutes), and an older parker (better, and possibly much better if he continues improving), plus some smokin free agent don't seriously contend for at least the next 3-5 years? who in the west is going to dominate them? maybe the mavs, maybe the suns (but nash is likely to get old before duncan), then who? houston might, utah's coming on, but that seems about it.
Comments closed July 30, 2007.
| 
Heads in the Sand
probably not?
Posted by MP | July 16, 2007 6:00 PM