In all the Miami Heat hoopla, the NBA’s second best active win streak is getting very little attention despite its own splendor and relevance. It isn’t “25 games in a row” historic, no one is going to argue that, but the Denver Nuggets are finally running on all cylinders, and are outplaying very good teams. They beat their closest Western Conference rivals the Los Angeles Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies, a resurgent Los Angeles Lakers, a pesky Bulls team, and OKC twice, on their road to 15. They’re still two games away from hurdling the Clippers’ 17-game win streak for second best this year, and have a major roadblock coming up when they play San Antonio Wednesday. But when factored for ties, the Nuggets are now proud owners of the ninth best win streak of all time.
Their strength, and some say weakness, is their ability to beat you in a nebulous sprint of pick-your-poison design. It’s no accident that they’re third in the league in points per game (105.9), second in rebounds (45.1), and 3rd in assists (24.3). Their questionable defense, although improved since Iggy came to roost in Denver, might be the only thing to keep them from reaching the Finals. I say Finals because, unlike most, I do believe they have the pedigree to have playoff success. Sure, their run-and-gun schematics don’t usually translate to postseason success, but that’s based on old school precedents. As Miami’s championship indicated last year, the game is evolving before our very eyes to a more sophisticated version of an All-Star game. Or, to put it bluntly, entertainment predicated on sports.
That’s not a quip against Miami, the Nuggets, or the modern era’s game—I have much bigger quips on that front—it’s just a state of affairs. This piece serves as a dedicated praise to Denver’s chances as a playoff squad and an insight into the Fantasy Basketball goldmine that is their team. They are the Nuggets, after all.
Miami’s streak is impressive in its own right, but it’s come against some subpar talent. Sure, the Thunder and the Knicks are in that win streak, but the Heat have played the third best schedule in the last 20 games (or so). According to ESPN, their SOS (L25%), or average winning percentage of their opponents over the last 25% of games played, is .458. Only the Pacers and Wizards have battled against easier opponents for a fourth of the season. The Nuggets haven’t exactly matched up against only powerhouses, but their SOS (L25%) of .509 is only lower than 11 other teams. So that means that for the past 18 games, the Nuggets have played against above-average teams while the Heat have mostly been swatting at flies.
Another important note is that Denver has the fourth highest SOS, or average winning percentage of opponents played, this year. At .511, they also have a much better winning percentage than the other four teams (the Hornets, Timberwolves, Suns, and Warriors) with the top-five hardest schedules. Therefore, they’ve been winning a lot despite a demanding season. For some context, the Miami Heat’s SOS is .496, which puts them at 10th for easiest schedule of the year.
Denver is also second when it comes to pace (97.8), has the eleventh best turnover ratio (13.7 per game), second for offensive rebounding (31.4), and seventh for effective field goal percentage (51.5 %). If they can crack the top-10 for defensive efficiency (they’re currently 11th), watch out everyone.
Again, this article isn’t to project the Denver Nuggets as 2013 NBA champs, or to argue that their streak is better than Miami’s. Instead it’s an attempt to get more bandwagoners on the Denver express.
They have a deep, multi-faceted team coached by a guy who is a shoe-in for the Hall of Fame. Nine players seem to be at the forefront of their success, and as evidenced recently, when one or two start to fall off, others rise up to make up the difference.
In the last ten games, Danilo Gallinari, Andre Iguodala, Javale McGee and Kenneth Faried have been downtrending. See below.
1. Danilo Gallinari
2012-13 season averages: 16.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.5 APG, 41.7 FG%
Last ten games: 14.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 3.3 APG, 36.9 FG%
2. Andre Iguodala
2012-13 season averages: 12.8 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 5.1 APG, 44.3 FG%
Last ten games: 10.9 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 5.4 APG, 39.6 FG%
3. Javale McGee
2012-13 season averages: 9.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 0.3 APG, 57.1 FG%
Last ten games: 7.2 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 0.2 APG, 55.2 FG%
4. Kenneth Faried
2012-13 season averages: 11.8 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.1 STLPG
Last ten games: 10.9 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.3 STLPG
During that time some of their teammates have been making up for the slack.
2012-13 season averages: 11.8 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 1.0 APG, 45.0 FG%
Last ten games: 13.4 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 1.8 APG, 53.2 FG%
2. Andre Miller
2012-13 season averages: 9.4 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 5.9 APG, 49.5 FG%
Last ten games: 11.7 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 6.2 APG, 55.8 FG%
3. Kosta Koufus
2012-13 season averages: 8.3 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 0.4 APG, 60.0 FG%
Last ten games: 10.3 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 0.5 APG, 61.6 FG%
4. Corey Brewer
2012-13 season averages: 11.8 PPG, 0.3 BLKPG, 1.5 STLPG, 43.1 FG%
Last ten games: 13.0 PPG, 0.4 BLKPG, 2.4 STLPG, 44.5 FG%
5. Ty Lawson
2012-13 season averages: 16.9 PPG, 6.9 APG, 2.7 RPG, 45.8 FG%
Last ten games: 19.4 PPG, 5.6 APG, 2.8 RPG, 53.7 FG%
So in addition to having already many worthy Fantasy players, the Nuggets team operates on a seesaw level of contribution; if anyone player slumps, there’s another equally capable player to log an improvement. Considering that they have players, they’re an almost complete hybrid team, that is, a number of players can switch among a variety of positions, they can be a match-up nightmare for anyone out West – including an over-the-hill Spurs team.
The Denver Nuggets lack the experience, and team cohesion (timewise), to usurp Miami of their title, but don’t count them out. They might be on the other end of the floor before you do.
