[Photo Courtesy of Bleacher Report]
Things may finally be turning around for the Nuggets. They are executing well offensively, and it’s not a coincidence the Nuggets won three straight after their victory over the Timberwolves last night.
Here’s the kicker: Nuggets coach Brian Shaw did not change anything about the offense. He is still relying on his forwards to execute this offense. When it works, it’s pretty to watch. That’s the case right now for the Nuggets.
Give Shaw credit for not panicking by running an uptempo offense that the Nuggets were used to operating. It could have been the safe thing to do, but he has conviction that running a halfcourt offense will work once the players know how to run it.
The last two games showed this halfcourt offense can be a great thing if it’s properly executed. Shaw found the right guy to execute the offense in Wilson Chandler.
Chandler is off to a great start since he made his 2013-2014 season debut Wednesday night against the Lakers after missing time with a hamstring injury. He scored 19 points last night, and he scored 12 points against the Lakers Wednesday night.
He has been able to score in the paint often, and he goes past his defenders on his way to the hoops. His speed and size has helped him be effective. It’s what Shaw expected to see from his forward when he incorporated the offense in training camp. It’s no wonder why the rookie Nuggets coach was not scrapping the offense despite the Nuggets’ early struggles.
It isn’t only Chandler that is dominating in the paint and post. Timofey Mozgov has played well in the last couple of games. He scored 10 points in 17 minutes last night. With him, it’s about confidence. If he can get it going early on, he can continue to score in the paint as the game goes on.
Kenneth Faried is a hit or miss. Shaw does not know what he is getting out of him. He had everything going last night as he hit his shots. He was able to do his work in the post, and he was able to score often from there.
One of the reasons Shaw wants to run the halfcourt offense is because Shaw feels he can get Chandler and Faried to provide a 1-2 punch on offense. After watching the Nuggets’ big men, it’s easy to understand why.
Now it’s only two games. No one knows if the Nuggets can keep it up or not. Maybe we shouldn’t have judged early on, either. This writer certainly should have not made comments about the offense early on.
If the first two weeks taught us something, it’s let everything play itself out for a long stretch before we can react. Eight games are hard to judge, especially in the Nuggets’ case when they lost Faried for most of training camp and Chandler for the first two weeks of the season.
It’s funny how perception changes when a team is winning. Everything is hunky dory. That’s the case with the Nuggets. A three-game winning streak has everyone feeling good about the team. Now, everyone believes in the offense after questions about this working.
Again, this offense is a work in progress. Players still have so much to learn. They will get better through repetition. There are going to be good games and bad games.
What the Nuggets hope is the Nuggets execute the halfcourt offense consistently well in January. That’s when a team should start the process of peaking.
One thing going for the Nuggets is they have Chandler to execute, but they need more than him. Mozgov is not going to give them much past 20 minutes. Anthony Hamilton is a project. JaVale McGee is useless. J.J. Hickson is a nice role player.
One guy can’t do it all, and that’s why people wonder if this offense is really a good idea.
For Shaw, there’s no looking back. He is committed to it, and with Chandler executing it well, he knows it would be foolish to give up on it now.
Last two games aren’t much right now, but the Nuggets have to be encouraged that they are finally making progress on this new offense.
Related articles across the web
Leslie Monteiro
Leslie is a contributor for Lightning Rod Sports. He covered high school sports in Bergen County out in North Jersey, and has written op-ed columns on sports such as Bleacher Report and NY Sports Digest.
