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March 21, 2008

The Denver Nuggets now have a 40-28 record. If they were in the East they would be the fourth seed. But in the West they're still trying to figure into the playoff picture.

They lost last night 115-113 to the Philadelphia Sixers, Allen Iverson's previous team. Despite the huge cheers the fans gave him, Philadelphia is trying to better it's playoff position in the East, and were very much business minded. And of course they couldn't let Iverson get all the cheers for the day.

Iverson had 32 points, Carmelo Anthony 26, and Andre Miller, who was traded for Iverson had 28.

However, as we follow the Nuggets we think it's unfortunate coach George Karl has not put any of our suggestions to work on his team. We have always believed that Allen Iverson should get a diminished role in the offense, and be a clear second option behind Carmelo Anthony. Just like David Robinson did during Tim Duncan's second year in San Antonio and they went on to win the title in '99...yes that's what we're talking about.

Our reasoning is that as it stands, this team clearly does not have a lead and secondary option. Though Allen Iverson is the Nuggets leading scorer (with 26.5 per compared to Carmelo's 25.5) at 32 years and only 6 feet tall, he works a lot harder for his points compared to the 6-8 23 years old Carmelo. As far as the length of NBA game goes Carmelo also has nearly limitless energy to wreck havoc on the opposition.

Yet, Iverson also gets more minutes, as he dislikes being benched, and as you can imagine him being the point guard he handles the ball a lot more.

George Karl has to drop the hammer and make Allen Iverson look for Carmelo more. With his last team the reason Glenn Robinson, Ray Allen and Sam Cassell eventually imploded is because there was no true pecking order. Same as in Seattle, when Shawn Kemp was happy with his secondary role everything went well. When he finally wanted more, things fell apart.

Carmelo Anthony has the natural gift and skills to be just as breathtaking as Kobe, LeBron, McGrady, and Dwyane. But he's nowhere near them on th epopularity radar. And with the help of a similarly gifted and more experienced Allen Iverson, the stage can be set for Melo to really fly into stardom with Iverson as his wingman.

Despite his still sultry skills, Iverson's trade from the Sixers was an indication of the new direction of his career. Let's face it, the Sixers could have achieved whatever record they have now with AI and with far better fan attendance to boot. They didn't unload him for no reason. Denver should take a clue fromt hat move.

As it stands, the radical move that will propel the Nuggets from playoff hopeful to title contender would be to limit Iverson's role and unleash Carmelo.

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