Takin' a T/O With BT: How I Learned To Love The Denver Nuggets

Monday night wasn't a very full schedule sports-wise for me. There was only one NHL game (Flyers vs. Canadiens), and the MLB schedule was decidedly light without any Toronto Blue Jays action, so I figured it'd be a quick night.

But come 12:30 a.m., I found myself wondering what to watch. I had caught the tail-end of the Habs game (thanks to work), sat down and watched the late editions of SportsCenter, and I had just finished off Bull Durham. 

Time for bed right? I mean, technically, it switched over to being Tuesday morning.

Not so fast.

As I was about to turn off the TV I started channel flipping, and landed on Game Four of the first round series pitting the Los Angeles Lakers against the Denver Nuggets.

It was halfway through the third quarter, so I figured it couldn't do any harm to stay up. 

Boy, was I wrong. 

Before we go any further, I have to say that I'm probably as far from a fountain of NBA knowledge as you can get—there's a reason I've only ever written three NBA articles here on Bleacher Report. I've been to one or two live games, I can pick a few faces out of a line (LeBron James, duh), and I'll tune into the skills competition each year because, let's face it, the NBA does the best job in all of North American sport in showcasing their talent in that kind of venue.

At this point in the series, the Nuggets were down 3-0 to the Lakers, and although they were separated by just seven wins during the regular season, it certainly seemed that the Lakers offense was exploiting the weaker parts of Denver's defense (says the guy who tuned into this series halfway through the last game). 

But something surprised me about this Denver team. They weren't rolling over.

Usually in any sports' playoffs, when a team is trying to fight off being swept, they play more tentatively—they'll worry too much about keeping the other team off the board, and then they'll take the safe chances down at the other end of the floor/field/rink/etc. to try and come back from the deficit.

Just ask the Ottawa Senators, who aside from Antoine Vermette, completely rolled over in the final game of the Pittsburgh Penguins' first round sweep in this years' NHL playoffs.

What about the past two sweeps by the Boston Red Sox in the World Series?

Although the Colorado Rockies tried to mount a comeback (with a two-run homer in the eighth of Game Four), they still looked over-matched, while the '04 St. Louis Cardinals were stifled in every attempt to come back. 

Not these Nuggets though.

Although there seemed to be an air of desperation to their game, there also seemed to be an air of confidence. They were moving the ball crisply, driving to the basket, and giving it their best effort when it came to stifling Kobe Bryant.

What's more is that, although it was early in the shot clock, the Nuggets had confidence in the long threes. Every so often you'd see them pop it out to JR Smith up top, and he'd launch a twenty-five, or a twenty-eight footer.

In the time I watched he went about 1/3 or 1/4 in those shots, but in watching him take it from that far out it wasn't a desperation shot, but he seemed to have the mindset of "this is a shot I can make—easily". 

That's one of the things I noticed about Smith though: the charisma, the fire, the determination—he's exactly the kind of guy that I'd want on my team. Sure he's had trouble off the court, but to hold that against him would be unfair, as other, higher-profile players have run into the same issues while with the NBA.

From what I saw on Monday night, this was a player who's not afraid to do whatever it takes to win, who'll work to get out in the open for a shot, and has potential to be a charismatic leader. He still takes a few too many long shots, but it seems, now that he and coach George Karl are on the same page, Smith has really started improving as a player.

So what's in store for the Nuggets next year? Will it be a sixth straight first round exit? Will Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson be back? Will there be a massive roster overhaul this summer?

Well, I'd be the wrong guy to ask. All I know is that I've become enamored with the spunky team from Denver who doesn't quit until the final buzzer.

And hey, it's not like I have to worry about them playing the Toronto Raptors any time soon in the NBA finals either—so much for first round exits!

Photo Courtesy of: Patrick Ferron/AP