The Microscope: Kenneth Faried Triggers the Fast Break (and More)
The Microscope is your recurring look at the NBA's small-scale developments—the rotational curiosities, skill showcases, coaching decisions, notable performances and changes in approach that make the league go 'round.
Kenneth Faried in the open court
When the Denver Nuggets are committed and able to execute their game plan, they make for one of the most fantastic watches in the NBA. Their half-court offense isn't finely tuned or crisply executed, but their insistence on getting into the open court creates a frenetic affair filled with quick, dramatic rises and tons of instant gratification.
Even for the NBA fan who can watch in awe as the San Antonio Spurs work over opponents with extra pass after extra pass, the Nuggets provide a welcome escape in their stylistic contrast.
A key to that contrast is Denver's core of bigs—a mobile, active group that doesn't let Ty Lawson do their running for them. Kenneth Faried is chief among them, and though his exploits as a finisher in transition have been well documented, I'm even more amused and entertained by his fearlessness as an open-court ball-handler.
Faried is quick to outlet if either Lawson or Andre Miller is around, but if there are no immediate opportunities to dish to one of the Nuggets' more proficient ball-handlers, Faried typically charges up-court with the rock himself.
His speed and confidence with the ball actually force defenses to respond to him, and though Faried isn't the type to juke an opponent in that situation before finishing at the rim, he has a knack for giving up the ball at the right time and identifying effective driving lanes.
That skill isn't exactly in Faried's job description, but it's these unknown talents that make rookies in the NBA so much fun. Who can run an offense from the elbow? Which guard has an unexpected post-up game? Which wing player is surprisingly effective at guarding either bigger or quicker opponents?
Or, in Faried's case: which big man has unexpected ball control, and can—in limited spots—initiate the break on his own?
Andre Iguodala, downtown resident
This may seem an odd point to make after a playoff series in which he shot 21.7 percent from beyond the arc, but it's startling how much Andre Iguodala has improved as a shooter this season.
He converted a career high 39.4 percent of his long-range attempts despite increasing his shooting volume on per-game and per-minute bases. Though Iguodala's shooting numbers were ultimately pretty crummy against the Chicago Bulls in the first round, the quality of the shots he's taken from beyond the arc has improved dramatically this season.
Those contested threes off the dribble are all but gone from Iggy's game, and in their place are more reasonable, measured attempts that are emblematic of Iguodala's overall evolution.
JaVale McGee: An X-factor, but not the X-factor
JaVale McGee has every bit of the potential to make a huge mark on the Nuggets' first-round series, and perhaps he already has. It's no coincidence that McGee's two best playoff performances to date resulted in wins for Denver, as McGee's size and length give the Nuggets a completely unique resource that they otherwise lack.
That said, McGee is important but not essential. He played just 21 minutes on Thursday night and finished with two points (1-5 FG) and five rebounds in a 17-point Denver win that was even more lopsided than that margin suggests.
Andrew Bynum played his worst—and most disinterested—game of the series without the help of McGee's shot blocking, and the rest of the Nuggets, keyed by a phenomenal 32-point outing from Ty Lawson, did more than enough to compensate for McGee's offensive irrelevance.
McGee is ultimately a valuable pieces for the Nuggets, but let's not overstate his significance here: Denver can win and play well even without him being much of a factor, even if that process is significantly easier when an engaged seven-footer is producing like mad.
