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If Kyrie is out its a trap game for the Nuggets. Could see Dinwiddie going off.

But we prob still lose.

If we won the Jazz game I wouldn't care much about losing this one. Dinwiddie gotta drop 40.

I was only able to watch highlights of the Utah game, so I didn’t experience it live to fully understand how the game unfolded. On paper at least, we defended better, and went toe to toe with the only team in the league that’s 6-0 at their home. It’s tough to stomach giving up an 18-point lead, but c’est la vie. We’re improving, we’re getting better contributions from the bench; it’ll break loose sooner or later. We’re onto Cinci... I mean, Denver. Let’s get into it:

DEANDRE JORDAN VS. NIKOLA JOKIC – I predict a switch in starting C’s, for a few reasons. One, DJ is just playing better basketball right now, and JA could use a mental reset. Two, Jordan matches Nikola’s size better. Neither of our C’s are going to stop the Joker from raining 3’s on us like KAT did, but at least in theory, DeAndre can put up better resistance in the post. When DEN goes big off the bench, I’d like to see a bit of Twin Towers action.

TAUREAN PRINCE VS. PAUL MILLSAP – Paul is the Bobby Fischer of modern PF’s. Despite his age, size and every other limitation, he routinely grades out as one of the most efficient scorers and tenacious defenders at his position. Fortunately, Taurean seems to thrive on opposing PF’s of Millsap’s “traditional” build. I still see a W for Denver at this position, but I think Prince keeps it respectable.

JOE HARRIS VS. WILL BARTON – Will is having a heckuva year on both ends, but optimistically I do think that Joe’s offense can pose some problems defensively for him.

GARRETT TEMPLE VS. GARY HARRIS – Garrett is our SG du jour once again, this time matching up with a player who earned a sizable contract off of a reputation for elite two-way skills. However, since receiving his payday, Gary has failed to live up to either the money or the reputation. I don’t mean to underestimate him, but I feel that by simply playing within himself and being a “star in his role”, Temple can neutralize this matchup with Harris.

KYRIE IRVING VS. JAMAL MURRAY – Our 3rd consecutive PG mismatch in this road trip, Kyrie needs to take advantage of, well, his advantage. Jamal work beautifully off-ball with Jokic pulling the strings. Ball denial is going to be the critical piece here. If you habitually fail to do your homework before Jamal receives the ball, you might as well cancel Christmas. On the other end, Murray is no stalwart, but the Nuggets defensive rotation is sophisticated and stout. Irving will need to stay aggressive, and trust his teammates will score off of his assists when he sucks in the defense, rather than launching circus shots under double-team duress. I know he can do it, but it’s a recipe for failure to rely on it. Speaking of reliance, our star is a GTD with as Andy Reid would call it, “a shoulder there”. Just in case he cannot go…

… our bench will be even thinner, since we’ll need to shift Spencer up to the starting spot. Allen and Claxton could see some time together when the Nuggets go jumbo with Plumlee/Porter and Jokic. Nwaba (power guard?) and Musa (point forward?) figure to get PT, and a reinvigorated Kurucs would be a welcome addition given our depleted ranks. We have talent to match theirs; we lack discipline and cohesion. For us to win the battle of the bench, against Morris, Beasley, Grant and others, we’ll need to stick together. That means communicating on D, sending crisp passes, gang rebounding, diving for loose balls and all of the other things you associate with a team hungry for a W.

Kenny has his hands full playing chess with Malone, who has orchestrated a gorgeous system in Denver. Well, it’s gorgeous to an impartial observer. To the team and us as fans Thursday night, it will be death by a thousand backdoor paper cuts. It’s OK, we should stick to our guns and rely on ourselves no matter the outcome. We trust the process, and we’ll all end up winning when it matters most. Ciao!


PREDICTION: NETS 101, NUGGETS 109

I expect us to lose I just hope we don’t embarrass ourselves.

Is Shumpert available tonight?

man we need this game. I don't want this team losing three straight.

Win this game on national TV and show something here.

I wanna see them get it going tonight. Road wins builds character! Denver is a pesky squad, similar to the Grizzlies in my opinion - but I believe they can win this g.a.m.e. Lead them Kyrie

Kyrie is in. Huge and much needed.

Shump is ready to go as well. He posted pics of him at pregame workouts at Pepsi Center.

They have such a tough front court with Millsap and Jokic.

Really low expectations for this one. Just hoping for improvement in terms of less turnovers and defense.

Man I don't know how we're going to guard Jokic. The refs will call bogus calls on Allen and put him in foul trouble early on. And Jokic likes to flop his head back alot and he's a star . Man we should of been 7-3 right now SMH

I believe we are better than our record. This is a winnable game.

Kyrie and Joe are due for a big game....Just got to bring the Brooklyn grit

Shumpert is in.

Let’s go Nets. Compete and play hard...

Nice finish through contact there for Allen.

Seriously no one gonna close out on Milsap????

This is exactly what I'm talking about when I say that this team is lazy. This is why I've been mad about the losses, because our effort is lackluster.

Our defense is next level bad right now.