Btw, nice article...
The biggest knock against the Denver Nuggets is their mental toughness. It seems an easy case to make with the memory of two failed inbound plays costing them wins in the conference finals, their poor performance against the bottom-dwellers of the NBA and the fact that they have lost 10 games in which they held a double-digit lead, including each of their last four losses.
There is a flip side to that argument. Their record against the top teams may provide a frustrating counterpoint to their struggles against the lackeys, but it does show they can focus and beat any team, anytime, anywhere. They have posted a 7-1 record over their previous eight games even though they have been without at least two of their top eight players during that stretch. You can argue that five of those seven wins came against sub-.500 teams, but those are the very games they have been criticized for losing.
The real test of their mental resolve is the fact that their head coach is fighting cancer. They come to work every day and see the struggle on his face and in his movements. George Karl has missed five of their previous six games and will miss more. Instead of allowing themselves to be distracted by his plight, they have chosen to draw strength from his resolve.
There was a time when Kobe could not win without Shaq, Kevin Garnett was not good enough to win a title and Doc Rivers was not a championship coach. Even the great Michael Jordan could not get past the Detroit Pistons because the Bulls were too soft.
The point is, teams or players wear a label until they prove they are something different. Go ahead and label the Nuggets as mentally soft; just don't be surprised if that sign has to be removed over the next two months.
From ESPN's Daily Dime
and I'm happy to see the seldom used bigs (Petro, Allen) get some burn... I'm a big believer they will help us in the playoffs, not liabilities.