Phoenix Suns vs. Denver Nuggets Game Preview: Breathe in the Mile High Air
by East Bay Ray on Feb 14, 2012 2:11 PM MST
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PrintThe second game of the Suns back to back to back this week takes them to Denver to face a banged-up Nuggets squad. George Karl's Nuggets are missing leading scorer Danilo Gallinari and leading rebounder Nene Hilario to injury, and have won only 2 of 6 games this month.
Steve Nash and the Suns will attempt to bounce back from cold long-range shooting against the Warriors in Oakland last night. Suns starters shot only 4-18 from behind the arc, and the offense again stagnated down the stretch as the Suns fell to 13th place in the Western Conference with a 102-96 loss.
As the Suns near the halfway point of the season (this will be their 29th game out of 66) and the trade deadline is only a month away, they don't have much time left to make a move in the standings before it's time to focus even more attention on next season, and possibly make more roster moves.
Will the Suns give us something to love in this game on Valentine's Day? Or will Suns fans take a walk down lonely street to Heartbreak Hotel?
The Nuggets are the league's highest scoring team at 103.9 points per game, and play with the fastest pace. Suns fans who have been watching their matchups with the Nuggets are well-acquainted with the Nuggets' fast, explosive offense. In the last three regular season games between the teams, the Nuggets put up 138, 132 and 116 points, then ran the Suns into the ground twice this pre-season for good measure.
Injuries to Gallinari and Nene will help the Suns cause, but the Nuggets are still a dangerous team. They just snapped a 5-game losing streak but those losses were to the Lakers, Blazers, Rockets, Mavs and Warriors, all of whom the Suns are looking up at in the standings.
Probable starters:
- Steve Nash vs. Ty Lawson
- Jared Dudley vs. Arron Afflalo
- Grant Hill vs. Corey Brewer
- Channing Frye vs. Kenneth Faried
- Marcin Gortat vs. Kosta Koufous
This will be another game in which the Suns' best chance will be to keep the pace moderate and limit the turnovers that the Nuggets can convert to running opportunities. The Suns simply don't have the athletes to get into a track meet with the Nuggets, especially in the thin air of Denver and having played the previous night.
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I hope we win tonight
would be a nice birthday gift for me. I already have school all day instead of celebrating it and I can’t even watch the game. As long as we win then I’ll be happy.
Twitter: @FredLegittt
Me too mate
Happy birthday.
Carter having a glazed-eyes contest with Boris Diaw. Carter's winning, but Diaw might respond by eating his eyes.
This is going to be very difficult to win
A good team in Mile High City. They are missing a very good player from their roster right now, but still going to be tough for the Suns. Would have liked to get the win last night but this team continues to play up and down all season long.
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
2 good players*
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
“Will the Suns give us something to love in this game on Valentine’s Day? Or will Suns fans take a walk down lonely street to Heartbreak Hotel?”…..bwahahahaha east bay youre the best
by good like a-1 beer on Feb 14, 2012 2:44 PM MST reply actions
Had to include one cheesy Valentine's Day line
Might as well reference Al McCoy in the process.
Blogging Suns basketball for Bright Side of the Sun from California wine country.
Twitter: @EastBayRaymundo
by East Bay Ray on Feb 14, 2012 3:02 PM MST up reply actions
It depends on which Suns team shows up for the game
the mega-competent running guys who took over the last two weeks, or the cement footed chuckers that don’t want to risk jamming their fingers by playing defense or taking the ball to the bucket.
Where's soco?
by NASCARbernet on Feb 14, 2012 4:37 PM MST up reply actions
I'm so confident of a win that I bet lunch with my Nuggets fan friend on it.
A Panera sandwich says they win.
Blogging Suns basketball for Bright Side of the Sun from California wine country.
Twitter: @EastBayRaymundo
by East Bay Ray on Feb 14, 2012 4:39 PM MST up reply actions
SUNS need to wear their big man pants
Dudz does his Byrd imitation and hits for 30+. He says he sleeps better on the road, should be caught up with his slumber by now.
Forgot we had a back to back to back to back and back
After the first one, I’m already wiped out. I say we call it a season and go and get some snow cones.
Don't trade Dudley!
I hope Linsanity ends tonight.
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
looking more like last year was amare's last good one
Just remember what ol' Jack Burton does when the earth quakes, and the poison arrows fall from the sky, and the pillars of Heaven shake. Yeah, Jack Burton just looks that big ol' storm right square in the eye and he says, "Give me your best shot, pal. I can take it."
~Jack Burton, "Big Trouble in Little China"
by u_must_chill on Feb 14, 2012 5:46 PM MST up reply actions
In other news, Shannon Brown is unhappy at his playing time.
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
well, we're unhappy with his general shittiness
so it’s a two-way street.
Just remember what ol' Jack Burton does when the earth quakes, and the poison arrows fall from the sky, and the pillars of Heaven shake. Yeah, Jack Burton just looks that big ol' storm right square in the eye and he says, "Give me your best shot, pal. I can take it."
~Jack Burton, "Big Trouble in Little China"
by u_must_chill on Feb 14, 2012 5:40 PM MST up reply actions 1 recs
He's better than Frye.
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
When Shannon Brown leads the league in 3 point percentage and makes for an entire season, as Frye has)
THEN he gets to bitch about playing time.
"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
"In the long run the pessimist may be proved right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip."
Frye has never done that though
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
You're right. He was only 4th in makes and seventh in percentage -
although nobody ahead of him (except for Dudley) played nearly as many games. So yeah, I guess it doesn’t count for anything.
Know who made the most three’s in the NBA in 2009-10?
Aaron Brooks
Who stole the sarcasm font?
"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
"In the long run the pessimist may be proved right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip."
Yes, I was going to say the part about Brooks
we could use him about now.
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
I actually did laugh out loud at that one
Carter having a glazed-eyes contest with Boris Diaw. Carter's winning, but Diaw might respond by eating his eyes.
Did you hear that somewhere?
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
Coro
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
A tweet?
Or an article?
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
I was just about to type that
Oh godddddddd
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
There's a positive to this
I just decided that if we get blown out early, I go to sleep before the 2nd half, so maybe I get to sleep a bit :P
Raptors are going to beat the Knicks, and Lin is shooting 40 %
Lin-sanity already cooling down. He has 10 assists though.
"I don't lift weights because they are heavy, and I don't run because it makes me tired." - Charles Barkley
No game thread?
hrmmmmm
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
:(
NBA Blog: www.nbagirl.tumblr.com
Non-NBA Blog: www.reallycoolshenans.tumblr.com
Follow me on Twitter: @PhxSunsGirl84
"Great things come to those who work."
by Dragic_is_Magic on Feb 14, 2012 7:09 PM MST up reply actions
This isn't the first time.
You guys just have to blow up the game preview.
And I’m currently downloading Rocket Science, DiM! My internet’s been crappy the last couple of days so it’s been slow. But hopefully it will be done by tomorrow. Then I’ll let you know what I think :)
Just because Steve Nash has that "dirty hipster" look doesn't mean he's in need of a shower. Steve Nash bathes in the tears of his victims on a nightly basis.
Mark of a Beast, baby. Mark of a Beast.
Nash and Hill out = bad. But...
Skyrim or MW3? I got in an argument with a person I know. I need to see who is right.
I rock so get used to it.
Lots of games
> MW3
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
Thank you. MW3 is for wimps, while Skyrim is for not wimps.
I rock so get used to it.
by Colton Dodson on Feb 14, 2012 7:14 PM MST up reply actions
MW2 > MW3.
Just because Steve Nash has that "dirty hipster" look doesn't mean he's in need of a shower. Steve Nash bathes in the tears of his victims on a nightly basis.
Mark of a Beast, baby. Mark of a Beast.
Damn I love Denver
They have Cartman on the intercom before the game.
“RESPECT OUR AUTHORITY” hahahahahahahaha
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
And yes
We shall turn this into game thread!
"If Gortat pulls off a real Dream Shake in-game this year I will shave my head.
Mark my words." Piotr Szczesniak 12/12/11 2:12 PM
Cardinals, Suns, D-backs for life!
Sorry for the late game thread.
It’s up now.
Blogging Suns basketball for Bright Side of the Sun from California wine country.
Twitter: @EastBayRaymundo
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