Preview: Nuggets-Nets
By Andrew Dill
Feb 13, 2013; New York, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets shooting guard Joe Johnson (7) drives the lane past Denver Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson (3) and small forward Jordan Hamilton (1) during the third quarter at Barclays Center. Nets won 119-108. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports
The red-hot Denver Nuggets that are on a six-game win streak, will play the Brooklyn Nets tonight at the Barclays Center. The Nets are off to a rough-start, starting the season 5-12 and trying to find their identity. Brooklyn is a banged up team and might be without point guard Deron Williams. Forwards Paul Pierce and Andrei Kirilenko, and shooting guard Jason Terry will be sidelined with injuries. Pierce will be out 2-4 with a fractured hand, leaving the Nets to start Alan Anderson. Denver has two injuries still in Danilo Gallinari and JaVale McGee.
Denver’s last ten games: (8-2): Denver has recovered from a dismal 0-3 start, rising back up with the addition of Wilson Chandler. Having won eight of their last ten, the team is starting to gel into Brian Shaw‘s half-court styled offense.
Brooklyn’s last ten games: (3-7): Brooklyn is struggling to find their identity as a team and offensively. Under first-year head coach Jason Kidd, this Nets team is ranked 22nd in points-per-game at 95.8, and 23rd in assists per game at 20. They will have their hands full with a very quick and versatile Nuggets offense.
Brooklyn Nets will need to be efficient offensively against this Denver Nuggets club. Ty Lawson and Nate Robinson are both dangerous threats with speed and can shoot from anywhere on the court. The Nets need to be careful with the ball, as they cannot let Denver get out on transition; where they are one of the best teams that excel in the open court.
X-Factor:
Denver: The Bench: They have the 2nd best bench in the NBA in terms of points. They are averaging 40.9 points per game in an 18 minute clip. They are led by Nate Robinson, Darrell Arthur, Timofey Mozgov, Jordan Hamilton, and the vet Andre Miller.
Brooklyn: Brook Lopez: Lopez has only played in ten games so far this season, but if hes on, the team feeds off of him. In his limited action, Lopez is averaging 20.0 points per game, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game. Look for him to have the advantage on Timofey Mozgov and J.J. Hickson.
Projected Starting Line-Ups:
Denver:
PG – Ty Lawson
SG – Randy Foye
SF – Wilson Chandler
PF – Kenneth Faried
C – J.J. Hickson
Brooklyn Nets:
PG – Tyshawn Taylor
SG – Joe Johnson
SF – Alan Anderson
PF – Kevin Garnett
C – Brook Lopez
Tip-off is set for 7:30 pm eastern time & 5:30 pm mountain time.