Carmelo Anthony is a world-wide superstar who thrives in big games under the brightest lights, but will he bring the Nuggets to the Finals
- Image via Wikipedia
One game is a gimme against one of the league’s worst teams, the other is a matchup against an Eastern Conference powerhouse. Both are nationally-televised showcases wherein the Nuggets will endeavor to prove that they are the team to beat in the West.
Tonight, Denver will travel to Madison Square Garden where Carmelo Anthony has thrived throughout his career. We know Melo is no stranger to the big stage.
Anthony won a National Championship with Syracuse in his only NCAA season, led Team USA to a Gold Medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics, and helped drive the Nuggets to the Western Conference Finals against Los Angeles in 2009. Carmelo will also marry his long-time fiancé La La Vasquez in New York City this summer.
Also at stake is a sort of vacuum in the East’s perception of the Western Conference.
Much has been made in the national media about the Lakers’ fall from grace. Their shaky play on the road (especially against the West’s better clubs) along with the recent injury of Andrew Bynum have contributed to the widely-held notion that Los Angeles will enter the playoffs at half-speed.
The Dallas Mavericks lost at home to these very Knicks, giving up a 20+ point second half lead. The Mavs showed their true colors after weeks of speculation that they were the new Team to Beat in the West. The East can only dedicate so much coverage to the Cavaliers & Magic, and Dallas proved itself unworthy of the national spotlight.
Enter the Nuggets, who have struggled defensively without Kenyon Martin, but continue to compete in every single game from their starting lineup to the depths of their bench. There are even a couple dozen East Coast sportswriters who have stroked the name ‘Johan Petro’ into a handful of articles.
When Petro is getting press, you know the Nuggets have hit the Big Time.
Tonight’s game against the Knicks of New York will take place in an arena filled with cynics who would just as soon root for a 40-point performance from Carmelo as a win from their beleaguered team. The Press Box will be packed with writers from the country’s biggest publications from Chicago to NYC. Fans and writers alike will be taking a careful measurement of these Nuggets with one question in mind: do they have what it takes to win an NBA Championship?
Should the Knicks put up a fight, expect Denver to battle ferociously for the respect that they have worked to gain over the last two years.  (Nobody expects the Knickerbockers to truly challenge the Nuggets, but stranger things have happened.) This NBA TV feature is expected to be a showcase of offensive talent, and Melo, JR “Swish†& The General will show up with the attitude that the Denver Nuggets are the West’s best.
Tomorrow night in Boston, Denver will face a true test of its Championship mettle.
Boston has struggled in the latter half of the season to find consistency, but they are still the 2008 NBA Championship team that scorched the Lakers in the Finals. Or rather, the Celtics are still capable of playing at that level, and after being humiliated in Denver last month they should be especially motivated to bring the hammer at home.
ESPN will showcase this matchup ahead of the Lakers’ visit to San Antonio later in the evening, and the Nuggets would do well to forget any fatigue associated with the back-to-back road games.
The NBA is, to a certain point, a popularity contest. Favorable feelings from a nation-wide audience late in the regular season generate favorable calls from officials in the playoffs. (No joke, just look at Miami’s 2006 run to the Championship on the wings of about a thousand free throws by Dwyane Wade and a “let him play†attitude towards Shaquille O’Neil.) Denver has prolific scorers, a sea of tattoos, and all the charisma an NBA Champion needs.
The Nuggets will be featured on either NBA TV, ESPN or TNT in 7 of their remaining 12 games, and that kind of exposure creates a unique opportunity for Denver to get the fans on their side. A strong showing to finish the season is obviously crucial in a Western Conference playoff field separated by just 5 games from the #2 to the #8. Just as important is the spotlight afforded a team that has a chance to showcase its unique personality and offensive flair for all of NBA Nation to see.
