{"id":26841,"date":"2019-11-05T14:24:55","date_gmt":"2019-11-05T19:24:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=26841"},"modified":"2019-11-05T14:24:55","modified_gmt":"2019-11-05T19:24:55","slug":"denver-nuggets-sleeping-giants-of-the-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2019\/11\/05\/denver-nuggets-sleeping-giants-of-the-west\/","title":{"rendered":"Denver Nuggets: Sleeping Giants of the West"},"content":{"rendered":"

Before the dawn of the season,\u00a0 a handful of teams seemingly fit as championship-worthy contenders. Despite slow starts from some of the aforementioned franchises, the glimmer of hope stood firm. However, if a Western Conference falls behind too soon, it’s a challenging task to get back in the race. Although the Denver Nuggets<\/a>, sleeping giants out west,\u00a0 aren’t a convincing team so far.<\/p>\n

The NBA’s Sleeping Giant: The Denver Nuggets<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Despite a 4-2 record, Nikola Jokic’s<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0public criticism on his doughy physique and apathetic efforts are dominating the talks surrounding the Denver Nuggets. The team soiled chances to defeat the Dallas Mavericks<\/a> in Denver. Nikola Jokic, even with a silent triple-double, didn’t play like a superstar, quite frankly.<\/p>\n

On a more embarrassing note, the eight-seed bubble team New Orleans Pelicans<\/a> beat the Nuggets by double-digits. The 4-2 record, though respectable, is deceptive. Although the Nuggets survived the young-and-rising Suns, it wasn’t in a convincing manner. Offensively, Denver showcased a stinker. The .501 true shooting percentage from the battle with the Suns still rings in an Amber alert like tone.<\/p>\n

Although the season is in its infancy, the lack of drive is reaching Denver Nugget’s head coach Mike Malone’s threshold of patience.<\/p>\n

“We’re a great talk team. We can talk before the season starts about all the things we want to accomplish, and we want to be a contending team, It’s all bulls—. Don’t tell me about it, show me. And right now we’ve got a lot of guys that aren’t showing me much.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Despite a winning record, for a team with championship aspirations, fumbling into a 4-2 isn’t worthy of contender status. Perhaps there is more than what meets the eye. However, even if the perception is deceiving, it’s all we have to go by at the moment. Furthermore, Malone knows his team more than any blogger or reporter, so this angry yet inspirational quote speaks volumes.<\/p>\n

Everyone’s effort isn’t built from the same template. Some, such as NBA great Shaquille O’Neal<\/a><\/strong>, dominated without much push. Meanwhile, other players treat every possession like it’s their last. Jokic is a hybrid of the two, with a little less of a burst than Shaq. In the contest versus the Orlando Magic<\/a>, Jokic let out a shining moment the Nuggets have missed this season.<\/p>\n

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Jokic connects on the high-arcing fadeaway! #MileHighBasketball<\/a> <\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa: @NBATV<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/rxV81YH6HO<\/a><\/p>\n

— NBA (@NBA) November 3, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n