Denver Nuggets: Turnovers and “soft” play stifled offense
Denver Nuggets: Assessing the wing rotation against the Cavs
Jeff Green
Jeff Green is such a great utility player to have and is a perfect fit in this Denver Nuggets system. I love the veteran presence and energy he brings the team when he hits the floor. His ability to do everything well on both ends of the floor will allow the team to continue to play him in big minutes.
Whether he’s clamping up athletic wings and powerful forwards, knocking down shots, or attacking the rim off the dribble, Uncle Jeff is always doing the little things and always seems to be playing winning basketball.
He is a strong post defender and he made life for the 7’1″ Mobley difficult by getting his hands in when going up for shots around the rim.
Green’s strong and never allows any easy looks in the paint. He even almost posterized the rookie off the short pick-and-roll with Campazzo but couldn’t get the dunk to fall.
While he did not shoot the ball well, he was confident and forced the defense to come out and contest him. When he realized his shot was not falling, he worked to attack the basket and get to the line or look for his shots in the midrange. I hope Aaron Gordon is soaking up everything he can from him because he could begin to do all of the little things that Jeff does and become an even more effective player.
Jeff Green is playing a ton of minutes early in the season, and while he is very productive and getting more comfortable with the system, I am worried about his overall wear and tear as we move further down the season.
This past season, he was kind of able to hide deep on the bench in Brooklyn and turned it on come playoff time. As a veteran it is likely he will flip the switch come playoff time, but the 35-year old’s health is something to keep an eye on.
Michael Porter Jr.
Michael Porter Jr. had a very poor showing, and I would not be surprised if he was the focal point of Michael Malone’s comments post games about not staying engaged and not giving it his all.
As Malone said to Mike Singer, The Denver Post:
"“We got some guys that are just kind of moping around, jogging around out there, kind of looking sorry for themselves.”"
In the second half, he seemed reluctant to shoot the ball at all and was content sitting in the corner and waiting for the ball to come to him.
In a night where the Denver Nuggets could have used a breakout performance, Porter went 4-14 from the field and finished with a -10, tied for third-worst on the team. He did manage to knock down three out of the team’s nine 3-pointers made.
When he was thrust back into the game with nine minutes remaining down 13, Porter should have demanded the ball and looked for his shot or to operate the pick-and-roll with Jokic. He managed to hit a deep 3-pointer near garbage time, and his next shot from the corner went off the side of the backboard.
The entire team seemed to be inefficient tonight and it is possible they were feeding off each other’s nervous energies. Porter did have some impressive plays, especially on the defensive end coming up with a blocked jump shot in which he used all of his 6’10” frame to get there.
I wish he was a stronger defender in the paint, his length could have disrupted Mobley or Allen when the Cavs went with a ‘Twin Towers’ lineup.
He also displayed some impressive passing skills, including an absolute dime of a one-handed pass while being doubled. He went up for a shot and passed over the defender’s arms in the lane to Jokic for an easy layup.