The Denver Nuggets are on a Rocky Mountain high. Can Chauncey Billups lead the Denver Nuggets to an NBA Title ?
The Denver Nuggets are the feel-good story of this NBA postseason. With limited success in recent years, no one gave them much of a chance, instead preferring to focus on an anticipated Kobe Bryant – Lebron James matchup in the NBA Finals. With a 3-1 series victory over the Dallas Mavericks, the Nuggets advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1995.
Although the Nuggets have never won a NBA Championship, they do have a history with such NBA greats as Hall of Famers David Thompson and Dan Issel. But it’s been a long time since they been considered a title contender. Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle called the Nuggets “a legitimate championship-caliber team”. “The Denver Nuggets are going to win the whole thing,” said Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. “This is the year of the Nuggets.”
The next round against the Los Angeles Lakers should be very exciting. The Nuggets are playing excellent basketball right now and have the ability to score a lot of points in a hurry if the opposition gets complacent. Additionally, their defense could give Lakers big-man Pau Gaisol trouble. As for Kobe Bryant, you know he’s going to score a ton of points – you can only hope to contain him.
In recent years, the Nuggets have had talent with the likes of Carmelo Anthony, Nene and Kenyon Martin and a well-respected head coach in George Karl but have been considered underachievers. Each of the last five years, they’ve been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. Most importantly, they’ve lacked that one person who can provide leadership and take them to the next level.
Enter Chauncey Billups … Billups, a Denver native who played collegiately at the University of Colorado, was acquired from the Detroit Pistons prior to the start of this season in a trade for Allen Iverson. Billups enjoyed great success in Detroit, leading the Pistons to the 2004 NBA Championship and being named Finals MVP. Incredibly, this will be Billups’ seventh consecutive conference finals.
But even with his success in Detroit, no one expected what his presence would do for the Nuggets. You can use whatever analogy you want, but the bottom line is that Billups’ presence has made everyone less selfish and taught them to play as a team. If you talk with athletes who’ve one a championship in any sport, one of the recurring themes is unselfishness and teamwork. In this day of egos and skyrocketing salaries, it can be difficult to get a bunch of superstars to be on the same page. When that occurs, teams have a chance to accomplish something special, which is what we’re seeing with the Nuggets.
I don’t know whether the Nuggets can beat the Lakers and advance to the NBA Finals, but I think they stand a very good chance given their play thus far in the playoffs. The Nuggets need to win each of their home games – they’ve won 16 in a row at the Pepsi Center – and can only hope to steal one in Los Angeles – they’re 2-19 overall at the Staples Center.
Regardless of the outcome, it’s been a very entertaining season for Nuggets fans and (hopefully) a reawakening of a franchise that had gone dormant.
Contact Chauncey Billups booking agent here for a speaker appearance or endorsement.
