Guardians of Grail

cheapbag214s · Posted: Sat 8:36, 23 Nov 2013 Post subject: and not just one person

Lawson thinks Denver could beat Miami in playoff series. Okay.
You want your players to be confident entering the playoffs — you don’t want to hear: “Are you high? There is no way we could beat the Thunder in seven games.”But that confidence can lead to some interesting statements.Like Ty Lawson saying not only could the Nuggets reach the NBA finals but could beat the Heat once there. He meant it.Here is the quote via Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports Florida.“I think so,’’ Lawson said when asked if the Nuggets could beat the Heat for the title. “They beat us twice early in the year when we weren’t really in sync. We were still trying to find ourselves. So I feel like if we play them now it would be a better game and we could actually beat them…“Teamwork, and we could throw a lot of people at LeBron (James) and (Dwyane Wade),[url=http://www.panyam.com/]cheap gucci shoes[/url], and not just one person,’’ Lawson said. “We can throw (Andre) Iguodala and (Danilo Gallinari) and Corey Brewer and Wilson (Chandler). You can throw so many people at (them). And then we have so many weapons.’’I know Denver is confident after that 15-game win streak, but… no. Just no.First, the Nuggets would have to get out of the West. I don't see that.Then the Nuggets would want to run with the Heat and teams that do that just can’t keep up the same scoring pace as Miami. Plus, the Nuggets have not had to deal with the kind of defensive pressure the Heat put on teams on the perimeter. Sure, Denver does have Andre Iguodala to take on LeBron James, but do they have role players who can show up four games out of seven at that level.Denver is an interesting playoff team — they play solid defense (it was good defense during the win streak) and they beat you with transition points, balanced team play and depth. Those work great in the regular season but come the playoffs depth matters less as coaches can shorten their rotation (they know there are days off between games). And as teams focus their defense it helps to have that star player who can score and create shots — Lawson is good but he’s not LeBron or Kobe Bryant. Their team is unconventional for playoff success — but can they break the mold?If Denver gets home court in the first round I can see them advancing, but if they draw the Thunder in the second round… I’m not sold that’s a track meet they can win. And I’m not sure they have the discipline the Spurs will certainly bring.