Five things the Nuggets must do to avoid repeat of '05

Chris Tomasson, Rocky Mountain News

Published April 25, 2007 at midnight

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Five things the Nuggets must do to avoid a repeat of the 2005 series against the Spurs, when Denver won Game 1 in San Antonio, then lost the next four.

1 Take it one game at a time. Coach George Karl, below, has warned the team about being too happy, which was the case when the Spurs blew out the Nuggets in Game 2 in 2005, then closed the series with three more wins. For the most part, the Nuggets have stayed grounded, although Marcus Camby talked freely Tuesday about trying to win the title and repeat next season.

2 Get more production from the bench. In Game 1, Nuggets’ reserves were outscored 36-6. The Nuggets can’t bring an All-Star off the bench, as San Antonio does with Manu Ginobili, but Linas Kleiza (43) and J.R. Smith (1) have the ability to get hot from the outside.

3 Continue to play physical defense. Specifically, Nene, below, can’t back down from Tim Duncan. The Spurs’ forward figures to come out fired up after Nene held him in check in Game 1. Nene can’t think Duncan’s star-studded résumé gives him any entitlement.

4 Have at least one of their stars come out hot. Allen Iverson

shot 0-of-6 in the first quarter of Game 1, but Carmelo Anthony, below, made up for it by going 5-of-5. If neither Iverson nor Anthony gets hot early, the Spurs could get the crowd into the game and take off.

5 Get their fast break in gear. The Nuggets can’t count on the Spurs missing layups and shooting 42 percent as in Game 1, when Duncan, below right, missed his first eight shots. The Nuggets must take advantage of the ability of Iverson, below, to penetrate and get easy baskets and more than the three fast-break points they managed in Game 1.

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