Carmelo Anthony's big night leads Denver Nuggets over Los Angeles Clippers
Even though his future with the Denver Nuggets is uncertain, Carmelo Anthony will continue to play his game no matter what uniform he is wearing. And if he keeps playing like he did last
night, you can be sure the Nuggets will do everything they can to keep him around.
In a monster game in limited minutes, Anthony tallied 30 points, 14 rebounds, nine assists, and three steals in 34 minutes to lead the Nuggets (2-1) to a 100-95 win over the Los Angeles
Clippers (1-4) in pre-season play. Anthony attacked the rim at every opportunity, finishing the game 17-19 from the free-throw line. Arron Afflalo scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds while Nene chipped in with 13 points.
The Nuggets need Anthony now more than ever after being hit hard with an injury bug. Kenyon Martin (left knee), Al Harrington (left foot), and Chris Anderson (right knee) all missed last
night’s game. Denver coach George Karl also sat out Chauncey Billups to give him some rest.
“I don’t know when they’re coming back. We’re hoping to get Al back for the regular season,” Karl said. “We have only three of our five 25-30 minute players, so it’s going to be difficult.
I told my staff that we have 70 minutes (to dole out), and if we started the season today, I don’t know who would be playing those 70 minutes.”
Despite the loss, there is a rare sense of optimism surrounding the Clippers heading into the season, mostly due to the solid play of Blake Griffin and Chris Kaman, their formidable frontcourt
duo. Griffin posted 24 points, 14 rebounds, and four blocks last night while Kaman added 23 points and eight rebounds. Eric Gordon chipped in with 19 points.
Griffin, selected first overall in the NBA Draft two years ago but forced to sit out his first season after undergoing knee surgery, has played well so far in the pre-season and should
be a strong contender for Rookie of the Year. In five pre-season games, Griffin has averaged 15.8 points and 11.5 rebounds.
“He’s a monster out there and he’s a mismatch problem out there,” Clippers point guard Baron Davis said of Griffin. “He’s a guy who plays hard all the time, so he’s going to go out there
and give maximum effort. He’s like that in practice, too. I’m just happy for him and happy to have him out there on the floor.”
The Nuggets appeared to have the game in hand after two free throws by Afflalo put them up 79-61 with just over four minutes to play in the third quarter. But the Clippers opened the fourth
quarter with eight straight points, eventually tying the game at 91 apiece thanks to a three-point play by Davis with just over three minutes to go. With 11.5 seconds left, Afflalo made two more free throws to put Denver up 98-95. Gordon missed a three-pointer
on the next play to end the Clippers’ chances at a miracle comeback.
Despite the loss, Griffin took away some positives from the game.
“We really picked up the energy as a team,” he said. “Baron did a great job at the end of the third quarter, and we really had it going in the fourth. That’s big for us because a lot of
us are new and we’re trying to get used to each other. It’s a lot of fun playing with this group and it’s going to be a fun year.”
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