Position Number Name
Height Weight
PPG RPG APG FG% (Points, Rebounds, & Assists Per Game, Field Goal Shooting %)
Recent Highlights
NUGGETS PROBABLE STARTERS
Small Forward 15 Carmelo Anthony
6-8, 230
2007-08: 25.5 4.8 5.3 .467
Averaging 27.0 ppg on .526 shooting during the Nuggets five-game win streak, while playing just 33.5 mpg. Is averaging 29.3 ppg in the Nuggets six wins, however just 18.3 ppg in their three losses so far this season.
Power Forward #4 Kenyon Martin
6-9, 240
2007-08: 8.2 4.9 0.4 .493
His average of 3.90 steals per 48 minutes currently ranks fourth among all qualified players in the NBA. Posted a season-high 14 points on .778 (7-9) shooting from the field in 23 minutes vs. Portland on 11/14.
Center #23 Marcus Camby
6-11, 235
2007-08: 9.4 14.5 3.5 .494
Registered his third 20+ rebounding game of the season with 20 boards in 29 minutes vs. New York on 11/17. With his 13 rebounds vs. Portland on 11/14, he has now pulled down 10+ boards in eight of Denver’s nine games.
Shooting Guard #5 Yakhouba Diawara
6-7, 225
2007-08: 5.4 1.9 1.3 .500
With his 10 points vs. New York on 11/17, the Nuggets are now 3-0 when he scores at least 10 points this season. Is 6-1 as a starter so far this season (.857), after going just 8-11 (.421) in his 19 starts as a rookie last season.
Point Guard #3 Allen Iverson
6-0, 165
2007-08: 24.8 3.0 7.6 .460
Joins LeBron James and Baron Davis as the only players to currently rank in the Top-10 in both points and assists. Joins LeBron James and Baron Davis as the only players to currently rank in the Top-10 in both points and assists.
NUGGET'S KEY OFF THE BENCH PLAYER
Shooting Guard #1 J.R. Smith
6-6 220
2007-08: 11.7 2.6 3.7 .446
BULLS PROBABLE STARTERS
Small Forward #44 Adrian Griffin
6-5 230
2007-08: 0.0 2.0 2.0 .000
Note: Has appeared in two games this season, starting one.
Power Forward #5 Andres Nocioni
6-7 225
2007-08: 13.7 5.2 1.0 .422
2007-08: 26.9 mpg, .422 FG%, .268 3FG%, .714 FT% Note: In two starts this season, he is averaging 17.7 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 1.3 apg and 36.7 mpg.
Center #3 Ben Wallace
6-9 240
2007-08: 4.4 6.7 1.4 .356
2007-08: 1.22 bpg, 28.1 mpg, .356 FG%, .364 FT% Note: Set team season-highs with eight OR, six steals and three blocks @ LAC (11/17).
Shooting Guard #7 Ben Gordon
6-3 200
2007-08: 19.8 4.6 2.4 .392
2007-08: 1.33 spg, 37.6 mpg, .392 FG%, .286 3FG%, .909 FT% Note: Last year he became the third Bull (Rose, Brand) to average 20+ PPG since 1997-98
Point Guard #12 Kirk Hinrich
6-3 190
2007-08: 10.1 3.1 5.9 .327
2007-08: 1.22 bpg, 28.1 mpg, .356 FG%, .364 FT% Note: Set team season-highs with eight OR, six steals and three blocks @ LAC (11/17)
BULL'S KEY OFF THE BENCH PLAYER
Forward #24 Tyrus Thomas
6-9 215
2007-08: 7.7 5.6 1.1 .446
TEAM STATS COMPARED: This is the Best Statistical Preview You Will find anywhere!
Chicago Bulls vs. Denver Nuggets
TEAM... W L PCT. HOME ROAD EAST WEST DIV..STREAK
Chicago 2 7..222 1-3. 1-4. 1-4. 1-3. 1-1. Lost 1
Denver. 7 3..700 4-1. 3-2. 4-2. 3-1. 3-0. Won 5
Bulls...............................Nuggets
87.9 Points scored................. 109.0
96.4 Points allowed................. 99.9
.388 FG% own........................ .476
.440 FG% opposition................. .436
.270 3PT% own....................... .374
.378 3PT% opposition................ .335
42.4 Total Rebounds per game.........45.4
44.8 Opposition Total Rebounds/game..45.6
13.6 Offensive Rebounds/game.........11.1
11.1 Opposition Offensive Reb/game...13.5
122 Offensive Rebounds............... 111
260 Defensive Rebounds............... 343
382 Total Rebounds................... 454
8.8 Steals Per Game..................10.4
8.4 Opposition Steals Per Game........9.8
4.7 Blocked Shots Per Game............6.3
5,3 Opposition Blocked Shots/Game.....4.2
19.9 Assists Per Game................24.9
22.8 Opposition Assists Per Game.....23.6
15.4 Turnovers Per Game..............16.6
17.4 Opposition Turnovers Per Game...17.6
1.3 Assist/Turnover Ratio............ 1.5
21.8 Fouls Per Game................. 22.0
22.3 Opposition Fouls Per Game.......24.0
NUGGETS INJURY REPORT
OUT: Anthony Carter suffered a 3rd metacarpal fracture on his right hand and underwent successful surgery on 10/10. He is expected to miss 4-6 weeks
OUT: Chucky Atkins suffered a severe right groin strain at Phoenix on 10/25 and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.
OUT: Nene suffered a torn ulner collateral ligament in his left thumb at Boston on 11/7 and underwent successful surgery on 11/9. He is expected to miss six weeks.
OUT: Steven Hunter underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on 11/16 and is expected to miss six weeks.
BULLS INJURY REPORT:
OUT: Luol Deng (lower back pain)
ON THE AIR:
Tonight’s game will be televised on Altitude with Chris Marlowe calling the action and Scott Hastings providing analysis. The game will also be broadcast on AM 1600, with Jerry Schemmel doing the play-by-play and Jason Kosmicki hosting the studio courtside.
KEY MATCHUPS:
SG Ben Gordon vs. Yakhouba Diawara & J.R. Smith All 3 of these players are erratic scorers, but Smith and especially Diawara might not score much at all. The Bulls need Gordon to score at least 25 to have a good chance in this game. But Smith and especially Diawara have been defending well lately.
SF Adrian Griffin vs. Carmelo Anthony Anthony is overdue for a double double with over 30 points scored, and this is the perfect opportunity for one. It would take a miracle for Griffin to be able to keep up with Anthony defensively, and to get significant scoring of his own.
NUGGET'S KEYS TO VICTORY
Stay cool and confident. I’m going to have to keep including this key until the Nugget's players and coaches maintain their confidence more consistently. They also need to avoid the drama from having criticism and dirty laundry in the newspapers. And they need to avoid ugly off-court incidents. Yeah, I'm looking at you when I say that, J.R. Smith.
Give Camby help on the boards. Melo, Diawara, Najera, and Kleiza have got to give Camby more help than he has been getting on the boards, with Nene out and Kenyon Martin still not 100%. Don't let Camby be the only guy who can stop the Bulls from getting alot of 2nd chance scores.
Go after plenty of 3-point shots. Why not? The Bulls are bad at defending the three, and the Nuggets are trying to develop into being a real 3-point shooting team before our eyes. Keep it going.
BULL'S KEYS TO VICTORY
Double team Melo or Iverson, usually Melo. There is a reason most teams do this. You want to double Melo unless Iverson is killing you, in which case you probably should start doubling Iverson and going for steals off him. Also, you should always try to get Melo into foul trouble, because the reward is huge if you succeed.
Run the offense into the paint as much as possible. The only way anyone besides the Celtics have beaten the Nuggets so far is by attacking inside and getting alot of offensive rebounds and second chance scores. With Nene out, with Melo still relatively lazy in terms of going after defensive rebounds, and with Kenyon Martin not at 100%, the Bulls have a chance to stay in the game by running their offense inside all night. The Bulls They might also get Diawara or even Camby into foul trouble if they do this.
Get alot of steals. The Nuggets can get sloppy, and getting alot of steals is another one of the few ways that the Bulls can stay in this game.
OVERALL PREDICTIONS
For the rest of the season, the Nuggets will look back on this 4 game home stand and realize that it was, by far, the easiest part of their schedule. So the trick is to sweep these relatively easy 4 games by winning this one, so that they have "an extra one in the bank" to cash in when they lose a game at the buzzer in the future, or when they get cheated by a referee. In other words, the Nuggets need to continue to do what they were unable to do last year, which is take care of business at home.
The Bulls are not playing on back to back nights, but they are just about the worst offensive team in the League, and they have now resorted in desperation to making major shifts in their starting lineup and substitutions. Their best offensive player, Luol Deng, will be out with a lower back problem for this game. The Bulls have to plug in a poor-shooting reserve, GF Adrian Griffin, at Deng's small forward position. And, desperate for scoring, including 3-point scoring, the Bulls are starting Andres Nocioni at PF instead of Tyrus Thomas.
So this is yet another game that the Nugget's most likely can not lose unless they blow it.
DON'T TICK ME OFF MORE THAN USUAL GK
You've been ticking me off much less than usual, GK, so I won't even give a warning here. But, I'm warning you, I'll start giving warnings again if you mess up. (Did that count as a warning?)
