With a win over the New Jersey Nets, the Nuggets are now 7-4. Nene seems to finally be back to 100%. Ty Lawson and Danilo Gallinari suffered ankle injuries in recent games but both seem to be minor. With that being said, here are three thoughts from week three.
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1. Danilo Gallinari is finally showing signs of the scoring threat that many thought he would be.
When Gallinari was drafted with the 6th overall pick in 2008, many thought he would become a solid scorer based on his sharp shooting. But the fourth year man from Italy has been getting the job done despite getting off to a terrible shooting start from long range. Heading into last Friday's road game against New Orleans, Gallinari was only 4-28 from 3-point land and was still able to average 14 points per game. However, in his last five games Gallinari has shot 12-25 from behind the arc and as a result is averaging nearly 23 points per game. It's going to be tough for Gallinari to continue to shoot as well as he had in his last five games, but if he can manage to shoot around his career average of 37% from the three point line and combine it with his ability to score off the dribble and get to the line, Gallinari could end up with a breakout season.
2. Home certainly has been sweet for the Nuggets.
Over the last couple of years, the Nuggets have been among the best at defending their own court. Denver is 5-1 at home and have an average differential of +11. Whether it is the altitude, the crowd or simply the luxury of being home, Denver has been fantastic at the Pepsi Center. Saying that, Denver's ability to win at home will certainly be challenged in the upcoming weeks as the Nuggets will host the Heat (8-3), Jazz (6-4), Raptors (4-7), Clippers (5-3) and the Lakers (8-4).
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3. Al Harrington is having quite the impact off the bench.
If I were to cast my vote for Sixth Man of the Year now, Harrington would be second to Oklahoma City's James Harden. And being second to Harden is certainly no insult. Harrington has provided instant offense off the bench and has really become the second group's biggest scoring threat. Harrington is averaging 14.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game in less than 25 minutes. Harrington is also shooting a ridiculous 55.3 from the field. Denver was labeled one of the deepest teams at the end of last season. The label was removed when Wilson Chandler, Kenyon Martin, and J.R. Smith decided to go play in China thus not allowing them to return until March. With Harrington really stepping up this season, as well as Andre Miller, Rudy Fernandez and Corey Brewer who were all acquired in the off season getting more and more comfortable in a Denver, the Nuggets are once again looking like of the deepest teams in the league. This can only be a huge advantage with a shorter and more compact schedule.
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