The new NBA season may only be three weeks old but the Denver Nuggets are already sniffing out a return to the Western Conference finals - and Carmelo Anthony is cooking up a storm.
Anthony, who made it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time last season, is looking more focused than ever and the Toronto Raptors were his latest victims, falling 130-112 on Tuesday night. Melo poured in 32 points on 12-15 shooting, despite suffering with a migraine on game day. Toronto had no answer to him.
J.R. Smith added 29 points off the bench while Chauncey Billups contributed 10 assists.
The victory takes the Nuggets to 8-3. Not bad at all, especially when you factor in a six-game road trip with three back-to-backs and Smith's enforced seven-game suspension.
But what must be most encouraging for Denver head coach George Karl is the way his team have handled their fellow Western Conference powerhouses. The Nuggets opened the season with gutsy wins over the Utah Jazz and the Portland Trail Blazers, the team many tipped to top the tricky NorthWest Division.
Throw in Friday's demolition of the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers and you can see why Karl, Anthony, Billups and company believe the Nuggets can go one step further this season and reach the NBA Finals.
There is a long way to go still on that particular path but, with Anthony's hunger for the big prizes, Denver will take some stopping.
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