With our best players out, the past two games have provided a unique barometer of who can be counted on the current Nuggets roster. Therefore, the tremendous clutch play by Ty Lawson and Arron Affalo is important for one obvious and one not-so-obvious reason:

1) they are clearly Nuggets starters--now and in the future--- as measured by talent, commitment and performance.

2) they provide a stark contrast to five-year NBA veteran J.R. Smith, who has oodles of talent but no consistent commitment to teamwork on offense and is a total liability on defense..As for the other "non-starters"--- that is exactly the right term to describe them--- AC brings the offense to a dead halt and true stiffs Johan Petro and Malik Allen will never contribute to this team.

So we have five starters who are credible and one reserve (Andersen) who can and will play hard, plus the enigma named Balkman.If our owner has any respect for the fans, Its time to "thin the herd" by jettisoning Smith, Carter, Petro and Allen in favor of players who can and will help bring the D back to Denver and, in doing so, command the respect of their teammates, their fans and their opponents. And as a bonus, maybe these new Nuggets will remind George Karl of why its essential to have and enforce standards of professional conduct for himself and his players.