With the trade deadline quickly coming up the Nuggets appear willing to move veterans like Anthony Carter, Malik Allen and Johan Petro. Carter could help a team looking for a backup point guard. He has played in 30 games (7 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he is averaging 18.1 minutes, 3.9 points, 2.0 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. Power forward Malik Allen and center Johan Petro are both also on the block. Allen has played in 27 games (2 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he is averaging 7.8 minutes, 2.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Center Johan Petro has played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he is averaging 5.8 minutes, 1.7 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. The Nuggets likely wouldn’t get much for these guys even if they packaged them together.

The Denver Nuggets can breathe a big sigh of relief with the return of their superstar Carmelo Anthony.  Anthony missed the previous 8 games with an ankle injury, and the Nuggets went 5-3 without him.  He returned on Tuesday night and helped the Nuggets blow out the Mavericks 127-91.  It was a good thing the Nuggets blew them out, as Anthony did not have to play a ton of minutes in his first game back.  He played only 30 minutes and went 8-16 from the field for 19 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds.  The Nuggets are not the same team without Carmelo and he can flat out score the ball for them.  He was leading the league in scoring before his injury, but now sits at third (29.5 ppg), only a few tenths of a point behind Kevin Durant (29.7 ppg) and LeBron James (29.8 ppg).  Carmelo is coming back at a key time for the Nuggets, who have some tough teams coming up on their schedule.  Out of the seven games they have left this month they have to face four tough teams in the Spurs, Cavaliers, Celtics, and Lakers.

The Nuggets need small forward Joey Graham to step up while Carmelo Anthony is out of action due to injury. Graham has played in 35 games (14 starts) for the Nuggets and he is averaging 13.0 minutes, 4.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. The Nuggets need him to start helping out more on offense because the Nuggets will likely have some problems scoring without Carmelo Anthony in the starting lineup.

Kenyon Martin has been playing some great basketball for the Denver Nuggets this year, particular in the past month.  With the Nuggets’ star player Carmelo Anthony missing a lot of games lately, the Nuggets have needed some players to step up their scoring.  No Nuggets player has stepped it up as much as Kenyon Martin.  In the past month Anthony has missed 10 games, and in those 10 games Martin has averaged 17.7 points and 10.5 rebounds on 55% shooting.  Martin is only averaging 12 points per game this season, so he has really stepped up his game on the offensive end.  The Nuggets have needed the extra scoring with Carmelo out, since he is leading the league in scoring at 29.7 points per game.  Nuggets fans have to be happy with Martin’s play, as he is finally playing up to his huge contract.

When the Nuggets acquired Afflalo from the Pistons no one was expecting him to be a key player for them in 2009-2010. But, Afflalo is a solid player who does the little things that winners do and I think he learned how to put the team first from Chauncey Billups who he played with in both Detroit and Denver. Afflalo has played in 48 games (41 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he is averaging 9.1 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assist per game. Afflao is shooting pretty well from everywhere on the court this season hitting 49% from the floor, 45.1% from the three point line and 74.1% from the free throw line. As “The Rock” of pro wrestling used to say, “Know your role” and Afflalo seems to making him a perfect fit with the Nuggets.