Nuggets have on-off switch

To the alarmingly lengthy list of weapons that title contenders possess and the Timberwolves lack, let's add one more: Afterburners.

That's how it looked courtside, anyway. The Nuggets seemed entirely focused on running their offense and shutting down the Wolves -- for the last 15 minutes or so. Until then? I'd swear I saw Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony stifling yawns.

Perhaps more than most teams, the Nuggets seem content to turn it on and off, to exert the energy necessary to win, but not a whole lot more if they can help it. Maybe they're a legitimate threat to the Lakers in the West -- on paper, it's an intriguing debate -- but you have to wonder how prepared they are to knock themselves out every night come May.

That's why a comment from J.R. Smith after the game sounded so intriguing. With George Karl home in Denver due to his cancer treatments, Adrian Dantley coached the team Wednesday night. Here's Smith's take on their differences: "Totally different. I think George has more control of the game when he's coaching. When A.D.'s coaching, I think he gives us our freedom to really do what we want to do out there."

A few more impressions from the Wolves' 32nd straight day without a homecourt victory:

-- The loss seemed to hit the Wolves -- or Al Jefferson and Kevin Love, anyway -- harder than most, probably because Minnesota played relatively well for almost three quarters. After Monday's turnover-fest, the Wolves had committed just five mistakes midway through the third quarter. They weren't making many shots, but they were at least getting open ones. Carmelo Anthony, who had scored 30 points in three straight games, was being held in check. Minnesota opened an eight-point lead at one point, and while the Nuggets may have been simply biding their time, the Wolves were clearly encouraged to be leading against an elite opponent.

Then came that 22-4 Denver run, crushing the spirits of the home team. Even when they managed to rally to within six with five minutes to go, there never seemed much reason to believe that Minnesota could pull it off.

That wasn't a particularly popular opinion among his players.

"Coaches see things differently than players. I don't think that's what it was," Jefferson said glumly. "I think they went small, and we stayed big, and that's what did it."

As I wrote in the game story, Kevin Love was unhappy that he no longer feels certain of his place in the offense.

"It's easy to run -- you've got your spots," Love said of the triangle. "It's just hard to figure out when you're going to get the ball and when you're get good chances to score, and what exactly (Rambis) wants."

When asked if the coaching staff keeps explaining the offense, Love added, "They talk to us. Sometimes it'll matriculate and sometimes it doesn't. That's just kind of the way of the world. My mom promised me some presents at Christmas and sometimes I didn't get them. That's kind of the way I look at it."

-- Speaking of Love, both player and coach said there are no lingering hard feelings over his fourth-quarter benching on Monday. Love finished with a season-low 12 minutes against Dallas, and Rambis said after the game that the second-year center "didn't look like he had any energy to play in stretches."

On Wednesday, Love said he was disappointed not to play more, but agreed he was having a bad game. "The coach has to make those decisions, and I'm fine with that," Love said.

Rambis emphasized that the move wasn't punishment, but coaching. "I have no problem with Kevin. We've been very consistent: When players play well, they get time," the coach said. "If they don't and someone in front of them is playing better, those are the guys who are going to get the time."

Love is averaging only 26.6 minutes since Rambis moved him to the bench in late January, five fewer than he received while a starter. But Rambis intends for Love to get 30 minutes a night. "That's my vision of who he is," Rambis said. "But it has to be assessed on a game-to-game basis."

-- Karl underwent surgery on Monday to insert a feeding tube into his stomach, part of his six-week aggressive radiation and chemotherapy treatment for neck and throat cancer. The procedure prevented the Nuggets' coach -- seventh all-time in coaching victories -- from traveling to Minneapolis, but he hopes to rejoin the team in New Orleans on Friday for the second game of a four-game road trip.

Rambis' experience leading the Lakers on the occasions when Phil Jackson missed a game was similar. "(If) you try to change things, you try to put your imprint on it, the players don't feel comfortable," Rambis said. "They know their roles, they know their system. They know each other. The best thing you can do is leave it alone."

-- Wayne Ellington and Nathan Juwai both returned to action after missing three games with sprained ankles. Ellington seemed to move OK, but missed six of his eight shots and scored six points. Ryan Gomes, who stayed home from practice Tuesday with a stomach virus, started as usual. Darko Milicic injured a finger on his right hand during the fourth quarter and went to the locker room to have it taped. The injury isn't considered serious.

-- If you haven't seen the highlight of the year, it's worth going to nba.com and looking up the video from tonight's game. J.R. Smith's fourth-quarter 360-degree dunk -- he spun completely around not for showmanship, but to catch Billups' errant pass -- may be the most amazing play I've ever seen in an NBA game.

-- As longtime referee Joey Crawford stood around during a timeout, he chatted with a fan who was drinking a beer. "I've been drinking MGD 64 lately, those 64-calorie beers," Crawford told the fan. Then, gesturing as though modeling his svelte form, he added, "See what they're doing for me?"