Johan Petro

Tip-off on the 2009-2010 season is less than a week away, and Johan Petro and the Denver Nuggets are preparing to make their move in the Western Conference.

After being eliminated in the Western Conference Finals by the Los Angeles Lakers last season, the Nuggets are ready to take the next step toward a championship.

Johan played big against Partizan Belgrade (Getty Images).

Denver is 3-3 this preseason, with all three wins coming at home in the Pepsi Center, where the Nuggets have one of the best home-court advantages in the league.

JP has spent the preseason rounding into form and is averaging over 14 minutes per game off the bench. His best games came back-to-back to start the preseason.

He started the exhibition schedule off hot with a near double-double in a loss to the Utah Jazz. Johan followed up his good start with another strong performance as the Denver knocked of Partizan Belgrade, a Yugoslavian team.

Nate Timmons of the Nuggets blog Denver Stiffs was at that game and posted a report on JP:

“I didn’t realize how big Petro is. He is a large man … not only tall, but he has some weight to him. Petro is pretty fascinating because he possesses speed and good athleticism for his size. He continues to show some promise as he had a nice up and under move where he finished strong with a nice dunk.”

Always in need of big-man depth, the Nuggets will rely on Johan to fill that role again this season and contribute points and minutes in the hunt for the Western Conference title.

The Nuggets finish the preseason with two games against the World Champion Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday and Friday. Thursday’s game is in Anaheim and Friday’s in San Diego.

The regular season tips next Wednesday when Denver hosts the Utah Jazz at 8:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast nationwide on ESPN.

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Denver 102, Partizan 70 (Denver Stiffs, October 4, 2009)
http://www.denverstiffs.com/2009/10/4/1068580/recap-denver-102-partizan-70