What could Nuggets do with No. 2 Western Conference seed?

Kiz: Not to suggest Nuggets fans are worrywarts and fear Denver will blow the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference to James Harden and the Houston Rockets down the stretch, but I get the sense folks are looking at the standings through the passenger-side mirror of the family SUV: Objects in mirror are closer than they appear. C’mon, now. Get a grip, people. Should we really fear the Beard like he’s Sasquatch? Singer: The Nuggets should absolutely fear the Beard, and here’s why. Including the Boston game, Denver finishes its schedule with nine of its last 14 games on the road and several against Western Conference powers. I’ll say the Nuggets need to go 8-6 the rest of the way to lock up the No. 2 seed. That would put them at 54 wins. And with only 12 games left on their schedule, the Rockets, who trail the Nuggets by three games in the standings, would have very little room for error. Kiz: OK, I get it. The schedule does Denver no favors. Meanwhile, the Beard and Houston get to feast on cupcakes like Atlanta and the Knicks, while facing only five playoff teams among their final dozen games. But when I ask Nikola Jokic or Jamal Murray if they check the standings on a daily basis, the answer is a firm: No! Singer: When I canvassed various people inside the organization during the most recent homestand, few even knew the magic-number scenarios! (Entering play Monday, the Nuggets needed a win or a Kings loss to clinch the first playoff berth of the Michael Malone era). My read is that the situation is so fluid with potential matchups that it’s almost a distraction to worry about it on a daily basis. I also think the last two seasons, when they missed the playoffs by a game each year, have had a scarring effect on this team’s psyche. Even though they’ve given themselves some leeway, Malone most certainly doesn’t want his team to look up and relax. Kiz: In my mind, it’s essential the Nuggets earn the No. 2 seed if they want to make a deep playoff run. Why? I can see this team surviving a seven-game series against the Rockets, but only if Denver has home-court advantage. So how many victories do the Nuggets need to clinch the 2? I say 54, too. Won’t be easy, but it’s doable. Might take a victory vs. Minnesota on the final night of regular season to get-r done. Singer: Hey, look at that! We agree. At least on the 54 wins needed. The seeding has become the defining story line for the final stretch of the regular season. The Nuggets need home-court advantage at least through the first two rounds to even consider making the conference finals. But their focus should be on catching Golden State for the No. 1 seed. Sure, it gives you home-court advantage until the finals, but more important, if Denver snags the No. 1 seed, that pinches the Warriors and Rockets into the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds, respectively. That means the Nuggets would avoid those two behemoths for as long as possible. This is the macro, long-term approach to the seedings. There is also a firstround angle. Of the three teams Denver could face, Utah would be the most dangerous matchup. The Spurs, the Jazz and the Clippers (currently Nos. 6-8) will all be jockeying until the end of the season to avoid being steamrolled by the Warriors or Rockets in the first round. You can be sure all three of those teams would much rather face the Nuggets.