Warriors win the high-octane wars.

In a battle of two high-octane teams. The "Youngbloods" prevailed as the sixth seeded Golden State Warriors pull off a stunning first round victory against the athletic and tall third seeded Denver Nuggets in six thrilling games to advance to the second round.

 Photos ©NBA

The Nuggets had a great regular season where they finished with a franchise best 57 wins in the season. However, they suffered a big loss before the start of the playoffs when Danilo Gallinari suffered a season-ending injury. The Nuggets showed their athleticism and their experience advantage over the Warriors all series long. As well as their huge depth with players like Ty Lawson, Andre Iguodala, Kenneth Faried, Wilson Chandler, Andre Miller and JaVale McGee. They won two games in this series, one on a Andre Miller game-winner in Game 1, and pushed the series to a Game 6 with a win in Game 5 at home. Unfortunately, they were unable to take advantage in full of their strengths of their Warriors as one of their best seasons in franchise history ends in bitter defeat.

The Warriors used their high octane offense to their advantage led by their "Splash Brothers" duo of Stephen Curry who is the 4th best scorer in the NBA Playoffs and Klay Thompson. They also withstand the loss of David Lee for most of the series after he suffered an injury in Game 1. Lee, came back to play a few minutes in Game 6. Outside of Curry, the Warriors got big contributions from Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes, Carl Landry, Jarrett Jack and Draymond Green throughout the series. They won all three home games as well as Game 2 in Denver. Now these Warriors from the Bay Area are ready to bring their all on to the next round.

The Warriors will now face the second seeded San Antonio Spurs in the second round who have been resting since their sweep of the Lakers in the first round.

As for the Nuggets, they suffered another first round exit. Now it's a matter of how will they improve come next season, and could we see some changes in personnel along the way? That we will have to see as their off-season begins now.

Now here are the scores from all games of the series:

GAME 1 @ Denver: Warriors 95-97 Nuggets

Warriors leaders:

Points: Thompson 22, Curry 19, Landry 14

Rebounds: Bogut 12, Lee 12, Jack 8

Assists: Jack 10, Curry 9, Bogut 3

Nuggets leaders:

Points: Miller 28, Lawson 12, Chandler 11, Fournier 11

Rebounds: Chandler 13, Iguodala 10, Koufos 7

Assists: Miller 5, Iguodala 5, Lawson 4

GAME 2 @ Denver: Warriors 131-117 Nuggets

Warriors leaders:
Points: Curry 30, Jack 26, Barnes 24

Rebounds: Bogut 8, Barnes 6, Curry 5

Assists: Curry 13, Jack 7, Thompson 2, Barnes 2

Nuggets leaders:

Points: Lawson 19, Brewer 19, Iguodala 18, Miller 18

Rebounds: Chandler 6, Miller 5, Iguodala 4

Assists: Lawson 12, Iguodala 7, Miller 5

GAME 3 @ Golden State: Nuggets 108-110 Warriors

Nuggets leaders:

Points: Lawson 35, Brewer 16, Faried 15

Rebounds: Chandler 9, Faried 7, Iguodala 5

Assists: Lawson 10, Iguodala 5, Miller 4

Warriors leaders:

Points: Curry 29, Jack 23, Barnes 19, Landry 19

Rebounds: Bogut 9, Barnes 7, Jack 5, Landry 5, Green 5

Assists: Curry 11, Jack 7

GAME 4 @ Golden State: Nuggets 101-115 Warriors

Nuggets leaders:
Points: Lawson 26, Iguodala 19, Brewer 14

Rebounds: Faried 12, Iguodala 8

Assists: Lawson 6, Chandler 3, Iguodala 2

Warriors leaders:

Points: Curry 31, Jack 21, Landry 17

Rebounds: Green 6, Bogut 5, Jack 5

Assists: Jack 9, Curry 7, Thompson 5

GAME 5 @ Denver: Warriors 100-107 Nuggets

Warriors leaders:

Points: Barnes 23, Jack 20, Thompson 19

Rebounds: Barnes 9, Jack 6, Thompson 6

Assists: Curry 8, Jack 5, Green 3

Nuggets leaders:

Points: Iguodala 25, Lawson 19, Chandler 19
Rebounds: Iguodala 12, Faried 10, McGee 8

Assists: Lawson 10, Iguodala 7, Miller 5

GAME 6 @ Golden State: Nuggets 88-92 Warriors

Nuggets leaders:
Points: Iguodala 24, Lawson 17, Chandler 11, Faried 11

Rebounds: Faried 11, McGee 10, Iguodala 9

Asssists: Iguodala 6, Lawson 6, Chandler 3, Miller 3

Warriors leaders:

Points: Curry 22, Green 16, Bogut 14

Rebounds: Bogut 21, Green 10, Barnes 5, Landry 5, Curry 5

Assists: Curry 8, Jack 4, Bogut 3

Warriors win series 4-2

K-Smoove

Streak-busters: Bobcats snap losing streak. Nuggets snap Clippers win streak at 17. Award winners for December.

The year 2013 has arrived, a brand new year, and streaks came to an end this week across the association. Here are the highlights from Week 10 in the NBA.

Bobcats snap losing streak in Chicago.

Photo ©NBA/Bobcats.com

For the team who had the roughest year in 2012, they ended the year on a high note. As the Charlotte Bobcats snap their 18-game losing streak with a 91-81 victory against the Chicago Bulls at the United Center. The Bobcats with the win, surpass their win total from last season where they finished 7-59 making history as the worst winning percentage in NBA history.

Sophomore guard Kemba Walker led the Bobcats with a great all-around game, 18 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks on 6-13 shooting from the field, Gerald Henderson scored 16 points, while Ramon Sessions and Ben Gordon came off the bench and scored 15 points each. Bismack Biyombo grabbed 11 rebounds.

Luol Deng led the Bulls with a double-double 20 points and 12 rebounds with 4 assists and 3 steals. Carlos Boozer also finished with a double-double 19 points and 14 rebounds. Rip Hamilton scored 11 points.

Bobcats head coach Mike Dunlap has been preaching patience to all the people who are on watch with the team. Who knows in 2013, maybe the Bobcats will make some noise in the East.

Nuggets snap Clippers 17 game win streak.

Photo ©NBA/Nuggets.com

A losing streak came to an end out East, while in the West, a winning streak came to an end, as the Denver Nuggets snap the 17 game winning streak the Los Angeles Clippers held, as well as getting a measure of revenge from their Christmas Day defeat in Los Angeles as they take a 92-78 victory at the Pepsi Center.

Danilo Gallinari led the Nuggets with 17 points and 6 rebounds. Kenneth Faried finished with a double-double 14 points and 11 rebounds. Andre Iguodala and Andre Miller each scored 12 points, Miller also dished out 12 assists, while Igouldala dished 8 assists. JaVale McGee off the bench added 11 points and 7 rebounds including his first career 3 pointer. Corey Brewer scored 10 points.

Blake Griffin and Eric Bledsoe led the Clippers with 12 points each. Griffin added 9 rebounds. DeAndre Jordan finished with a double-double 11 points and 11 rebounds with 3 blocks. Chris Paul added 10 points and 6 assists. Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes each scored 9 points.

The Clippers are now in second place in the Western Conference behind the Oklahoma City Thunder. With a tight race in the West, who knows who will coach in the NBA All-Star Game in Houston for the West? 

Meanwhile in Week 9, Monta Ellis becomes the second Milwaukee Bucks player after Brandon Jennings and the sixth player to receive the Eastern Conference Player of the Week Award this season. While Greivis Vasquez of the New Orleans Hornets becomes the eighth receipient of the Western Conference Player of the Week Award.

LeBron James of the Miami Heat wins his second straight Eastern Conference Player of the Month Award for the month of December, while Chris Paul of the Los Angeles Clippers won the Western Conference Player of the Month in December.

Damian Lillard of the Portland Trail Blazers wins his second straight Western Conference Rookie of the Month in December, while Bradley Beal of the Washington Wizards won the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month in December.

Vinny Del Negro of the Los Angeles Clippers wins the Western Conference Coach of the Month after leading the Clippers to a perfect December (16-0). While Larry Drew of the Atlanta Hawks won in the Eastern Conference after leading the Hawks to a 10-5 record in December and see them competing in the Top 3 of the Eastern Conference.

Now, here are the standings from around the association:

Western Conference:

1. Thunder (25-7), 2. Clippers (27-8), 3. Spurs (27-9), 4. Grizzlies (20-10), 5. Warriors (22-11), 6. Rockets (20-14), 7. Trail Blazers (18-15), 8. Nuggets (19-16), 9. Timberwolves (15-15), 10. Jazz (17-18), 11. Lakers (15-17), 12. Mavericks (13-21), 13. Kings (13-21), 14. Suns (12-22), 15. Hornets (8-25)

Eastern Conference:

1. Heat (22-9), 2. Knicks (23-10), 3. Hawks (20-12), 4. Pacers (20-14), 5. Bulls (18-13), 6. Nets (19-15), 7. Bucks (16-16), 8. Celtics (16-17), 9. 76ers (15-20), 10. Pistons (13-22), 11. Raptors (12-21), 12. Magic (12-21), 13. Bobcats (8-24), 14. Cavaliers (8-27), 15. Wizards (4-27)

Stay tuned as the next NBA weekly blog comes your way next week.

K-Smoove

NBA Christmas 2012: Heat defeat Thunder in Finals rematch. Clippers win 14th straight game. Lakers clicking at home. Rockets and Celtics rout opponents on the road.

On this special edition of my NBA blog, we look back at the games held on Christmas Day in the NBA. There were five games on tap for that day, teams went it in with their special  Christmas jerseys and they put on a show for fans on hand. Let's get to it.

Heat knock off Thunder in Finals rematch.

Photo ©NBA/Heat.com

187 days ago, the Miami Heat cap off their quest for a second championship as they defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 5 of the 2012 NBA Finals in front of their home crowd at the American Airlines Arena. It was also the time when LeBron James fulfilled a dream to become a NBA Champion, as well as a Finals MVP trophy to complement, at the same time proving his haters and critics wrong. On Christmas Day, these two teams meet for the first time this season, and the game proved to be a scoring parade. The Heat would prevail over the Thunder 103-97.

The Heat now lead the Eastern Conference at 19-6, while the Thudner drops to second in the West at 21-6.

James led the Heat with a near triple-double 29 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds with 2 steals on 12-20 shooting from the field. Dwayne Wade added 21 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Mario Chalmers scored 20 points. Chris Bosh added 16 points and 6 rebounds. Also, Mike Miller made a career milestone by reaching the 10,000 point mark all-time in his career.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 33 points and 7 rebounds on 11-21 shooting from the field and 2-4 shooting from 3 point range. Russell Westbrook finished with a double-double 21 points and 11 rebounds. Kevin Martin off the bench and Serge Ibaka each scored 15 points.

Clippers win 14th straight game.

Photo ©NBA/Clippers.com

7 and half hours after the Lakers played a game inside Staples Center, their co-tenants and the hottest team in the NBA came out to begin their own Christmas Day game. The Los Angeles Clippers battled the Denver Nuggets, on the line was a 13 game winning streak, things went well for the Clippers as they defeat the Nuggets 112-100 for their 14th straight victory.

The Clippers now lead the Western Conference at 22-6, while the Nuggets drop to 8th place tie with the Utah Jazz at 15-14.

Jamal Crawford off the bench led the Clippers with 22 points on 9-21 shooting from the field and 3-6 shooting from 3 point range. Matt Barnes added 20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Chris Paul added 14 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds and 3 steals. Blake Griffin added 13 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Lamar Odom grabbed 10 rebounds.

Kosta Koufos led the Nuggets with a double-double 16 points and 10 rebounds on 8-8 shooting from the field. Jordan Hamilton off the bench also scored 16 points with 4 rebounds. Ty Lawson added 15 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds. Andre Miller added 12 points and 6 rebounds.

Lakers defeat the Knicks at Staples.

Photo ©NBA/Lakers.com

The drama around Laker Nation is starting to fade as the Los Angeles Lakers have now found their groove and are now starting to make some ground in the Western Conference as they picked up their 5th straight win and go at .500 at the expense of the New York Knicks at the Staples Center 100-94.

The Lakers are now at 14-14, tied for 10th place with the Portland Trail Blazers. While the Knicks drop to second place in the Eastern Conference at 20-8.

Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 34 points and 5 rebounds on 14-24 shooting from the field. Metta World Peace off the bench added 20 points and 7 rebounds before fouling out in the 4th quarter. Steve Nash finished with a double-double 16 points and 11 assists with 6 rebounds on 7-12 shooting from the field. Dwight Howard also finished with a double-double 14 points and 12 rebounds with 2 steals and 2 blocks. Pau Gasol added 13 points and 6 rebounds.

Carmelo Anthony led the Knicks with 34 points and 7 rebounds on 13-23 shooting from the field. J.R. Smith off the bench added 25 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals on 10-23 shooting from the field. Raymond Felton added 10 points and 6 rebounds.

Rockets blow out Bulls in Chicago.

Photo ©NBA/Rockets.com

The team with the fastest pace in the NBA today have picked up another win by another scoring rampage on another defensive-oriented team, the Houston Rockets led by as many as 35 points, were able to keep their composure despite a late challenge in the fourth quarter as they blew out the Chicago Bulls on their home floor at the United Center 120-97.

The Rockets are in 6th place in the Western Conference at 15-12, while the Bulls lose their lead in the Central Division to the Indiana Pacers at 15-12, in 5th place in the Eastern Conference.

Four Rockets players finished with more than 20 points with James Harden leading the way with 26 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals on 7-13 shooting from the field and 11-13 shooting from the free throw line. Chandler Parsons added 23 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals on 9-15 shooting from the field and 4-5 shooting from 3 point range. Omer Asik who made his return to Chicago finished with a double-double 20 points and 18 rebounds with 3 blocks on 9-13 shooting from the field. Jeremy Lin also finished with a double-double 20 points and 11 assists on 8-12 shooting from the field.

Nate Robinson off the bench led the Bulls with 27 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals on 9-16 shooting from the field. Marco Belinelli added 15 points and 3 assists on 5-10 shooting from the field. Luol Deng added 14 points and 5 rebounds.

Celtics take Atlantic showdown in Brooklyn.

Photo ©NBA/Celtics.com

Defense was the key to this game as the Boston Celtics with their stifling defense take the Atlantic Division showdown against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center 93-76. The Celtics forced the Nets to 20 turnovers and 40% shooting from the field.

With the win, the Celtics tie the Nets for 7th place in the Eastern Conference at 14-13.

Rajon Rondo led the Celtics with 19 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals on 8-16 shooting from the field and 2-2 shooting from 3 point range. Rookie Jared Sullinger off the bench added 16 points and 7 rebounds on 6-7 shooting from the field. Jeff Green scored 15 points. Jason Terry added 11 points and 4 assists. Paul Pierce dished out 10 assists with 8 points while Kevin Garnett grabbed 10 rebounds with 8 points.

Brook Lopez and Gerald Wallace led the Nets with 15 points each. Lopez added 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Wallace added 6 rebounds and 3 steals. Joe Johnson added 12 rebounds and 4 assists. Deron Williams added 10 points and 6 assists.

Watch out for my NBA weekly blog, the last one for 2012 coming out this Sunday.

K-Smoove