Unity from mutiny.

The Nuggets, on the brink of collapse in December, are the surprise of the first half

Are the Nuggets for real? Can a team lose by 38 points to the Jazz in Utah the day before Thanksgiving--a Jazz team playing without Karl Malone--and talk about making the playoffs for the first time in six seasons?

Can a team tell its high-strung coach (and president) to take his practice and shove it?

The Nuggets did. And more. After that drubbing in Salt Lake City, after a four-game losing streak in December turned into the now-infamous practice boycott that led to a fifth consecutive loss, the Nuggets went on a tear. Coach Dan Issel, whose constant yelling and prodding irritated his players to the point they were ready to give up on him, has a vote of confidence from new team owner Stan Kroenke and the newfound respect of his players.

The Nuggets are winning, and winning a lot. Their record at the halfway mark (24,17) was their best since 1987-88. That team also started 24-17 and made it to the Western Conference final. A repeat of that success might not be a realistic goal this season, but winning 15 of 19 games after the uprising didn't seem like a realistic goal in December.

Denver is winning believers at every stop. Jazz coach Jerry Sloan says the Nuggets should not be content to hope for a No. 8 seed in the playoffs. Grizzlies coach Sidney Lowe, whose team has lost to Denver three times this season, gushes about the Nuggets.

"They are focused on being the best team in the West," Lowe says. "They are very unselfish. They're tough, athletic. I think these guys are on a mission, and I predict these guys are going to go deep, deep into the playoffs. Very deep.