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DENVER -- On the roster, 36-year-old Mike Miller is listed as a shooting guard/small forward. His most essential position is mentor.Its an assignment Miller takes seriously on a young squad still learning how to consistently win.The Denver Nuggets boast a rookie sharpshooter (Jamal Murray), an array of up-and-comers (Emmanuel Mudiay, Nikola Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic) and a few veteran leaders hoping to blend it all together.Being a dinosaur in this league, and seeing everything that I have, Ive been a part of really talented teams that have won 23 games. Ive been a part of talented teams that have won championships, said Miller, who agreed to a two-year deal in July. Whats the difference? To me, its the culture and having that understanding in the locker room where you can hold guys accountable. Those are things you have to start developing.These days, the Nuggets are all about development. That begins with Mudiay, a 20-year-old point guard who steadily improved during the second half of last season. Theres also Jokic, a versatile big man who is loaded with confidence after a summer in which he helped Serbia to a silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. And its hard to overlook Nurkic, a bruising 7-footer who pairs nicely in the middle with Jokic.The reason so many of our young players grew last year is we allowed them to play through mistakes. It wasnt a situation where a guy made a mistake and looked over at the bench and was like, `Am I coming out? said coach Michael Malone, whose team finished 33-49 in his first season in Denver. Guys had the confidence to play through their mistakes.That approach certainly will apply to Murray, the seventh overall pick during the June draft. No doubt, Murray can shoot. No doubt, the Kentucky product will at times play like a rookie.All part of the process, Malone said.For a change, the Nuggets actually head into a season healthy. Wilson Chandler is back from a hip injury that sidelined him all last season and Danilo Gallinaris ankle -- the one that forced an early end to his season -- is healed.Im well rested and ready to go, Gallinari said Monday.This city has grown on Gallinari, so much so that the Italian forward has a house in Denver. This roster has grown on him, too. So much so that hes voiced his desire to remain with the squad whenever trade rumors seem to surface.I think were close and getting closer, Gallinari said.Still, the Nuggets are a team without an alpha player -- a LeBron James or Steph Curry type that can take over in big moments.The way general manager Tim Connelly sees it, maybe that top-notch player is already on the roster, and just needs some time to mature. Possibly even Mudiay, the seventh overall pick in 2015.Im an alpha player. Ive been like that my whole life, Mudiay said. I dont plan to change that.Nor do the Nuggets want him to. Millers task is to help Mudiay & Co. elevate their games -- and think big.Our expectations and our goals have got to be playoffs, Miller said. I wouldnt say that if I didnt think it was realistic, because nothing good comes out of making unrealistic goals, especially for a young team.Keep winning and the fans should return, too. At times last season, the Pepsi Center looked half-empty.President Josh Kroenke understands. The Nuggets have to earn back respect after missing the postseason for a third straight year. This offseason, Kroenke made a big push to bring in Dwyane Wade, before Wade signed with Chicago.Fans are going to see a direction with a young roster that has a chance to be pretty good, Kroenke said.Game notesThe Nuggets will retire Dikembe Mutombos No. 55 jersey in a ceremony on Oct. 29, even wearing the Rainbow Skyline throwback jerseys for the occasion. Mutombo was drafted fourth overall by Denver in 1991 and played for the Nuggets before leaving after the 1995-96 season.Wholesale Steph Curry Shoes . Pettersen, winner of last years Evian Championships, had nine birdies and three bogeys, holding off a series of challengers led by Marion Ricordeau of France. The second-ranked Norwegian made her season debut after missing the LPGA Tours opening event last month in the Bahamas because of a shoulder injury. Cheap Steph Curry Shoes . -- Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis was charged Thursday with driving while intoxicated, a day after he was suspended for an NFL substance-abuse policy violation. https://www.stephencurryshoescheap.com/ . Reigning world champion Eve Muirhead of Scotland opened with a 12-2 rout of Winnipegs Jennifer Jones in a battle of teams bound for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Steph Curry Shoes Free Shipping . Duchene scored two goals and had an assist, helping the Colorado Avalanche beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Friday night to match the best 10-game start in team history. Steph Curry Shoes Outlet . Scott won the Australian PGA last week in his first event in Australia since winning the U.S. Masters in April. American Matt Kuchar, ahead by two strokes with four to play and even with Scott with one to go, double-bogeyed the 18th after taking two shots to get out of a bunker.PASADENA, Calif. -- UCLA contained Christian McCaffrey, kept Stanfords offense out of the end zone and generated just enough points to lead the Pac-12 champions until the Cardinals final drive.And then everything reverted to usual form in this one-sided California rivalry.J.J. Arcega-Whiteside caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Burns with 24 seconds to play, and No. 7 Stanford rallied for its ninth consecutive victory over the Bruins, 22-13 on Saturday night.McCaffrey rushed for 138 yards for the Cardinal (3-0, 2-0 Pac-12), but they struggled on offense for 3 1/2 quarters. Stanford got the ball back with 2:05 left and coolly put together a 70-yard drive capped by Burns fade to Arcega-Whiteside, who got one foot inbounds on an acrobatic play.We just kept our composure from the time we started to the time we finished, Arcega-Whiteside said. We made mistakes, but you could sense in those last two minutes that we were all going to execute. When we do it, it all pays off.Solomon Thomas then returned Josh Rosens fumble 42 yards for a touchdown on the games final play, punctuating the heartbreak for a lively Rose Bowl crowd. Even with that TD, Stanford had its lowest-scoring performance since the 2015 season opener.PAIN WITHOUT GAINAnother stirring Stanford victory was another soul-crushing loss for the Bruins (2-2, 0-1), who havent beaten their upstate rivals since 2008. They had never even led the Cardinal for more than six minutes in any of those eight straight losses, but UCLA nursed an advantage in this one for nearly three quarters -- until Stanford snatched it away again.Thats about as difficult as it gets, said UCLA coach Jim Mora, who has never beaten Stanfords David Shaw. It stings when you lose like that, and played so courageously on defense, and done such a great job against a really good team, and they make the play. Doesnt matter whho you play.dddddddddddd Losing like that is just awful.ROSENS VOWRosen passed for 248 yards for the Bruins, hitting Nate Iese for his only touchdown in the first half. He got the Bruins to midfield in the final seconds, but couldnt reach field goal range before fumbling on a sack from behind.The sophomore passer still thinks UCLA can rally to make the Pac-12 title game.Its one of the top teams in our conference, and were going to see them again, Rosen said. Were a million percent going to see them again.THE TAKEAWAYSTANFORD: The Cardinal barely escaped with yet another victory, but UCLAs defense might have provided clues to other teams about how to control McCaffrey and the seemingly unstoppable Stanford offense. This is the type of victory that great programs get, and Shaws unlikely powerhouse proved its tenacity yet again.UCLA: The Bruins changed their offensive approach and bulked up their defensive line in the offseason, all with the intention of matching Stanfords brute strength and deceptive sophistication. The positive changes werent evident in the Bruins first three games, but they showed up in this matchup -- just not quite long enough for a win.POLL IMPLICATIONSSTANFORD: The Pac-12s highest-ranked team and preseason favorite will stay in the top 10 , but it wasnt impressive. The Cardinal wont move up, but No. 8 Michigan States loss means they arent likely to slide much, either.UCLA: Nope.UP NEXTSTANFORD: This trip had trap-game potential due to the Cardinals visit to No. 9 Washington on Friday night in a game that could establish early supremacy in the Pac-12 race.UCLA: The Bruins stay home for a visit from Arizona after shaking off this heartbreaker.---AP college football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '