@MarkKnudson41
Strike One: Go ahead and stick a fork in the Denver Nuggets. They’re done.
Oh, I know. Even after hideous, inexcusable recent losses to the two cellar dwellers in the Western (Golden State) and Eastern (Cleveland) Conferences respectfully, the Nuggets are still in third place in the overall Western Conference standings. We’d take that at the end of the regular season, right?
Except that these Nuggets are far from a lock for anything, post-season wise. The way they look now, they could have a very short play-off run. As of right now, Denver is on the verge of tumbling down those standings and finding themselves falling out of the picture for home court advantage in the first round of the play-offs.
There’s Monday night’s visit from the team with the league’s best record, Milwaukee, followed by a three-game trip to dangerous Dallas, San Antonio and LA to play the west leading Lakers. That’s followed by a home game against the second place Clippers. Lose say, three or four of those five and Denver could easily be sitting in fifth place by the time they hit the road for four more road games against Oklahoma City, Toronto, Chicago and Miami.
Utah and OKC are right on Denver’s heels. Denver is just four games ahead of seventh place Dallas.
Things have reached this point for one simple reason: The guy who should have been the NBA’s Coach of the Year last season has royally messed things up this season.
There’s an old adage in sports that says, “If you aren’t getting better, you’re getting worse.” While their rivals in the West all made off season moves to get better, Denver didn’t. The prevailing thought was the development and addition of a healthy and productive rookie Michael Porter Jr would be the way this year’s Nuggets improved over last year’s Nuggets.
It could have worked. It was starting to. Then, suddenly, not so much.
And after things started slowly (he didn’t play in the season’s first four games) MPJ started seeing some court time. In January, he was a regular part of the rotation and making substantial contributions both scoring and rebounding. The more he played the better he was getting, and it looked like eventually – maybe even by late in this season – Denver would finally have that badly needed consistent front court scorer to go with Nikola Jokic.
Porter went for 19 and six in a win at Sacramento; 25 and five in a win at Indiana. Then seven straight double figure scoring games…and the Nuggets went 6-1. Things were looking good.
Then Porter got hurt in the last game of the month. Not badly, but bad enough to keep him out for six games. Since he’s come back healthy, his minutes have been cut back again, and he’s been a non-factor.
The lame excuse given by Malone is that a fully healthy MPJ is not up to snuff defensively. But if you watch the games, you know Porter’s certainly not to blame for the team giving up 112 points to the worst offensive team in the league (Charlotte – he didn’t play a minute in that game) or for the late game collapse against Cleveland (he wasn’t on the floor in the final minutes…again.)
The simple fact is Porter’s development has been retarded by Malone’s stubbornness and loyalty to the players he won 54 games with a season ago. You remember them? The gang that couldn’t shoot straight in the narrow first round series win over San Antonio or in the second-round series collapse against Portland? Apparently, Malone is okay with a repeat of that scenario this post season.
The fact is, last year’s Nuggets were – aside from the Joker – offensively challenged and adding Porter to the line-up was the only thing that was going to change that. So now that Malone has changed course and gone back to relegating his prize rookie to the end of the bench, Denver is rolling out pretty much the exact same team that wasn’t good enough last post season.
Remember the definition of insanity? The other contenders in the Western Conference apparently do. They made upgrades. And they’re now fixing to blow right past the same ol’ same ‘ol Nuggets.
Don’t plan on watching a long play-off run.
Strike Two: Speaking of watching…let’s hope we get to.
At a time when the entire world is trying to cope with the outbreak and spread of a deadly airborne virus, sports should be an afterthought. But it can’t be. Sporting events feature some of the largest gatherings of people across the globe. They’re the perfect breeding ground for the spread of Coronavirus.
The NBA is said to be considering playing games in empty arenas. How weird would that be? LeBron James says he won’t play if fans can’t be there to watch. But if the league takes this drastic step, the NCAA and March Madness are sure to follow suit. Then the NHL. Opening Day at Coors Field in front of a few scattered team employees? Not likely, but possible.
Across the country there are some places that will attract 60,000 plus people for college football spring games. NASCAR events are going on at tracks across the country in front of massive crowds. Everything from college and minor league baseball games to soccer matches and lacrosse games will be impacted. High school games too.
And then there’s the issue of this summer’s Olympics in Tokyo. They could be cancelled. (And no, it’s not been proven that heat will kill this virus like it does the regular strains of influenza. Summer events are very much in limbo as well.)
It’s not likely – given that the virus is said to attack the more vulnerable among the population (the elderly and those with pre-existing illnesses) – that a college or professional athlete would contract the virus, but it remains a possibility.
Of course, nothing matters as much as the health of those who’ve been exposed and contracted the virus. It’s a human tragedy on a global scale. But the other impacts – social and economic to be specific – could also be enormous. Small business owners are worried about staying in business due to the almost certain disruption of supply chains and demand. What happens to those who make their living based on their ability to work at and around sporting events? Franchises losing ticket sales will be somewhat offset by broadcasting revenue, but it will still sting them, too.
The wide-ranging effects of the Coronavirus and it’s lethal offspring Covid-19 have yet to be felt by most of us, that is, unless you’ve tried to by sanitizing products at your local store. The empty shelves speak volumes as to the massive amount of concern that’s surrounding this pandemic. Never before has the wide world of sports existed in this state of uncertainty.
Strike Three: Remember that comment above about the definition of insanity? Hello, Colorado Rockies.
Everyone knows the story by now. After a disastrous 2019 season, the Rockies stood pat this offseason, much to the chagrin of most fans, media and of course, star third baseman Nolan Arenado. When a team goes 71-91 and doesn’t make a single personnel move, that could qualify for that definition, right?
Most of us think so – although opinions vary on exactly what the team should have done differently. Some thought they needed to sign more free agents. Others wanted a blockbuster trade or three. Then there was my idea: Addition by subtraction. Get rid of some of the hefty salaries/non-productive players from a season ago and instead go with more younger, hungry prospects.
The Rockies chose ‘None of the Above.’
Could their strategy be…correct?
After enduring the (well deserved) slings and arrows of fans and media during the later stages of the off season (GM Jeff Bridich even cancelled a local “town hall” media session on the eve of spring training because he didn’t want to answer any questions about his handling of the Arenado situation) what happens if Bridich turns out to be…right?
What happens if Kyle Freeland bounces back to win say, six more games than he loses this season? What happens if Wade Davis rediscovers his championship form and returns to being one of the best closers in the game? What happens if Daniel Murphy starts to hit like Daniel Murphy has always hit (along with getting markedly better on defense?) What happens if Ian Desmond actually starts to become an offensive force, and if Charlie Blackmon becomes a slightly above average defensive outfielder along with still being one of the best hitters in the game? What happens if David Dahl stays healthy and plays like an All-Star all season?
If all this happens, then Bridich will have been proven right. The Rockies could make the post season again and Bridich might get some votes for Executive of the Year.
Now that’s insane.