BRONCOS WRONG? DREAM ON
There were similar laughs, tinged with more than a little dismay, back in January 1999, when the New York Knicks picked up a disgraced Latrell Sprewell. He had sat for more than a year after putting a chokehold on P.J. Carlesimo, his coach at Golden State, on Dec. 1, 1997.
Of course, the last laugh belonged to the Knicks, as Spree, who came back to the league focused only on playing, led the team to the NBA Finals in 1999.
Whether he was seeking redemption – and let’s face it, the sports world, with its erstwhile heroes, is more complicated than that story line leads us to believe – Sprewell squashed all doubts on the slick Garden court.
None of this paid off for a bold Ernie Grunfeld, who also brought on board that year and was fired before the Knicks made their run for the playoffs, where the Knicks handed the San Antonio Spurs their first NBA title, in five games.
All we’re saying is, to paraphrase a Latrell commercial: You think Maurice Clarett is the Broncos’ nightmare. He could be the Broncos’ dream.
AROUND TOWN
Nuggets and Spurs are at the Pepsi Center for Games 3 and 4 of their first-round, seven-game playoff series. Game 3, Saturday, 8:30 p.m.; Game 4, Monday, 8:30 p.m. Rockies at L.A., today through Saturday, FSN, 8:40, 8:10; Sunday, 2:10 p.m., KTVD-20. And oh, yeah, the MetroStars are in town to play the Rapids and it’s Jersey Night (MLS action, Saturday, Invesco Field at Mile High, 7 p.m.).
COUCH:
ON: It’s the NBA playoffs and, yeah, we can’t afford tickets, either. Saturday’s Game 3 between the Nuggets and the Spurs is on Altitude and ESPN; Monday’s Game 4, Altitude and TNT.
OFF: MS Walk, Boulder, 8 a.m.-noon, southwest corner of CU’s Folsom Field on Colorado Avenue. You have a few choices: Register today and gather as many pledges as possible before Saturday; show up Saturday and pledge and register for yourself, and then take a nice walk; register now for Denver’s MS Walk on May 7, which this year also includes the 5K MS Run for Hope. www.nationalmssociety.org/coc/home/
WEAK IN REVIEW:
The bullpen: This bunch provided your basic train wreck in what could have been a solid sweep of the Dodgers last weekend. The team optioned Ryan Speier and to Triple-A Colorado Springs on Thursday, but still must contend with the likes of reliever Byung-Hyun Kim (0-3, 9.64 ERA). Colorado’s bullpen has blown seven of nine chances.
MLB is pressuring the Rockies to play Wednesday night, forcing them to burn electricity and waste fans’ time for 35-degree baseball. Starter got in two hitless and scoreless innings, which if played out could have helped his stats a little – he’s 1-2, with an 8.18 ERA and 20 earned runs in 22 innings pitched. Yowza.
