The notes that keep on giving. …
Having gone down in mid-December, the Knicks-Nuggets brawl seems like ancient history. “Seems” being the operative word here.
Almost four months later, the Grapple in the Apple is still hanging over the franchise, sapping some of the joy from the Nuggets’ season. For the record, that’s George Karl’s take, not mine.
“For whatever reason, there seems to be a heaviness since the suspensions,” Karl said. “It’s been hard for me to understand, but it has a way of sneaking back. It always kind of sneaks back into your mind.”
Karl has been so perplexed by the psychological fallout from the fight, he sought the advice of Pacers coach Rick Carlisle in February. Carlisle had endured mass suspensions following the Malice at the Palace, when Ron Artest went into the stands in Detroit and fought with fans.
“I called to ask him what happens, and he kind of talked in similar phrases,” said Karl. “It’s not like it stops you from being motivated, but it’s more like you’re surviving, more like you’re treading water rather than swimming.”
Add the suspensions of J.R. Smith and Carmelo Anthony to Kenyon Martin’s knee problems and the mid-stream acquisition of Allen Iverson, and the Nuggets’ playoff hopes can be summed up in four words: Wait ’til next year. …
Marcus Camby, circa Wednesday morning: “We’re still in a good place right now. Teams below us, like New Orleans and Minnesota, are losing, but we have to take care of business ourselves. And it starts tonight.” The Nuggets promptly lost to Seattle that night and followed it up with a folding act in Phoenix that left them below .500. …
So the NFL is making players talk to the media every week or face a fine. Memo to Tom Nalen: Report to my tape recorder every Wednesday at noon sharp or else. Oh, and bring doughnuts. …
NFL commish Roger Goodell was in Our Town the other day to attend a breakfast sponsored by the Boy Scouts. I only mention it because you probably haven’t seen NFL and Boy Scouts in the same sentence for a while. …
A little ammo for the next time somebody tells you the Front Range is a college hoops wasteland: 15,000-plus in the seats to watch the Wyoming women’s team….
Funny how these things work. While Dirk Nowitzki is getting most of the love for the NBA’s MVP award, all Steve Nash has done is match his career high in points (18.8) and assists (11.5). …
Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune on Kerry Wood and Mark Prior: “These two guys are the Batman and Robin of injuries. The Taped Crusaders, if you will.” …
It’s a darn shame what’s happened to Wood and Prior. Why, if they had stayed healthy, the Cubs’ annual June swoon would have been postponed until August. …
Who cares about hockey? A lot of people, from the looks of the TV ratings. According to the Toronto Globe and Mail, last Sunday’s Bruins-Penguins telecast on NBC outdrew ABC’s Suns-Kings matchup 1.31 million viewers to 1.26 million. …
Greg Cote of the Miami Herald on the NHL talking about abolishing fighting: “Isn’t that a little bit like a liquor store banning alcohol?” …
Michigan, Iowa, CU, Arkansas, Kentucky. Honk if your school doesn’t have a head-coaching vacancy. …
That’s assuming, of course, that Jeff Bzdelik hasn’t taken the CU job in the last five minutes. My sources tell me Mike Bohn has a Plan B in place in case the two sides can’t cut a deal: Offer him more money. …
Let me see if I’ve got this straight. ESPN ran off Monday Night Football analyst Joe Theismann because he runs his gums too much and replaced him with a guy named Jaws? …
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Alfonso Soriano, baseball’s first 40-40-40 man: 40 homers, 40 steals, 40 errors trying to impersonate a center fielder. …
This just in. Sports Illustrated has the Giants finishing last in the NL West behind the Pet Rox. Excuse me? What part of Bruce Bochy is worth a half-dozen W’s don’t they get? …
Let’s see, now. They signed Adalius Thomas, the best player in free agency, they have two No. 1 draft choices, and they just received four compensatory picks from the league office. Anybody else out there think the Boys of Belichick might have some potential? …
Not that Billy Donovan will be a smash hit in Kentucky, but Florida had won one SEC hoops title in the 74 years before his arrival. …
News flash. Nice guy finishes first! Ex-Rockie Eric Young landing a gig on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight. …
How has baseball changed in this generation compared to the last? Consider this: The Miracle Mets of ’69 hit 109 home runs. Last year’s Amazin’s hit 200.
Staff writer Jim Armstrong can be reached at 303-954-1269 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com.
