We’re talking about practice. Practice! Not a game — not a game. We’re talking about practice. There hasn’t been this much talk about practice since Allen Iverson’s notorious news conference more than a decade ago.
Just before the new year, Nuggets coach Brian Shaw eliminated a longstanding tradition of the NBA morning shootaround. No more early-morning practices for the Nuggets, followed eight hours later by a game.
“We’re talking about practice!” after he was questioned about skipping a single practice. “How silly is that?”
Maybe it’s not so silly after all.
Since Shaw’s bold move, the Nuggets are 4-1 and playing one of their better stretches all season. And most of the Nuggets appear to love a new life with a few more hours of sleep.
In the new age of the NBA and the NHL, the decades-old idea of game-day morning practices is no longer sacred. Shaw isn’t the first coach to ditch the idea, but he appears to be the most committed right now.
“For years, teams that I’ve played on and teams that I’ve coached, players have always asked, ‘Why do I have to get up and come to shootaround?’ ” Shaw said.
“I’ve been there sometimes myself as a player. So, if in their minds, this helps them play better and the results show that, then I don’t mind being the pioneer in terms of doing it.”
The Avalanche tinkered with getting rid of the morning skate last season, just as the team went from worst to first in a surprise run to the playoffs. They have returned to it for the most part this season.
“I’m not a big believer of the morning skate, quite honestly,” Avs coach Patrick Roy said. “Never have been.”
Of course, nobody’s talking about not having any practice, only the game-day morning walk-through. In some ways, it’s a silly idea. Players wake up early, often after playing late the night before, then trudge to the arena for a half-hearted walk-through in which coaches go over the scouting report for that night’s game.
The tradition of the NBA shootaround and the NHL morning skate dates to the 1970s.
Bill Sharman, a nervous shooting guard with the Boston Celtics, liked getting to the gym early to shake out his extra energy. Later, as coach of the Los Angeles Lakers in 1972, of a morning shootaround and won a championship. NBA lore says Sharman’s morning shootaround was meant, in part, to keep Wilt Chamberlain from partying too hard the night before games.
Whatever the reasons, Sharman’s “morning shootaround” spread through the league the next year, and it has been a staple ever since.
In the NHL, innovative Flyers coach Fred Shero is credited, or blamed, depending on the perspective, for . After he led Philadelphia to back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 1974 and 1975, the rest of the league copied his idea.
“It’s always been a part of my life,” said Avs veteran forward Daniel Briere, a former Flyers star. “Sometimes you feel like you just need to get a sweat and get the blood going. Other days, you’re like: ‘You know what? I’d rather just save my energy.’ “
Players in the NBA and NHL normally arrive before 10 a.m. on game days, then finish their walk-through near noon. Some hang around the arena until game time; some go home to take an afternoon nap.
“It’s kind of a ritual in hockey. I don’t see it going anywhere,” said Nathan MacKinnon, the Avs’ 19-year-old forward. “In some ways, it’s kind of a weird thing, because it doesn’t get you warm for the game. Maybe it puts you in the right mind-set — wake up, go to the rink and think about hockey first thing in the morning. But in terms of warming up, it doesn’t make any sense.”
MacKinnon, though, and Briere both said they like the morning skate. It lets them work out muscle stiffness and raise their heart rate. But they also said ditching the skate on back-to-back nights is a welcome option.
Nuggets forward Alonzo Gee is a big believer in the morning shootaround. He continues to come to the arena in the morning. The rest of the Nuggets, though, are enjoying the break.
“I’m not going to lie,” Nuggets guard Ty Lawson said of canceling the shootaround. “I’m loving it. Coming in at 3:30, everybody is well-rested. And we’ve gotten off to good starts.”
Shaw now has his players arrive in midafternoon to go over the scouting report, a couple of hours earlier than when they had morning practice.
In 2009, as coach of the Celtics, Doc Rivers on Boston’s way to the NBA Finals. With a veteran team, he didn’t see the need to get in early every morning for a night game. Within weeks, several teams were copying the idea, including George Karl’s Nuggets. But by the following season, the teams went back to having a shootaround.
Shaw said he doesn’t plan to have shootarounds the rest of this season. Then he will make a decision on whether to bring them back next season.
“It’s just something that I’m experimenting with now to try to get us to a point where we can come out and be a little bit more sharp,” Shaw said. “Our attention span isn’t always the greatest.”
Nick Groke: ngroke@denverpost.com or twitter.com/nickgroke
Denver Post reporter Chris Dempsey contributed to this report.
