Forced perspective

A problem is a chance for you to do your best.

– Duke Ellington

Life is designed to lull you to sleep. While you always want to think you’re giving your best in every circumstance, human beings are made to budget their energy. Whether it’s our brains glossing over repetitive tasks, or choosing to coast when we know we have room to do so, we’ve been hardwired to maximize our reward-to-effort ratio since we were hunter-gatherers. But if you get too comfy, life can also spotlight those spaces in which you’ve let your attention lapse a little too long.

A lifetime ago, I spent the better part of a decade making my living as a singer in an a cappella group. I was lucky to be surrounded by some really gifted and talented people, the kind who certainly had the ability to go on to bigger and better things. But as the recordings, gigs, and paychecks started to roll in, I got pretty comfortable being a utility guy, never really pressing myself to improve my skill set. While the others were improving their tools and abilities, I was spending my time on other pursuits.

Then came the day came that our two best singers were hired off to other gigs, offering them more exposure and possibilities. They deservedly went on to bigger and better things, and we had a couple of giant slots to fill. Suddenly, my time spent in my comfort zone had me really uncomfortable. I should have been spending that time making myself better, and had instead coasted on the talents of those around me. It took some time and some painful performances to see how much of a difference I might have made. It was a tough perspective, but one I’d basically forced on myself due to my own inaction. Learning to maximize my own skills made sure I never found myself experiencing that sort of heartache again.

When Denver Nuggets star Jamal Murray had his knee give way in the last minute of an already frustrating game against the Golden State Warriors, you felt a team that had already been straining a bit collectively hold their breath. Murray isn’t simply the one of the most dynamic scorers in basketball, he’s also the emotional heart of this Nuggets squad. Without his presence and energy, how will the Nuggets fill those gaps? While the team had gone 2-1 during his previous absence, they were often close affairs, with a slew of mental mistakes along the way from guys simply pressing to do too much. Happily. they had time to figure it all out, because their superstar guard would be back soon to raise the collective midpoint, anyway. Until he wouldn’t.

Now, Murray won’t be back on the court for the foreseeable future, and the Nuggets have coach Michael Malone’s call to heed. The Nuggets simply need a better effort from everyone on the floor to make up for what’s been lost. They need to tune into Nikola Jokic’s pragmatism, that they’re yet again the underdogs who will simply go back out there and fight with whoever is left, play the game the right way, and bust their asses until they either have a trophy or get sent home.

If their first game in this sobering new reality was of any indication, those messages seem have been received quite clearly. Though there were still too many unforced errors, most of the players who had seemed to be overplaying looked to be approaching with a renewed sense of focus, understanding that they will now be leaned upon more heavily. That their margin of error just went from slim to none.

Michael Porter, Jr. will be asked to provide even more defensive consistency, rebounding, and scoring punch. Aaron Gordon will be asked to cover even more boards and gaps as he is also leaned into more thoroughly. Will Barton will be asked to handle the ball more, Monte Morris will slide into the starting lineup, Facu Campazzo will see his role expand. And on. And on. The ripples of no-Murray-for-now will resound more broadly across this squad than the loss of any single player save Jokic.

There will be bad nights. There will be worse nights. As Malone stated, you simply don’t replace Jamal Murray. So what do you do? At best, you simply hope to fill in around those edges at every turn. For the moment, Nuggets Nation has lost one of their very best. To keep their fighting chance, they’re going to need each and every guy standing to prop each other up and keep trying to be a little better. While Murray’s injury hurts their near-term chances, it will force every player on the squad to be a better one by the time he returns.