If it is true that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, isn’t also true a society is only as healthy as its sickest citizen and only as wealthy as its most deprived? Maya Angelou I’ve always loved that Angelou quote for several reasons, but one of the most basic is the simple principle of overall strength…...

One of my kids is a really talented figurine and miniature painter. The level of detail and creativity he is able to put into making something look realistic or unrealistic as the client requests is pretty astounding. I tried my hand at it once, just for a way for us to bond. My hands are not nearly so steady as…...

I shifted to a new gig recently, and have been fortunate to report to one of the more intriguing and non-traditional CEOs I’ve ever worked for. Coming in the door, I was curious to see if “his way” would work when push really came to shove. After several battles joined together this year, I am starting to see the method to his madness. The whole thing has been an extraordinary learning experience. Some people just thrive at teaching. But I’m sure I can find someone to say it better than that…

“In the end, it’s about the teaching, and what I always loved about coaching was the practices. Not the games, not the tournaments, not the alumni stuff. But teaching the players during practice was what coaching was all about to me.”

- John Wooden

Much better. There are countless and thankless hours of being a coach, whether you are doing it at the peewee level or at the highest heights. So the reason any coach worth their salt would do it is simply the joy and passion they derive from teaching players how to best play a game. Oh, and a fat paycheck probably doesn’t hurt the motivations of the gents we’ll be discussing today. But if an All-Timer like Coach Wooden hangs his hat on that emotion, you know it’s pretty powerful stuff.

When the already-exceptional Denver Nuggets finally bowed out of the 2018-19 season, they’d come closer to the Finals than they had in over a decade, in one of their most-successful seasons in history. Had they been able to score one more point in any of the first three of the four overtimes they spent against Portland in last years’ Game 3 playoff loss, they may have moved on to the Western Conference Finals, as they were tantalizingly close to their ultimate goal.

Though last season’s Nuggets took the floor with one of the league’s finest teams, they still saw a need to make improvements after coming up short. Denver made a list of their own that could help them make their next step forward:

Improved three-point defense
Improved overall defense
Improved rebounding
Improved scoring above the rim
Improved speed
Improved three-point shooting

As well as Denver performed in each of those categories last year, and as deep as they were, the playoffs exposed a need for even greater depth in each of those spots, with a successful seven-game series carrying them to a less-successful seven-game series. Had the Nuggets gotten to the Warriors, they’d have been running on fumes. Depth and consistency in the topics above could have shortened both of their playoff series, and given them a clearer run at a championship. Finding players who could give them that boost but not upset the already-stellar team dynamic was key. But surely filling out that steep and challenging list would take a few specific bodies to fulfill, right?

Right?

Well, not so fast.

Every Sunday as a kid, I worshipped at a shrine. Now, it wasn’t Mother Cabrini-style beautiful, but I felt it had its charms. It was the only place in the house I was allowed to light a candle, and when I got everything arranged just so… well, the little plastic helmets and mini flag really set off the signed photo…...

I’m a stalker. As hard as that is to admit, it’s true. Here’s the facts of it… I’ve been stalking DNVR/BSN for a few years now, and it’s time I placed the blame. I’d like to accept responsibility, but honestly… it’s 100% Harrison Wind’s fault. Spending the last several years at a cross-town competitor, you tend to pay attention to…