Right Where We Want Them

Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

With 98% of the field left to cover, down by a touchdown, and less than six minutes to play, the odds of the Denver Broncos getting past the Cleveland Browns and on to the Super Bowl were slim at best. But the Broncos had a secret weapon.

No, not John Elway. Though it’s true he was a hell of a weapon. The weapon was actually a feeling. Those Broncos had no fear. And Elway definitely played a huge role in that.

Deep in enemy territory, with Cleveland’s fans roaring at the top of their lungs, Elway gathered the team into a tight huddle, smiled at his crew, and told them, “We’ve got them right where we want them.”

Many of his teammates say that was the moment they knew they would win the game. Denver marched down the field as loose as could be, producing a few incredible plays along the way, coming back and winning a trip to the Super Bowl with a series that all Denver fans now memorialize as “The Drive”.

When the Denver Nuggets fell behind to the Utah Jazz three games to one, there was conjecture amongst some of the media and fan base as to whether or not Michael Malone even still belonged in the head coaching seat. Admittedly, a first-round exit to a lower-seeded opponent would have been a decided disappointment for a team that had thought itself ready for yet another next step. If Mike Conley’s shot hadn’t defied a bit of gravity and physics, Denver might have had a few very tough questions to answer in the offseason, instead dancing down the edge of that knife through three more games before emerging to face another day.

That day brought a greater challenge in the Los Angeles Clippers. But that story came together much the same way, with Denver slipping to a 3-1 disadvantage. The experts in the know knew immediately that Denver might have made an impressive comeback once, but would never never ever be able to make it back against the vaunted Clips. You already know the Nuggets shocked the basketball universe with another three-game rebound, making history in the process.

So. Here we are again, my friends. Standing at the base of another mountain. If the Jazz were our Mount Evans, then the Clippers were probably already our Everest, right? What the hell does that make the Lakers? Mount Olympus? Probably so, since fans and referees alike seem to be sure that there are surely a couple of Gods standing at the top.

Game Five against Utah saw these Nuggets down by double digits before swinging back for their first back-against-the-wall win. They’ve had five more since, and are still standing. Still climbing. Still having fun.

So… These Nuggets will never, never ever be able to take three games from the already-anointed Lakers, correct? Probably not. In all likelihood? Probably not. But if you asked me to put a few bucks on them not coming back, I would tell you to pound sand, because I believe that these Nuggets won’t stop fighting until that next horn sounds, win or lose. That this series could easily be 2-2, and is a few dumb mistakes from 3-1 in the other direction. That these guys know exactly how to start climbing, no matter how high that next climb is. These Nuggets have always thrived at altitude. Win, lose, or draw in this game, or however many come thereafter, this Denver Nuggets squad knows that they belong amongst the elite in the league. That they are on their way up right as so many other teams are trending in the other direction.

From here, it looks like your Denver Nuggets have them right where we want them.