Hoops

I'm loving the NBA playoffs this year. Deep down, I'm a basketball junkie, and the Denver Nuggets have me absolutely buzzing these days. The current playoff run also gave me occasion to remember when basketball reminded me who I am.

I've been a big fan of the NBA for as long as I can remember, and I've always loved to play. Because I grew up in Virginia, I rarely got to see the Nuggets play. I did make sure to watch them on TV when they played the Washington Bullets, but that happened only once or twice a year. It seems like ages ago, but there was a time when fans couldn't just pick a game to watch. We actually were slaves to the TV schedule.

The Nuggets weren't very good and almost never on TV, so, to get my NBA fix, I watched the only team you couldn't miss on a given weekend: The Chicago Bulls. I remember watching Michael Jordan take over the league. Those Bulls teams were my favorite teams ever. I could watch youtube clips of Jordan embarrassing the league for hours. In fact, I have already done that many times.

But, this year is quickly becoming my favorite basketball season of all time.




I remember playing basketball for hours until it was just too dark to see the ball anymore. I remember playing entire summer days and bringing ice chests to keep us cool in the humid Virginia sun. I miss those days so much sometimes.

I also remember leaving basketball for awhile and dabbling in some dumb things. I tried smoking a few times and was caught so red handed it was pathetic. I even answered "breath mints" when asked what that smell was. I think I had the most pathetic rebellion in the history of mankind.

New "friends" came along and it took me a little too long to realize they didn't have my interests in mind. My very pathetic mini-rebellion led me to dabble in some curiosities. Mostly, that included parent-upsetting bands and their video cassettes. One specific video featured a rather disturbing stage performance. Out of the blue, and completely out of character, my dad decided to screen one of the videos. It was mostly for show, but the scenes bothered him enough that he insisted I take it back.

The rub was that I got to choose what to replace it with, but it had to be something acceptable to dad. I picked NBA's Dazzling Dunks and Basketball Bloopers. I was bitter at the time, but ended up wearing that tape out. It featured footage from each dunk contest to that point and I watched it more time than I care to admit.





Somehow, over an indeterminable time, I was reminded who I was and what I needed to do. During that time, the "friends" (short lived friends as they may have been) faded away. My association with them was a forced-fit anyway.

I reunited with true friends and met them in the most fitting place: on the blacktop. Much of the rest of my youth was spent playing basketball.

Moving to Colorado meant another new start and good-bye to all those great hoop friends, but this time I stayed on track. I even started hanging out with the Fuzz by playing locker hoops H-O-R-S-E during lunch in high school.

Just in time, the Nuggets got good and shocked the NBA world in 1994 by winning in the first round and nearly making the Western Conference Finals. I even fretted about missing a playoff game to graduate from high school. I rooted for the Nuggets and Bulls and NBA life was good.

I lost track of the NBA again in 1999 after Michael Jordan retired for good (he never came back or played for any other teams... I know it didn't happen... LA LA LA LA LA). I caught the occasional Nuggets game, but really came back to the NBA when the Nuggets drafted Carmelo Anthony in 2003. Ever since then, the guys and I have been loyal and regular attendees at the Pepsi Center.

Now, as I watch the Denver Nuggets this year, I finally know what it's like to truly experience the NBA playoffs. It's better than all those Bulls titles because its finally my true hometown team. I watched Chicago out of respect for the rare quality, but I've watched this team grow and I'm loving the ride.

Even if the Nuggets don't win it all, this has been a joyous ride, and more fun than any previous season. Chicago's six titles seemed like foregone conclusions, but this time there is real drama and anticipation. The team even traded for Chauncey Billups, who I used to cover while a student journalist during his dominating tenure at CU.

Really, it couldn't get any better. I smell a running diary on the horizon.

NBA PLAYOFF FEVER