All's Quiet on the Western Front

Today is shaking out to be a break in the action for Broncos news. With the draft only 2 weeks away, its probably the calm before the storm. There's a bright side: I haven't had to choke through a single article pertaining to the Elway-Cutler-Marshall love triangle. Maybe my rant yesterday has the media doing a couple extra Hail Mary's this Friday a.m. Okay, okay, my head's not that big.

Did anyone catch the Nuggets-Warriors game last night? Holy J.R. Smith Batman! J.R.'s been more of a pariah since arriving in Denver than star. He was suspended for 3 games last season due to an assault allegation, his friend mysteriously died in his SUV, he was at the center of a brawl with the Knicks for which he was suspended 10 games, and he was benched by George Karl in game 4 of last years playoffs. The Hornets gave up on Smith because of his emotional volatility and immaturity. What do you expect when you draft a child in the first round? Smith was among nine 18-year-olds taken in the 2004 NBA draft. Did you think the kid would come out and immediately light-up the league? All excuses aside, he seems to be getting the message. Since the all-star break, Smith has shot a whopping 49% from 3-point land and averaged over 15-points per game.

Thinking playoffs, Smith's emergence could very well be the scorer Denver needs to make a deep run in June. With no formidable perimeter shooter on the roster, teams like San Antonio are able to dismantle Carmelo and AI. I still don't think this team is built well enough to win an NBA championship, but a first round upset suddenly doesn't seem preposterous.

Thinking long-term, Smith is only 22-years old. Another 2-3 years of development could see him emerge as a franchise-type player in the NBA. Once a skeptic of Smith, I'm beginning to see why he's garnered so much attention. Smith has all the physical tools needed to be a top-shelf 2-guard in the NBA; the maturity seems to be coming with time.

In an era of high-school-aged NBA rookies, perhaps we are too hard and hold unreasonable expectations of professionals that are so young. I have loads of empathy for the seemingly-insurmountable pressure placed on a talent like Jay Cutler. Imagine if he were 18? I doubt he could take it. On this matter, I side with Mark Cuban, who is an outspoken proponent of NFL-style age restrictions on NBA draftees.

If the weather where you live is anything close to what we've got here in Richmond, VA, stop reading this and go outside! Have a great day!