K-Mart is Out, Nuggets will Thrive

Kenyon Martin was suspended by the Nuggets for being a moron. Not just a moron, but a lazy moron who yells at coaches. What was he thinking? I've played basketball my whole life and there are two rules that no one talks about but everyone knows: #1 - Don't slack #2 - Don't talk back.

They are simple rules, instilled in players at the elementary school level. I know they hold true in high school, I'm sure they hold true in college, and even though the NBA has its own version -- follow the rules or you'll get traded unless you're more valuable than the coach in which case we'll fire him -- the rules are still the foundation for a successful team. Proof: Larry Brown won in Detroit with a group of average players who hustled their asses off and did everything he asked; Larry Brown lost in New York with a group of above-average players who meandered and "talked back" in the press. K-Mart broke the two fundamental rules of the game, he hurt the team, and now he's gone.

What a relief! First of all, Martin is not more valuable to the Nuggets than Coach Karl - that role belongs to Melo. After this latest tantrum, and a season of sloth, you can be sure that K-Mart will be packing his bags this summer. (Hint: if we trade him to New York, we'll probably get younger, cheaper, better players who actually want to win and know how to listen. There are 31 NBA franchises that absolutely love Isaiah Thomas. None are in New York.) Martin has been a plague on this team all season. His contributions consist mainly of grandiose verbiage (minus of course 40,000 repititons of "you know what I'm sayin?"), a potential assault of a fan by his posse, and a lot of time on an exercise bike. They should have suspended him earlier.

Second, the Nuggets are better off without K-Mart on the court. Basically they paid him $10 million this season for one good half of defense against Elton Brand. And the Nuggets lost that game. Now it's time to give Reggie Evans a chance. He leaves it all on the court, never bitches, and his intensity is contagious. Sure, Brand will get 20+ points, but he's going to have to earn each and every one of them since Evans will be on the court for 30+ minutes. With Evans on the court and the distraction that is K-Mart gone, I guarantee that the Nuggets will win Thursday's home game.

That's right, the Nuggets will win game 3. For sure. No doubt. Guaranteed. The Nuggets will push the ball, Melo will have a break-out game, and the local fans will go home hoarse from excitement. Final score - 105-97.