Well, Bill, it's here. It ain't pretty, but it's here. The Denver Nuggets are in sole possession of the sixth and final locked-in playoff spot with 17 games to go. And Bill Simmons made sure to remind everyone of just how bad the season has been for Denver when he called it a "mini-hell" on the latest edition of "The Bill Simmons Podcast." We know, Bill. It's been rough. It's uncomfortable.
"They can’t have a week without something happening, right?" asked Simmons. Both lines really cut at the core of Nuggets fans. Not internationally, of course.
But the Nuggets really haven't been able to catch a break that snowballs into another one. One step forward, one or two steps back. Zach Lowe called it, "The it’s not our year, year."
And when asked by Lowe what his concern level for the Nuggets was, Bill replied, "I am now in the, ‘Hey, Denver, just fall to sixth and get everybody healthy.'" And they have, with the exception of Peyton Watson. They've done both, Bill. Now, what?
The Nuggets need to focus on health and the standings
Simmons summed it up by saying that he didn't really think whether the Nuggets finish three through six matters. And their road success this season suggests that's not a terrible idea. But he also said to "just get healthy," something the Nuggets have struggled mightily with this season, but it is actually just around the corner. Finally.
The Nuggets welcomed Aaron Gordon back to the lineup against the Knicks after missing 17 games with a hamstring injury, only to see Jamal Murray leave that game with a twisted ankle. Thankfully, Murray was able to play in the next game, a last-second three-point gut-punch loss to the Thunder. But at least we didn't lose anyone to injury in that one, so there's that?
But the Nuggets need to stay in sixth in the standings, or another disaster could unfold if they slipped to seventh and had to play in the play-in game. It's a nightmare scenario that's creeping up faster by the day now. A scenario that no one envisioned when the season began.
Simmons and Lowe aren't wrong about how the season has felt
This season really has felt like a really bad dream at times. Whether it's all the injuries, the Jekyll and Hyde play that's got fans on an emotional roller coaster, or the clutch woes, or even Nikola Jokic's wrist, there's been something nagging at the Nuggets for what seems like the entire year.
And to make matters worse, at a time when the Nuggets are playing their worst basketball in perhaps years, they have the toughest remaining schedule in the league to close out the season. Because of course they do in a year that's already been so tough.