Sports
Why the Denver Nuggets Are the Most Feared Team in the NBA Right Now
As we head down the home stretch of the NBA regular season, those who haven’t paid attention for five months all of a sudden have a need to know:
Who is the most feared team in basketball right now?
Ask 30 NBA coaches and I’m guessing you’d get three responses …
- A vast majority won’t want to be bothered by such nonsense in the middle of March and will take the no-brainer expressway: The defending champ who also has been the best team this regular season, the Thunder.
- Maybe a handful who have recently gotten bonked on the head by a Victor Wembanyama swat will consider it cool to pick the new kids on the block, the Spurs, failing to consider that the NBA playoffs take on a football persona and Wemby more closely resembles a figure skater.
- And then there’s the guy who’ll elicit a laugh by citing the UConn Lady Huskies, perhaps hoping the headlines will help continue to get Geno Auriemma to realize what a great thing he has when said NBA coach’s boss considers a replacement this off-season.
How can you dispute any of those? Well, here’s how …
Imagine if there were a team that’s a proven winner: A champion in 2023 who then came within one game of a second and third straight trip to the Western finals.
Imagine if that team were led by the dominant force in the league, a guy equally adept at scoring as he is assisting others. And he rebounds pretty good, too.
Imagine that superstar having a high-scoring sidekick who complements a two-man game the likes of which the league hasn’t seen since Stockton and Malone.
Imagine that dynamic duo playing alongside one of the best two-way forwards in the NBA, a guy who has played 1,500 fewer minutes this season than the guys against which he will be chasing down rebounds in April and May.
Imagine the league’s most perfectly molded trio getting help from two defensive-minded swingmen, one who has found time to make 40 of his last 68 shots, the other who has connected on 33 of his last 53.
Of course, we’re talking here about the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Cam Johnson and Christian Braun. And you know what they say about that team:
Take Jokic off the court and they go from the penthouse to the outhouse without a parachute.
Alas, that’s no longer the case …
Imagine the NBA’s most physically gifted reserve, a dunking, shot-blocking marvel who now all of a sudden can shoot (41% on 3’s this season).
Imagine the league’s best 3-point-shooting reserve guard as your seventh man.
Imagine a fellow veteran who has made 17 of his last 31 shots, and another defense-first guy who has drilled 18 of his last 30.
Imagine the best backup big man in the league, a guy who punishes his counterpart while the boss rests.
You heard that right: The Nuggets now employ what rates statistically as an average NBA bench. That’s a vast improvement, but that’s also misleading.
The aforementioned top five backups – Peyton Watson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Bruce Brown, Spencer Jones and Jonas Valanciunas – have been pressed into making 87 starts, leading to various rookies and two-way players watering down the reserves’ numbers.
If this team can stay healthy … that’s a big if. They were all out there Sunday night against the Portland Trail Blazers, giving their home fans – and the rest of the league – a glimpse into the future.
The Nuggets, who at this point barely know each other, dominated a pretty good Portland team in pretty much every aspect of the game. They shot well, passed well, defended well … and, oh yeah, had Jokic on the court.
The key is: They’re all healthy now, which makes those 42 games missed by Gordon, 36 by Braun, 26 by Johnson, 22 by Watson … even the 16 by Jokic blessings considering the gauntlet of the Western playoffs ahead.
And that’s yet another reason to fear the Nuggets.
The Eastern playoffs figure to be more competitive than ever this year, with the likes of the Hawks, 76ers, Magic, Heat and Hornets all fully capable of pulling first-round upsets.
The most feared team in the East? Your next playoff opponent.
The West isn’t as deep, but one team lurks in the shadow of the Thunder and Spurs – the Nuggets.
They could be the first-round opponent of a top-four team in the West. All that hard work and imagine that.
Fear the Nuggets. It’s just March, but already it’s building.
Sports
AL West capsules: Can Mariners reach next level in 2026?
Feb 24, 2026; Peoria, Arizona, USA; Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) at bat during the first inning against the Chicago White Sox in Peoria, Arizona. Mandatory Credit: Arianna Grainey-Imagn Images Athletics
2025 record 76-86 (4th place, AL West)
He gone: OF JJ Bleday, RHP Oswaldo Bido, C Willie MacIver, LHP Sean Newcomb, INF Max Schuemann, RHP Mitch Spence
New faces: RHP Scott Barlow, RHP Aaron Civale, UTL Andy Ibanez, RHP Mark Leiter Jr., 2B/LF Jeff McNeil
Biggest question entering Opening Day: The Athletics are all about being competitive when they begin play in Las Vegas in 2028, but the club has enough talent to top .500 this season if the starting pitching takes a step forward. RHP Luis Severino openly criticized the home digs in West Sacramento last season — he was 2-9 with a 6.01 ERA in 15 starts at the ballpark — and he needs to have a much better attitude about it this year as the club’s top pitcher. LHPs Jeffrey Springs and Jacob Lopez are streaky but highly effective when performing well. The Athletics have young stars in 1B Nick Kurtz (2025 Rookie of the Year), SS Jacob Wilson (Rookie of the Year runner-up), LF Tyler Soderstrom and RF Lawrence Butler to go with veterans such as two-time All-Star DH Brent Rooker, C Shea Langeliers and offseason acquisition McNeil, the 2022 National League batting champion.
2026 Outlook: The Athletics were crushed by a 3-24 stretch during a 29-day span early last season, and the rest of the campaign was focused on development. While the future remains more important than the present, the A’s have the type of offense that can outscore opponents. However, the team needs better pitching before it can seriously think about the playoffs.
Houston Astros
2025 record 87-75 (2nd place, AL West)
He gone: C Victor Caratini, INF Mauricio Dubon, RHP Luis Garcia, OF Chas McCormick, OF Jacob Melton, OF Jesus Sanchez, LHP Framber Valdez
New faces: SS Nick Allen, RHP Mike Burrows, RHP Tatsuya Imai, OF Joey Loperfido, RHP Nate Pearson, RHP Ryan Weiss
Biggest question entering Opening Day: Houston has RHPs Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier at the top of the rotation but will badly miss workhorse Valdez, who exited as a free agent. Houston traded for Burrows from the Pittsburgh Pirates, and he will be heavily counted on, as will Imai, an import from Japan who will turn 28 in May and had a 1.92 ERA and five complete games for the Seibu Lions last season. Injury-prone RHP Lance McCullers is slated to be in the rotation but has made just 63 appearances (60 starts) over the last seven seasons. Offensively, SS Carlos Correa needs to regain the form of his first Houston stint (2015-21). He was a big disappointment for most of his 3 1/2 seasons with the Minnesota Twins and had just six homers in 200 at-bats after the Astros reacquired him last season.
2026 Outlook: The Astros missed the postseason last year after eight straight appearances (including two World Series titles) and will have to fight for a berth this season. Keeping slugger Yordan Alvarez healthy (48 games in 2025) will be a big key as Houston missed his power bat after he topped 30 homers in each of the previous four seasons.
Los Angeles Angels
2025 record 72-90 (5th place, AL West)
He gone: LHP Tyler Anderson, RHP Brock Burke, LHP Andrew Chafin, RHP Kyle Hendricks, RHP Kenley Jansen, 3B Anthony Rendon, INF Luis Rengifo, OF Taylor Ward
New faces: 2B Vaughn Grissom, OF Josh Lowe, RHP Alek Manoah, LHP Drew Pomeranz, RHP Grayson Rodriguez, RHP Jordan Romano, LHP Brent Suter, RHP Kirby Yates
Biggest question entering Opening Day: Let’s say it all together: Can Mike Trout remain healthy? Oh, no, not that one. This one: Will Trout ever play like last decade’s version of himself? He played in 130 games last season after playing in 82 or fewer games in three of the previous four full campaigns. Trout batted just .232 in 2025, with 178 strikeouts, a meager 64 RBIs and a .439 slugging percentage, well off his .628 or higher mark in each year from 2017-19. He hit 26 homers last season. The Angels have moved him back to center field, too. For Trout, 34, expectations can be for another year like last season. A team that was inconsistent on offense traded OF Taylor Ward (career-best 36 homers) for Rodriguez in hopes of shoring up the pitching behind reliable RHP Jose Soriano and LHP Yusei Kikuchi.
2026 Outlook: The Angels haven’t qualified for the postseason since 2014 — when they were swept by the Kansas City Royals — and the only folks feeling they’ll get there this year likely are people employed by the club. Los Angeles has some good young players in SS Zach Neto, C Logan O’Hoppe and RF Jo Adell, but there isn’t enough talent or pitching to compete with the top teams in the division.
Seattle Mariners
2025 record 90-72 (1st place, AL West)
He gone: LHP Caleb Ferguson, C Harry Ford, RHP Jackson Kowar, LUP Gregory Santos, 3B Eugenio Suarez, LHP Trent Thornton, 3B Ben Williamson
New faces: INF Brendan Donovan, LHP Jose Ferrer, C Andrew Knizner, OF Rob Refsnyder
Biggest question entering Opening Day: The Mariners fell one loss short of reaching the World Series for the first time in franchise history, and expectations are high this year. The person who most needs to deliver is C Cal Raleigh, as in this: Can he come close to his historic 60-homer, 125-RBI effort from last season? Somehow, 35 homers and 90 RBIs would seem like a letdown. Re-signing Josh Naylor, who excelled in the postseason, also was a big plus, as was the trade to obtain Brendan Donovan. Julio Rodriguez has two 30-homer, 30-steal campaigns in his four MLB seasons, but the Mariners need him to trim his strikeouts (152 last season). The rotation — led by RHPs Logan Gilbert and Luis Castillo — remains among the best in the majors, and shutdown closer Andres Munoz (38 saves) is ultra-reliable.
2026 Outlook: Seattle reached the American League Championship Series three times between 1995-2001 and then didn’t make the playoffs for 21 years. So last season’s success has created Seahawks-like enthusiasm that another deep run is on the agenda. The Mariners appear to have the best team in the AL West and should easily be part of the playoffs. Returning to the ALCS is a possibility.
Texas Rangers
2025 record 81-81 (3rd place, AL West)
He gone: RHP Shawn Armstrong, LHP Patrick Corbin, LHP Danny Coulombe, OF Adolis Garcia, RHP Jon Gray, C Jonah Heim, RHP Merrill Kelly, RHP Tyler Mahle, RHP Phil Maton, LHP Hoby Milner, 2B Marcus Semien, 1B Rowdy Tellez, RHP Jacob Webb
New faces: RHP Tyler Alexander, LHP Jalen Beeks, LHP MacKenzie Gore, C Danny Jansen, RHP Jakob Junis, RHP Chris Martin, LHP Jordan Montgomery, OF Brandon Nimmo
Biggest question entering Opening Day: Texas moved on from key 2023 World Series title cogs Garcia and Semien, and even manager Bruce Bochy agreed it was time for a change and parted ways with the club. Skip Schumaker is his replacement. Keeping SS Corey Seager healthy has been a chore, and Texas isn’t going to compete for a playoff spot if he plays in just 102 games again. The five-time All-Star has missed 142 games over the past three seasons. Seager needs new running mates after the offseason housecleaning, and OFs Wyatt Langford (team-best 22 homers in 2025) and Nimmo (average of 24 HRs over the best three seasons) are the best bets. Trading for Gore gives Texas a nice big three in the rotation along with RHPs Jacob deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi. Two-time Cy Young Award winner deGrom made 30 starts last season, his highest work rate since 2019.
2026 Outlook: The Rangers could be a contender if Seager rakes and deGrom dominates, but they also could be a middling team like last season. Texas has largely revamped the pitching staff, especially the bullpen, but will remain a team that relies on offense. That leaves the Rangers likely competing for the final AL wild-card spot.
–Field Level Media
Sports
March Madness “Group of Death” East Region Delivers Must-Watch Sweet 16 Matchups
There’s a reason it will run you several hundred bucks if you want to catch some basketball in the nation’s capital later this week.
And it has nothing to do with the dreadful Washington Wizards.
The get-in price for the NCAA Tournament East Regional reportedly hit a Sweet 16 record of $482, with most tickets going for even more.
No wonder. The region went exactly according to plan.
Duke, St. John’s, UConn, Michigan State. Scheyer, Pitino, Izzo, Hurley.
You’ll hear the soccer term “Group of Death” thrown around in the months leading up to the World Cup. The selection committee absolutely devised a Group of Death in the top-left quadrant of your brackets this year. And it’s going to be scintillating cinema this Friday and Sunday.
This region also featured blue bloods Kansas and UCLA and would have held similar appeal if a few second-round games went the other way. But all due respect to Bill Self and Darryn Peterson, that fantastic ending to a sometimes difficult-to-watch St. John’s-Kansas game set us up for maximum drama.
“Bells (Dylan Darling) comes up to me, and says run (a play for me). So I walk away like, wait a second, he hasn’t scored a bucket and he wants to run a play for himself. And I’m thinking, ‘But he’s Bells!’” Pitino relayed after the Red Storm’s buzzer-beater.
“Bells” shot less than 40% from the field this year! Is Pitino just YOLO-ing it out here in his 200th NCAA Tournament?
Never mind, because it worked, and as a result we get Pitino vs. Duke on a Friday evening, a rematch of the Christian Laettner game in 1992. The other side pits UConn against Michigan State, with a coach in Izzo who may not have any more chances to go capture a second national title.
“When you have UConn, Michigan State, St. John’s now with Rick and how they’re playing, and Duke. I mean, that’s not a regional final, that a Final Four,” Izzo said this week.
The loaded regional certainly raised eyebrows. For one, it could produce Part IV of UConn-St. John’s, who split their regular-season series in dramatic fashion — including UConn’s absolute beatdown of St. John’s 72-40 just a month ago in Hartford — followed by the Johnnies’ 72-52 revenge in the Big East title game.
“Obviously, we both hoped for a fourth meeting in D.C. It stinks a little bit that they threw us both in the same region,” Hurley said. “It feels like the combination of St. John’s being under-seeded, as well as putting us both in the same region. …
“It’s pretty brutal on Twitter, I think, and socials between our fan bases, but I think we have to try to come together Friday night against our opponent so we can have a blood bath on Sunday.”
Any Elite Eight outcome is mouthwatering to college hoops heads. Duke-Michigan State? That would be a rematch of the 2019 Elite Eight in the same exact building, with the Spartans prevailing and ending Zion Williamson’s college career. St. John’s-Michigan State gives you probably the final meeting of the two old ball coaches still hanging on from their generation.
And of course, Duke-UConn — the traditional blue blood trying to find its first title post-Coach K, versus the program Bomani Jones aptly called nouveau riche, with six titles since ‘99 and going for an unbelievable three in four years.
The head coaches have five natties between them, not counting Scheyer’s as a player or assistant, and if you’re all being honest with yourselves, one of the main reasons you’ll tune in is that you hate at least one of them. It’s not my business who that is. Take your pick. But I’d guarantee these guys are going to produce the story of the regionals, if not the tournament writ large, and this Group of Death will be fantastic for the health of the sport.
Sports
Syracuse hires former player Gerry McNamara as coach
Siena Saints head coach Gerry McNamara claps Thursday, March 19, 2026, during the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament first round game against the Duke Blue Devils at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. Gerry McNamara, who led Syracuse to its lone national title in 2003 as the point guard, was named the school’s head coach on Tuesday.
McNamara, 42, was the head coach at Siena the past two seasons, guiding the Saints to the NCAA Tournament this season after winning the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament. As a No. 16 seed, Siena gave top-seeded Duke a scare in the first round on Thursday before losing 71-65.
Before taking over at Siena, McNamara served as an assistant coach under Jim Boeheim and Adrian Autry for 15 seasons.
“I love this place. I love what Syracuse means: to the fans, to the players who have worn this jersey, to the people of Central New York. This program has given me everything, and I am ready to give everything back to it,” McNamara said. “College basketball has changed. How you build a program, recruit talent, compete for resources and win looks different than it did even five years ago. I know that. I’m ready for it. What hasn’t changed is what Orange Nation expects, and what this place deserves. We are going to build something special here.”
Along with helping Syracuse win the national title during his freshman season alongside Carmelo Anthony, McNamara holds the program records for 3-pointers (400), 3-point attempts (1,131), free-throw percentage (88.8%) and minutes played (4,799). An All-Big East honoree three times, he started all 135 games of his career from 2002-06. The school retired his No. 3 jersey in 2023.
National champion, program icon and No. 3 in the rafters.
Welcome home, Coach McNamara! ???? pic.twitter.com/Te5UfahJHE
— Syracuse University (@SyracuseU) March 24, 2026
McNamara returned to his alma mater in 2009 as a graduate assistant, then was elevated to an assistant in 2011 under Boeheim. He received another promotion, to associate head coach, when Autry was named Boeheim’s successor in 2023.
McNamara left for Siena in 2024, posting a 37-30 record in two seasons. Before this spring, the Saints had not made the NCAA Tournament since 2010. The team was 4-23 in the season before McNamara’s arrival.
“Gerry McNamara is who our storied basketball program needs at this important moment,” says Bryan B. Blair, incoming director of athletics. “In every conversation, his competitive fire and passion was undeniable — it’s simply part of his DNA. He returns to Syracuse as a proven Division I head coach who led a program through a turnaround and back to the NCAA Tournament. At every stop in his playing and coaching journey, he has elevated those around him — student-athletes, staff and the broader community — through his energy, his standards and his ability to connect.
“While Gerry’s deep connection to Syracuse is meaningful, it’s simply a bonus to what he brings as a coach and leader. He honors our past, but he is driven to build for the future. This is a critical moment for Syracuse basketball, and it will take all of us — everyone connected to Syracuse University, Syracuse Athletics and Central New York — locking arms and supporting this program like never before. We welcome Gerry home and can’t wait to see where he takes our program.”
Autry, also a former star player at Syracuse, was fired earlier this month after the Orange missed out on the NCAA Tournament in each of his three seasons at the helm.
Syracuse did not qualify for each of the last five NCAA Tournaments, which represents the school’s longest dry spell since 1967-72. From 1973 to 2021, the Orange participated in 39 of the 48 tournaments.
Siena praised McNamara in a statement issued Tuesday and said a national search for his successor would begin immediately.
“Gerry led our Saints with character, grace, and integrity, and built a basketball program that our community was proud of, while reinvigorating our fan base.” the statement read.
“While we would have loved for him to stay at Siena and build upon the success he created, we recognize the unique opportunity for Gerry to return to his alma mater, where he won a National Championship.”
–Field Level Media
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