If you listened to Tuesday’s episode of “The Bill Simmons Podcast,” you were probably surprised to hear the name of a beloved member of the Denver Nuggets mentioned by Simmons. Simmons, while discussing the threat that the Los Angeles Lakers pose to young teams in a playoff series, stated that if you are a young team like the Memphis Grizzlies or the Denver Nuggets, and “you got guys like Monte Morris and people like that,” that you were going to feel the effects of clutch plays from LeBron James and the experienced Lakers team. Simmons was trying to make a point that regardless of the Lakers’ success in the regular season, they are a team that will surely intimidate young teams with little playoff experience. It was therefore more than a little strange that he used Monte Morris as an example as a player that would be overwhelmed in the moment, considering that Morris has played in numerous playoff series and was a big part of the Nuggets’ first round playoff victory last season when they were missing Jamal Murray.
The irony was not lost on Morris, as he took to social media after reading a tweet from Harrison Wind of DNVR in which he shared the clip of the shoutout.
It’s clear that Morris was confused by Simmons’ comment considering that, for his age, he has quite a bit of playoff experience. The timing is also interesting given that a week prior, Morris hit one of the most clutch shots a player can make against the Golden State Warriors to give his team the win.
Thankfully for Morris, he will have an opportunity to once again prove himself in a couple of months when the Nuggets attempt to make another deep run in the playoffs. Hopefully he will no longer be deemed as a player that can’t hold his own in an intense playoff battle.
