👋 Good Morning!

It’s been an eventful stretch since the last newsletter. Nuggets fans have gone through an emotional rollercoaster — something we’ll talk about in just a moment. The Avs also signed Brent Burns in what could be a Ray Borque 2.0 scenario. Could you imagine how cool it would be to see the 21-year NHL veteran hoist the cup in the Burgundy & Blue?

What I want to touch on real quick, though, is Joey Chestnut. You might have thought we were past talking about him but I appreciate true greatness. He walked back out on that platform after being introduced like a WWE character and pounded over 70 hot dogs (and buns) in 10 minutes. It was amazing. It was disgusting. I was in awe the whole time.

If you’ve never seen the 30-for-30 on the Chestnut-Kobayashi rivalry and the bizarre world of competitive eating, it’s genuinely a really interesting watch. It just might ruin a couple of things for you like chicken wings, hot dogs, etc.

— Justin Michael

I admittedly felt some skepticism when the Nuggets announced instead of having one person in a traditional general manager role it would be the duo of Jon Wallace and Ben Tenzer running the show. It was nothing against either individual. Hiring a couple of first timers instead of an established name was just a bit jarring in the moment. It had a whiff of Rockies MO. Like instead of going all in to surround the best player in the world with the best possible resources, the Kroenkes were trying to save a few bucks.

Flash forward a couple of weeks and having now seen the results of their savvy moves to shore up the roster, I’m excited about the direction of the Nuggets. There are no guarantees with this process but on paper the team looks great. In terms of how the cap has been managed, depth has been created, etc, Denver is night and day from where they were at going into the offseason.

Aside from all the roster moves, I think the most encouraging thing the new front office has done through all of this is managing a weird weekend of Jonas Valanciunas news. The 33 year-old big man showing legitimate interest in leaving the NBA for Panathinaikos (Euro League) is disappointing. But I love that the Nuggets are holding firm and not letting him essentially buy himself out of his contract.

The Nuggets need a playable rotational big to take some miles off of Nikola Jokić. Valanciunas is the best player they’ve had to serve that role. If he wants to go play in Greece after this season, well, so be it. Help this team get through the West on your way out though. We’ve got a title to chase.

Nique Clifford and Isaiah Stevens have been reunited in the NBA. The Kings announced their Summer League roster over the weekend and the legendary CSU point guard has signed with the team after a solid stint on a two-way deal with Miami.

Hunter Goodman has been selected as the representative for the Rockies in the MLB All-Star game. While the Rox are a disaster and just lost a series to the White Sox, Goodman is a deserving participant in the midsummer classic. The 25 year-old leads NL catchers in hits (86), home runs (16) and RBI (50).

Brent Burns was a guy the Avs faced fairly regularly for close to two decades during his time with Minnesota and San Jose. After a three-year stretch in Carolina, he’ll continue his pursuit of a championship in Colorado now.

READ: Avs add to defense, bring in former Norris Trophy winner Brent Burns | by AJ Haefele