Cheers/Jeers: More Rockies trade talk, CSU hoops and girl dads

This week will likely go down as one of the darkest in professional sports — or really athletics in general — with the tragic passing of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and seven others in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California.

But from that tragedy arose things worthy of cheering. Mamba forever.

Here’s the best, and worst, of this week in the sports world:

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CHEERS | CSU men’s hoops

In an ever-important, back-and-forth conference battle Wednesday with the Nevada Wolfpack, the Colorado State Rams pulled off a stunner in dramatic fashion.

Down 91-90 with 5.3 seconds left, Rams freshman Isaiah Stevens raced down the floor, put up a jumper just inside the arc and swooshed Nevada right out of Moby Arena.

Between this up-and-coming CSU squad and the No. 20 ranked CU Buffs (as of Thursday night), hoops on the Front Range seem to be heating up.

.@isaiahstevens7 with the GAME WINNER!!!! WHAT A FINISH!!!#TeamTogether pic.twitter.com/gValkIMrS6

— Colorado State Men’s Basketball (@CSUMBasketball) January 30, 2020

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JEERS | Swapping third basemen

Just hours after news broke that Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant lost his service time grievance against his club came a report that Chicago had discussed a one-for-one trade for Colorado Rockies all-star Nolan Arenado.

And the kicker? Colorado would eat some of Arenado’s salary.

At the plate, the trade would essentially be a wash, with Arenado and Bryant hovering around the 25 wins mark in offensive WAR. But defensively, no question the patroller of the Rockies hot corner far outshines his contemporary.

Yes, Arenado’s disgruntled (Bryant likely is as well), which could make for chemistry issues in the clubhouse. But you’ve got a future Hall of Famer locked up for at least two more seasons at a fairly reasonable number.

The Rockies front office needs to avoid any knee-jerking here in the next weeks and months.

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CHEERS | Nikola Jokic goes back-to-back

For the first time in a decade, the Denver Nuggets will be represented in back-to-back NBA All-Star Games by the same player.

With being named as a Western Conference reserve for the exhibition next month, Jokic becomes the first Nuggets player to earn consecutive All-Star nods since Carmelo Anthony did it in 2009-’10 and 2010-’11.

Jokic then followed up the news by leading Denver to a crucial conference win over the Utah Jazz on Thursday with 28 points and 10 assists.

Not bad for a day’s work.

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JEERS | The Pro Football Hall of Fame voters

Maybe this is premature. Maybe it’s a poor attempt at reverse psychology.

But there seems to be a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach that the Pro Football Hall of Fame voters — who’ll cast their ballots for the 2020 modern-era class this weekend — will once again get it tragically wrong like they did with Randy Gradishar earlier this month.

Steve Atwater and John Lynch clearly have Hall of Fame credentials, but with Troy Polamalu likely a first-ballot lock, it’s possible one or both former Broncos safeties won’t make the final cut this year.

At least there some solace in the fact that, perhaps, the voters might want to put Lynch and Atwater in the same Hall of Fame Class as Peyton Manning, who’ll be enshrined next year barring some unforeseen circumstance.

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CHEERS | Girl dads

If there’s any light to come out of the darkness that is the tragic death of Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and seven others on Sunday, it’s the NBA great’s passion for raising four daughters.

Among myriad tributes that poured in following the former Los Angeles Lakers star’s death was Elle Duncan’s poignant retelling of her one and only interaction with Bryant.

What followed the SportsCenter segment was an outpouring of proud papas beaming about their daughters. The hashtag #girldad went viral.

Bryant’s unconditional love for his daughters very well may be his lasting impact on the world, bigger than anything he did on the court.