Why did Nuggets fans expect Michael Malone to go on ESPN and be a cheerleader for a team that unexpectedly canned him on the eve of the playoffs? I’m sure plenty of fans have been fired from a job, and I’m also sure they wouldn’t say a lot of nice things about that former employer.

– MaGee, under-appreciated

Kiz: Malone went on TV and said Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played like the MVP, which he is. Malone added OKC has the best fans in the NBA, and anybody who has been to a Thunder home game would have a tough time arguing otherwise. Fans who cursed Malone for stating facts missed the point worse than a Russell Westbrook air ball. Want to be mad at somebody for the Nuggets’ current predicament? Look no further than Josh Kroenke.

Fearless predictions. No. 1: The Nuggets will hire a new general manager from within the organization. No. 2: They will run it back with the same cast of players, and in the best-case scenario, lose in the conference semifinals again. No. 3: Nikola Jokic will not sign another extension with the Nuggets.

– John, amateur soothsayer

Kiz: While the peeps might reluctantly nod in agreement with your first and second predictions, the anxiety caused by No. 3 will give them nightmares about Jokic wearing a Los Angeles Lakers uniform.

The Nuggets may not have had the horses to beat Oklahoma City in the playoffs. But I sure enjoyed the NBA’s newest idea of partnering with the World Wrestling Entertainment to offer us the best of both sports. Gotta give props to Jokic for not giving Thunder guard Alex Caruso an elbow in that ugly mug of his.

– Joe, rockin’ the Adirondacks

Kiz: If Caruso were Jokic’s teammate instead of a thorn in his side, Joker and the Nuggets would be rolling to another championship right now.

An effective boycott of the Rockies is never going to happen. Denver area residents originally from Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Boston or wherever eventually become fans of the Broncos, Avalanche and Nuggets, rooting for the teams of their new hometown. That’s not the case with the Rockies. Who the heck wants to root for a loser? Transplants will continue to drive attendance at Coors Field until we have an actual major-league baseball team in Colorado.

– Tom, go, Cubs, go!

Kiz: You’ve thrown a strike to the heart of Denver’s baseball problem, my friend. In a city where almost everybody seems to be from somewhere else, it’s easier for a newcomer to get swept up in Broncomania than swim against the orange-and-blue tide. Nathan MacKinnon and Jokic regularly win converts to the Avs and Nuggets with Hall-of-Fame excellence. But the Rockies remind folks how much they miss Mom’s meatloaf and the real major-league baseball team they left behind.

And today’s parting shot is proof that readers notice The Gazette’s commitment to dispatching a columnist from Oklahoma City to Paris in a consistent effort to bring the best sports fans in the USA the coverage they deserve.

Hey, Mr. K: Your coverage of the Nuggets’ postseason run was topped only by your reporting from the Summer Olympics in Paris. Wonderful , incisive, insightful writing.

– M.Z., discerning consumer