SALT LAKE CITY – Will Barton is a man who lives and breathes basketball during every second of every single day. It does not matter if Barton is back in his hometown of Baltimore playing pick-up games on concrete courts under the sun or if he is on the road with the Denver Nuggets getting ready to play in Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City against the Utah Jazz.
“I’m a baller,” Barton explained back in March of 2017. “I’m one of the guys who will play 5-on-5 in the gym all day until whoever quits. That’s just who I’ve been my whole life so I don’t even think about it.
“I’m just happy to be out there playing. This could go on forever if it’s up to me.”
That is why Barton’s hip/core injury was such a devastating blow to him and his mental state. His injury required surgery so, for the next 39 games, over the span of about three months, Barton was unable to play the sport that he loves so much. For a man who has built his life around the game of basketball, to have it abruptly stolen from him felt cruel.
“It was tough on me,” Barton explained after originally getting hurt. “I have never been seriously injured. I have never had surgery before. I have never really had to miss this much time from basketball so it is tough; especially watching games and knowing I won’t be back for a while. Usually, when I miss a game, I know I’ll be back probably after game or two, but now knowing I won’t be back for a while is tough. You are always watching and you’re always a competition even when you’re not playing.”
Now, after a total of 85 days away from the game of basketball, Barton is finally back playing the sport that he adores so much, but their are still hurdles to overcome before he gets back to his former self.
The next step for Barton is to shake off all of the rust that he has accumulated over the better part of three months and, according to Barton himself, he is well on his way back and has already cleared one of the tougher obstacles standing in his way on his path back to full strength.
“My confidence is back,” Barton exclaimed.
For Barton, it seems like confidence has never been an issue, but take a step back and view his situation from a 10,000 foot view. Barton has never once had a surgical procedure of any kind. Barton has never been away from basketball for more than two or three weeks. Barton has never dealt with a serious injury of any kind. For someone who clearly loves basketball as much as anyone on the face of the earth, that is quite a bit of worry to be dealing with which tends to lead to a deflation of confidence.
Well, those issues are now in the rear-view mirror for the man they call ‘Thrill’. Barton has now played in four games since returning from injury and he could not be more excited to be back on the floor, but that does not mean Barton is content with where he is at.
“I was overjoyed (to be back), but now it is time to get back to who I am,” Barton explained at shootaround in Utah prior to taking on the Jazz.
Barton has played in four games since returning from injury and the rust in his game has been clear. Over the four games that Barton has played in, he is averaging just 7.3 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game while shooting just 26.5 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from 3-point range.
“Like I said, it’s a process going from stage to stage,” Barton explained. “At first you’re just happy and blessed to be back; you don’t want to think about nothing — just happy to be playing, no matter how many minutes you play in or whatever. You just want to be one of the guys because you’ve been away for so long.”
There is no doubt in the mind of anyone in the Nuggets organization that Barton will return to the best version of himself which should frighten the rest of the NBA. The Nuggets, prior to taking on the Jazz on Wednesday night, are 31-14 which places them as the second seed in the gauntlet of death that is the Western Conference and Denver has only had all five players in their starting lineup active for a total of six games.
“I think the fact that it is this late in the year and we are second in the Western Conference while being the second-youngest roster in the NBA (with) the most games missed due to injury — I think the potential is scary,” Malone explained at shootaround in Utah on Wednesday morning. “We knew that we had a very deep team and a very talented team, but to be doing what we are doing with the youth and the injuries is kind of remarkable. So, now that we are getting Gary back, now that we get Will Barton back, Juancho back hopefully soon, Isaiah Thomas in the future; I think we have one of the deeper teams in the NBA. Now the question is can you get guys on the floor and create that on-court chemistry this late in the year.? I love our team and I love where we are at and, more importantly, I love what the future holds.”
For Denver to be this good with their opening night starting lineup only logging 46 total minutes together in 45 games is absolutely absurd. Even more insane is that the starting unit of Barton, Jamal Murray, Gary Harris, Nikola Jokic, and Paul Millsap has a net rating of +30.5 which essentially means that when those five share the court, the Nuggets are virtually unbeatable.
But possibilities and potentials are not on Barton’s mind. All that he is focused on right now is collecting wins, getting back to the player he was, and then continuing to improve his game from that point forward.
“Now, it’s time to take the next step and become the player I was, who I am, and be even better than that,” Barton said after shootaround.
