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Stephen A. Smith does not want to return to Denver for NBA Finals

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Stephen A. Smith does not want to return to Denver for NBA Finals


The Boston Celtics won their 11th straight on Sunday and the Denver Nuggets vaulted into first place mid-afternoon thanks to some help and on the back of their own six-game winning streak.

The NBA seems to be shaping up for an NBA Finals matchup the world just missed out on last year, the Celtics against the Nuggets. And what could be better than finally seeing the leprechauns take on the pickaxes, they’ve easily been the two best teams in basketball the last handful of years. For Stephen A. Smith, a trip to Texas seems more appealing than what would be that incredible series.

“I’m not coming around to that (going to Denver,)” he said on ABC on Sunday after Boston’s win. “I’m holding out for the Clippers, I’m holding out hope for Dallas.”

ABC has the rights to the NBA Finals, and the whole barrage of buffoons who have said brainless things in the past, descended on the Mile High City last summer only to see the Nuggets go 16-4 en route to the club’s first championship. Later in the summer, ESPN fired two separate members of their main broadcast booth, who possibly not so coincidentally, had been cruel to Jokic in the past. A third ESPN broadcaster who has been highly critical of Jokic in the past was also demoted down the broadcast team depth chart.

It’s Smith’s second time in less than 24 hours that he has been upset by the Nuggets success. The outspoken star of ESPN unloaded on the Lakers after the Nuggets win in Los Angeles on Saturday night. On ABC’s postgame show, he gave almost zero credit to Denver for beating LeBron James’ crew for an eighth-straight time and focused solely on how the Lakers championship aspirations are not being met.

Smith seems to be just another in the long line of ESPN commentators who have begrudged against Denver’s success at best and have straight-up sabotaged it at worst. On top of the gripes about Jokic and the Nuggets now comes some weak hate for the city of Denver.

A city by the way that loves sports so much that it’s the center of the country’s smallest metro area to host a team in all five major North American leagues.

And Colorado certainly seemed good enough for Smith when he sent First Take and every other ESPN show on the road to Boulder for a weekend with Deion Sanders’ Buffaloes last fall. A few months later he’d throw out Deion Sanders’ name as a possible Nick Saban replacement at Alabama. Smith said while discrediting the state and insinuating success in the state wouldn’t be real, “Go ahead and be happy in Boulder, Colorado. God bless you… I was there twice in my life and the only reason for that was him.”

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But Smith wouldn’t be the first one to prefer Dallas and other cities over Denver, FIFA did the same when they picked World Cup hosting sites for the 2026 event. Though, in that case, the arena size made sense whereas on the hardwood, the Mavericks failed to make it to the playoffs last year and the Nuggets haven’t been that low since 2018.

A few years later now, we may have the answer to a couple of questions we had earlier in Denver’s build to this title team. Would Jokic need to become an All-Star or even an MVP to get a better whistle? He has done each and the whistle has not followed. And would Jokic’s Nuggets need to win a title to garner league-wide respect? The team accomplished their ring and for a short time had that respect but less than a year later, it’s almost all but been forgotten by the league’s main broadcast partner.

It’s these questions and answers that led to Michael Malone’s legendary vindictive quotes during and after the Nuggets playoff run. And it’s this very attitude by ESPN and their broadcasters that had the entire city of Denver boo-ing a member of the four-letter network’s crew, Lisa Salters, as she handed Jokic his Finals MVP.

Well here the Nuggets are again, back at the top of the West and the NBA’s biggest partner is vocally once more.

Maybe NBA star Kevin Durant said it the best one time on Twitter, “NBA fans don’t like anything about the NBA and it’s weird.”

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Proposed September 2026 Service Changes

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Proposed September 2026 Service Changes


RTD’s Proposed September Service Changes are designed to further enhance and strengthen RTD’s transit network by refining service, improving reliability, and better aligning resources with customer needs.

As part of the September 2026 Service Change, RTD is advancing a coordinated set of transit service enhancements designed to strengthen reliability, restore key frequencies, and improve access to major destinations across the system. These proposed changes reflect observed utilization trends, operational performance, and lessons learned during recent reconstruction activities, while maintaining flexibility for future evaluation and adjustment. Several of the recommended enhancements are supported by Clean Transit Enterprise (CTE) grant funding and are intended to restore and expand service consistent with the System Optimization Plan (SOP), noting that final CTE allocations are still in development. 

You can view all the proposed changes below and learn more by watching our presentation in English or Spanish.

Customer feedback on the Proposed September Service Changes will be collected through July 8. We invite you to virtually attend our public meetings and Ask a Service Planner sessions, or share your feedback through the online survey. Customer feedback is important to RTD, and we thank you for participating however you can!

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Public Meetings

Interpretation is available at no cost. Call 303.299.2051 or email [email protected] at least 5 business days before the meeting and tell us the meeting name, date, and the language(s) you need.

Ask a Service Planner 1: Monday, June 22 at noon

Public Meeting 1: Monday, June 22 at 5:30 p.m.

Ask a Service Planner 2: Tuesday, June 23 at noon

Public Meeting 2: Wednesday, June 24 at 5:30 p.m.

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Proposed September 2026 Service Changes

In addition to the routes listed below, the following routes also have proposed changes:

23 – West 20th Avenue

Route Adjustment, Schedule Timing

Proposed Change

It is proposed to split the existing Route 20 into Route 20 and Route 23, with Route 23 serving the western portion of Route 20 along 20th Ave., terminating at Union Station on the eastern end.

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Reason

Maintains connectivity between Lakewood and Edgewater to downtown Denver.

Updated Map

Survey Link

AL – Denver International Airport to Longmont

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Service Increase

Proposed Change

New route would provide hourly service from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, with service operating from 8th Ave. and Coffman St. to US 287 with a stop at Niwot Park-n-Ride and into Lafayette Park-n-Ride to E-470 to Denver International Airport (DEN).

Reason

Requested by policymakers, stakeholders and customers, service will provide connections from Longmont to Denver Airport via the Lafayette Park-n-Ride

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Updated Map

Survey Link

BMFX – Broomfield FlexRide

Service Increase

Proposed Change

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Extend weekday service to 9 p.m., with an extra vehicle added during a.m. and p.m. peaks. Add a second vehicle during Saturday peak hours; and implement Sunday service from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Reason

The City and County of Broomfield requested additional service, which can be supported through available grant funding.

Survey Link

WGFX – Wagon Road FlexRide

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Service Reduction

Proposed Change

Discontinue service.

Reason

Low utilization, with service averaging 1 boarding per hour at a cost of $158.33 per boarding.

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Survey Link

Dashboard: Routes and Lines

A

Union Station – Denver Airport

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Service Reduction

C

Littleton•Mineral – Union Station

  1. Service Increase

D

18th•California – Littleton•Mineral Station

  1. Service Reduction

L

30th•Downing – 16th•Stout

  1. Route Adjustment

T

Lincoln Station – I-25•Broadway Station

  1. Schedule Timing

W

Union Station – JeffCo Gov’t Center•Golden Station

  1. Schedule Timing

1

West 1st Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing

9

West 10th Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

10

East 12th Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

11

Mississippi Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

14

West Florida Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing

15

East Colfax Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

15L

East Colfax Limited

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

20

20th Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment
  3. Route Adjustment

24

University Blvd

  1. Seasonal Adjustment

32

West 32nd Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

35

Hampden Avenue

  1. Service Increase
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

37

Smith Road Industrial

  1. Schedule Timing

42

Montbello via Albrook / Green Valley Ranch

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

45

Montbello / Green Valley Ranch

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

51

Sheridan Blvd

  1. Service Increase
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

52

West 52nd Avenue / South Bannock

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

53

North Sheridan Blvd / Broomfield

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

59

West Bowles

  1. Route Adjustment

65

Monaco Parkway

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

72

72nd Avenue

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Service Increase
  3. Route Adjustment

73

Quebec Street

  1. Seasonal Adjustment
  2. Route Adjustment

83L

Cherry Creek / Parker Road Limited

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Route Adjustment

105

Havana Street

  1. Schedule Timing

153

Chambers Road

  1. Schedule Timing

204

Table Mesa / Moorhead / North 19th

  1. Schedule Timing

206

Conestoga / Arapahoe / Fairview High School

  1. Schedule Timing

225

Boulder / Lafayette via Baseline

  1. Seasonal Adjustment
  2. Route Adjustment

228

Lafayette / Louisville / Broomfield

  1. Service Reduction

323

Skyline Crosstown

  1. Schedule Timing

AB1

Airport to Boulder

  1. Schedule Timing

AB2

Airport to Boulder

  1. Schedule Timing

ART

Art District Connector

  1. Route Adjustment

DASH

Boulder / Lafayette via Louisville

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment
  3. Route Adjustment

FREERIDE

16th Street FreeRide

  1. Schedule Timing

JUMP

Boulder / Lafayette / Erie via Arapahoe

  1. Route Adjustment

LD

Longmont / Denver

  1. Schedule Timing

LX2

Longmont / Denver Express

  1. Schedule Timing

NB1

Boulder / Nederland / Eldora

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment
  3. Route Adjustment

NB2

Boulder / Nederland / Eldora

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment
  3. Route Adjustment

SKIP

Broadway (Boulder)

  1. Schedule Timing
  2. Seasonal Adjustment

ILFX

Interlocken / Westmoor FlexRide

  1. Service Increase



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Denver, CO

Fire destroys home under construction in northwest Denver

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Fire destroys home under construction in northwest Denver


DENVER (KDVR) — An early morning fire on Friday left a home completely ablaze in the Highlands neighborhood, just a week after another house under construction went up in flames in the same area.

The Denver Fire Department shared photos of the incident, as crews were called to 3643 Mariposa, where images show a fully consumed home under construction.

“I think they [firefighters] kicked in the neighbor’s door just to make sure nobody was at home,” neighbors Lucy and Kyle said. “Some of the other houses, their windows got blown out from the heat!”

Just 11 days earlier, on June 8, a home under construction caught fire in the same neighborhood near West 33rd and Navajo. Nobody was hurt in either fire.

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And just about two years earlier, in July, another fire in the same area ignited around West 36th and Osage. All of the properties are/were under development by the same group.

“I wasn’t present for any of the fires,” Ryan Yoffe, a member of the developer group, said.

Yoffe does say he thinks he knows how the last two fires had been set, saying it’s the City of Denver that needs to do better with surveillance.

“It’s likely related to the amount of homelessness in the area, looking for properties under construction to live in or burn down,” Yoffe said. “The City and the Police Department need to do a better job patrolling to limit the number of homeless people camping in the neighborhood.”

Denver Fire Department officials say the most recent incidents are under investigation, but that nobody was hurt in either.

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Denver, CO

Rockies ride Kyle Freeland’s gem, Braxton Fulford’s double to 4-3 win over Pirates

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Rockies ride Kyle Freeland’s gem, Braxton Fulford’s double to 4-3 win over Pirates


The night belonged to Kyle Freeland, who joined the 1,000 K Club. The moment belonged to Braxton Fulford. The ninth inning — and a big sigh of relief — belonged to closer Antonio Senzatela.

Fulford hit a two-run, two-out, pinch-hit double in the eighth inning off Mason Montgomery to lead the Rockies to a 4-3 win over the Pirates at Coors Field in front of a Friday night crowd of 33,596.

Fulford drove in Tyler Freeman and Cole Carrigg, who scratched out back-to-back two-out singles off Montgomery.

“I had been warming up in the cage for that at-bat for a couple of innings, so I felt pretty prepared,” Fulford said. “I got an advantage count (3-1) and I knew he was going to come with the heater and I was all over it.”

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Fulford caught Montgomery for three seasons at Texas Tech, so he knew the left-hander’s tendencies.

“It’s kind of unfortunate for pitchers that you catch, because you kind of get to see their stuff,” Fulford said. “You kind of understand more of who they are. So I do feel like I had the advantage there.”

In the ninth, the Pirates loaded the bases against Senzatela with no outs on a single by Marcell Ozuna and an error on a groundball by shortstop Ezequiel Tovar. But Senzatela struck out pinch-hitter Tyler Callihan and induced Jared Triolo to ground to Tovar, who started the game-ending double play.

“It was kind of a crazy ending to the game — bases loaded and no outs,” Freeland said. ” ‘Senza’ got a big punchout in that situation, picks up Tovar. Then Tovar gets another opportunity to turn a double play, and he gets it done.”

Before all of the late-game drama, Freeland pitched his best game of the season: 7 1/3 innings, two runs allowed on four hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts. It marked the fourth time in his career that he pitched 7 1/3 or more innings.

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“Tonight, I thought he was absolutely exceptional,” manager Warren Schaeffer said. “I thought his body language was impressive. He attacked the strike zone — relentlessly. His heater had good ‘vert’ tonight. The breaker was good. It seemed like he was in control all night.”

“Gritty” is the word often used to describe Freeland. Dominant was a more apt description on Friday night. History-making works, too. Freeland’s eight Ks gave him 1,001 for his career, joining right-hander German Marquez (1,069) as the only two pitchers in franchise history to eclipse 1,000. Freeland struck out Marcell Ozuna in the seventh for No. 1,000, and then promptly fanned Brandon Lowe for 1,001.

The hard-core Rockies fans behind the dugout gave Freeland a standing ovation.

“I’m very grateful for the fans always supporting me, and for making it this long in my career to reach some of these milestones, especially with one ballclub,”  said Freeland, who struck out eight and walked none for the second time in his career. “I definitely hear those fans when I pop out of the dugout after every inning.”

The 33-year-old Denver native blanked the Pirates for the first seven innings, giving up just two hits. Pittsburgh finally got to Freeland in the eighth, putting up back-to-back doubles by Esmerlyn Valdez and Triolo to cut Colorado’s lead to 2-1. Up to that point, it looked as if Freeland had the juice to throw a complete game, especially since he threw just 81 pitches.

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