The art of artfully helping a legend close out a career with dignity ends up, most times, looking more like scribble.
It's messy.
It's unscripted.
It falls prey to the bullheadedness of the star, and to a high or low level of thoughtfulness of the organization.
The toughest day of basketball I've watched this season was the Nuggets' trip to Los Angeles to face the Lakers. That night, Kobe Bryant, a living legend, looked like a mere mortal. Air balls. No late game takeover. No explosion to the rim.
Mortal.
That was the fourth game of the season.