Our next franchise is the embodiment of…mediocrity. That sounds harsher than intended; they have won almost exactly half of their games played, with a .499 all-time winning percentage. They started as a successful ABA franchise, winning 60 games or more twice, and competing in the only Finals in team history. Since then, they’ve been a frequent playoff participant (earning a trip in 24 of their 39 NBA seasons), but have never really emerged as a title contender, peaking as a Western Conference finalist twice. The All-Time Denver Nuggets team reflects their standing as a solid yet unspectacular franchise, with good to great players littered throughout the roster, without the all-time legends that many other teams boast.
The starting point guard is triple-double machine Fat Lever, a uniquely gifted all-around player who was a special rebounder for his size (6’3”). Lever was also a threat on the defensive end, ranking in the top 10 in NBA history in both steals per game and steal percentage. The two guard, Hall-of-Famer David Thompson, is a classic ‘what if?’ player, who still was able to dominate both the ABA and NBA in a short period of time before injuries and personal issues derailed his career. At his peak, Thompson was a two-time all-NBA first-team player, who was one of five players to ever score over 70 points in a single game. Off the bench, Chauncey Billups, who spent both early and late years of his career with the Nuggets, provides the team with its best three-point shooting threat (seventh ever in made three point field goals), and another excellent all-around option who can play alongside both starters. Ralph Simpson, a high scorer from the ABA days, will also see minutes at shooting guard.
The frontcourt has a mix of dominant scorers and defensive stoppers. Hall-of-Famer Alex English is a top 20 scorer in NBA history, and will combine with Thompson to form an unstoppable wing combination. He’s backed up by Carmelo Anthony, another deadly scorer with greater size to provide opponents with a different look. A third high-scorer, Kiki Vandeweghe, will back up both forward positions; while none of these three are defensive stoppers, they should be able to outscore most small forward pairings. The starting power forward, Bobby Jones, is best known for his work on the 76ers, but he started out as a three-time all-star on the Nuggets, and provides the starting unit with a much-needed dominating defensive presence. He’s backed up by the explosive Antonio McDyess, a high-flyer with a solid mid-range game whose career was also affected by injuries. The starting center, Hall-of-Famer Dan Issel, made up for his (relatively) small stature with a crafty offensive game and a relentless motor. He’s backed up by two defensive stalwarts, Hall-of-Famer Dikembe Mutombo and Marcus Camby, who each won a Defensive Player of the Year award with Denver.
This team should be tremendously versatile, capable of trotting out quality offensive and defensive lineups. Down the stretch of close games, Mutombo, Jones, Billups and Lever should form a stingy defensive unit, while their high scoring wings and Issel will help them to score on anybody. The 20th seed in our tournament, the Nuggets will face the Sacramento Kings in their first-round match up.
Coach: Larry Brown
All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .499