Denver Nuggets Season in Review

By Jon Gallagher

Is it possible to have the greatest season in franchise history, and at the same time still have an incredibly disappointing finish? The Denver Nuggets (and I) believe so.

Although the season began on October 29th, the Denver Nuggets season didn't really begin until about ten days later, when they made the blockbuster trade moving Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups. They were 1-3 at the time, they went on to set a franchise record with 54 wins, good enough to win the Northwest division and the #2 seed in the West. There are a lot of great story lines for this Nugget team, but the Chauncey Billups homecoming is at the heart of all the action. This team was probably on their way to a quick playoff exit, if not missing the playoffs altogether. Chauncey turned them into a championship contender.

Chauncey is not the only highlight of the Nuggets season. Carmelo Anthony has turned into a bonafide superstar. He's not the best player in the game, but he has staked his claim as one of the best, and is arguably the best pure scorer. He also figured it out on the other end of the floor, with a career high in rebounds as well as learning that it takes a little defense to win championships.

Chris "the Birdman" Andersen established himself as a cult hero here in Denver, coming off the bench to be 2nd in the league in blocked shots and the established crowd electrifier. Nene came back from cancer and finally had an injury free season, establishing himself as one of the better big men in the West. He still hasn't put it all together, but he's proven he's worthy of his big contract. Kenyon Martin also had an injury free season and was incredibly valuable, especially providing toughness on the defensive end. JR Smith made strides coming off the bench as one of the best 6th men in the game and a frighteningly dangerous scorer. Linas Kleiza had a lousy year, but was probably Denver's 3rd best player in the last couple games against the Lakers, showing signs of life. Dahntay Jones came out of D-League hell and established himself as a capable NBA starter who can be a pest on defense and can electrify a crowd with his pure athleticism to throw down a monster dunk.

The Nuggets as a team won their first playoff series since 1994, annihilating the Hornets in 5 games including a 58-point blowout, the biggest home loss in NBA history. They breezed through Dirk's Dallas Mavericks, also in 5, and made it to their first conference finals since 1985 (third ever). They came closer than ever to a finals appearance with two wins in the conference finals. But it still managed to end in some disappointment, the Black Mamba was just too much.

The Nuggets believed they were the more talented team in the conference finals, and top to bottom they probably are. But Kobe has that championship pedigree, and as much as I hate his guts, he knows how to win and how to close a series. This Nuggets team just didn't know how to win like the Lakers did. A Lamar Odom sighting in Games 5 and 6 combined with a terrible performance by Chauncey from the 4th quarter of Game 5 on, and Carmelo Anthony forgetting that defense got them there in game 6 led to the Lakers moving on. It is disappointing because they are physically the superior team to LA, but mentally they just weren't there yet. The Lakers had the fortitude to gut out back to back difficult series to move on. It also hurt that Game 6 was their worst performance in a meaningful game in weeks, maybe months (probably going back to the end of February when they got destroyed by Boston in Denver).

The future is bright in Nuggetland. Every key player should be back. The free agents are the Birdman, Jones, and Anthony Carter. All three want to be back, I'm hoping they dump Anthony Carter's worthless ass, show Birdman some money (definitely worth a couple million), and bring back Dahntay Jones for his defensive tenacity, although on the cheap. If he asks for too much let his go, you can find guys like him all across the D League and Europe. They also have the benefit of having a full off-season and training camp with Chauncey, if Carmelo continues to grow, and JR Smith figures out how to show up with consistency, they should be among the favorites to win it all. Chauncey will be making an 8th consecutive trip to the conference finals next year, and with just a little growth, the Denver Nuggets will be on their way to their first Finals appearance in 2010, where anything is possible.