Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets will pick 20th in the 2005 NBA Draft; the pick was acquired from Washington via Orlando. Finally, they traded Casey Fossum to the Devil Rays for José Cruz, Jr.. After winning an incredible game one at San Antonio, the Nuggets proceeded to lose the next four games and lost the series 4-1. Then, they traded Randy Johnson to the Yankees, while acquiring Javier Vazquez, Brad Halsey and Shawn Green in a three-team trade that included the Dodgers, and sent Shea Hillenbrand to the Blue Jays. In the playoffs, however, the Nuggets could not survive the powerhouse defense of Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs. The club signed 3B Troy Glaus, P Russ Ortiz, SS Royce Clayton, and 2B Craig Counsell, among others. Karl lived up to his reputation by leading the team to an astounding record of 32-8 in the 2nd half of the regular season which vaulted the team into the playoffs for the 2nd consecutive year. Following the Backman incident, the Diamondbacks spent on free agents in order to build a contender.

On December 28, 2004, head coach Jeff Bzdelik was fired from the organization and replaced by interim Nuggets coach, former Los Angeles Laker player and Los Angeles Sparks head coach Michael Cooper, before finally hiring veteran coach George Karl. Backman was then fired after a legal dispute, and Bob Melvin became the new manager after Backman's ten day tenure. They were eliminated in the first round four games to one by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Backman was formerly manager of the Class A California League Lancaster JetHawks, one of the Diamondbacks' minor-league affilliates. In April, the turnaround was complete as they became the first franchise in NBA history to qualify for the postseason following a sub 20 win campaign the previous year. Following the season, the Diamondbacks hired Wally Backman to be the team's manager. Much of of the reason for this incredible turnaround were the front-office moves of General Manager Kiki Vandeweghe a former Nuggets player who assumed General Manager duties August,9 2001 adding crucial personnel including: point guard Andre Miller, power forward Nènè, point guard Earl Boykins, Center Marcus Camby and shooting gaurd Jon Barry. By the 2004 season, however, the Diamondbacks had dropped to a dismal 51-111 record. Manager Bob Brenly was fired partway through the season and was replaced on an interim basis by Al Pedrique.

In just two months of the season, they recorded more wins than they had in 5 1/2 months of play in 2002-03. See 2001 World Series. The team has shown signs of another renaissance for the 2003-04, with the drafting of Carmelo Anthony and yet another uniform change (light blue and yellow). Louis Cardinals (3-2 in the NLDS), the Atlanta Braves (4-1 in the NLCS), to advance to the World Series where, in one of the most exciting series ever, they beat the reigning champions, the New York Yankees, 4 to 3, to become the youngest expansion franchise to win the championship. Ironically, Cleveland (LeBron James) and Denver (Carmelo Anthony) would eventually have a twin pair of rookie dynamos enter their ranks the very next year. In 2001, Arizona had postseason victories over the St. They tied for the worst record in the NBA in 2002-03 with the Cleveland Cavaliers. They lost to the New York Mets in the first round of playoffs.

Denver was an also-ran for nearly a decade, and flirted with having the worst record in a season in 1997-98, winning only 11 games in an 82 game season. In 1999, Arizona won over 100 games in only its second season to win the National League West division. The team had a brief resurgence in 1993-94 (a year they ditched their rainbow colors for a dark blue and gold scheme) finishing 42-40 and stunning the top-seeded Supersonics in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, falling to the Utah Jazz in game six of the second round, but it was a rare highlight following Moe's departure. In their first five seasons of existence, the Diamondbacks won three division titles (1999, 2001, & 2002) and one World Series. Moe left the team in 1990, and his departure ended their run as a competitive franchise. They are in the National League West division. Only once, in 1984-85, did they even make it to the conference finals, and that year they lost in 5 games to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Arizona Diamondbacks are a Major League Baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona.

It was a novel strategy, but it rarely led to playoff success. Missoula Osprey. 1980s Denver Nuggets basketball teams would often score in excess of 115 points a game, and during one full season, 1981-82, they did not fail to score 100 points in any game. Lancaster JetHawks
South Bend Silver Hawks
Yakima Bears. Moe brought with him a "run and gun" philosophy, a style of play focusing on attempting to score rapidly with little interest in defense, and it helped the team become highly competitive. Tennessee Smokies. It ended in 1981, when they hired Doug Moe as a head coach. Tucson Sidewinders.

Brown left the team in 1979, helping usher in a brief decline in their team's performance. National League
. However, neither of these teams were ultimately successful in the postseason. Pitching Strikeouts: 372 Randy Johnson (2001). Led by Dan Issel (http://www.nba.com/history/players/issel_summary.html), Bobby Jones (http://www.remembertheaba.com/TributeMaterial/BobbyJones.html), and David Thompson (http://www.nba.com/history/thompson_bio.html), Denver (and their memorable rainbow-striped jerseys) were quite strong early on in the NBA, as they won division titles in their first two seasons in the league, and missed a third by a single game. Pitching Wins: 24 Randy Johnson (2002). They would get no second chance to win a league championship, as the ABA merger occurred during the off-season. Hitting Streak: 30 games - Luis Gonzalez (1999).

With Larry Brown coaching, they had their best seasons in team history in their first two seasons as the Nuggets, with the team making the ABA finals in 1975-76. Stolen Bases: 72 Tony Womack (1999). In 1974, the team was renamed the Nuggets, a nickname first used by a 1949-50 NBA franchise. Triples: 14 Tony Womack (2000). Haywood averaged 30 points in his only ABA season, then was allowed to sign with the Seattle SuperSonics to start a productive NBA career. Doubles: 47 Luis Gonzalez (2000). Haywood was one of the first players to turn pro before graduating college, and the NBA initially refused to let him play in the league. Runs: 132 Jay Bell (1999).

During the 1969-1970 season, the team also had a controversial rookie named Spencer Haywood. Hits: 206 Luis Gonzalez (1999). They had a solid lineup led by Byron Beck (http://www.nba.com/nuggets/history/byron_beck_retire.html) and Larry Jones, then later by Beck and Ralph Simpson (http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SAMPSRA01). Batting Average: .336 Luis Gonzalez (1999). However, they tended to struggle in the postseason and failed to make a championship game during this span. Runs Batted In: 142 Matt Williams (1999), Luis Gonzalez (2001). One of 4 ABA teams that joined the NBA through a league merger in 1976, they were known as the Rockets for their first 7 years of existence, and were very strong in their early years. Home Runs: 57 Luis Gonzalez (2001).

The Denver Nuggets are a National Basketball Association team based in Denver, Colorado. 42 Jackie Robinson (retired throughout baseball). Bryon Russell (Long Beach State). Tony Womack. Wesley Person (Auburn). Matt Williams. Dermarr Johnson (University of Cincinnati). Curt Schilling.

Nenê (Brazil). Randy Johnson. Eduardo Najera (Oklahoma). Mark Grace. Andre Miller (Utah). Steve Finley. Kenyon Martin (University of Cincinnati). David Dellucci.

Francisco Elson (California). Greg Colbrunn. Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse).   2 Brett Butler (first base). Greg Buckner (Clemson). 14 Carlos Tosca (third base). Marcus Camby (Massachusettes).   8 Mike Aldrete (hitting).

Earl Boykins (Eastern Michigan). 53 Glenn Sherlock (bullpen). 44 Dan Issel. 13 Mark Davis (pitching). 40 Byron Beck. 33 Jay Bell (bench). 33 David Thompson. Coaches