1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,080 Speaker 1: The word I would use to describe the nineteen nineties 2 00:00:03,120 --> 00:00:07,880 Speaker 1: Denver Nuggets is extreme. Slide extreme definition into Google and 3 00:00:07,960 --> 00:00:10,640 Speaker 1: you'll get the following furthest from the center or a 4 00:00:10,680 --> 00:00:14,360 Speaker 1: given point outer most. I think that captures how the 5 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:17,239 Speaker 1: nineties were in Denver. There were no championships in just 6 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:21,760 Speaker 1: three playoff appearances, so it wasn't extremely good or extremely successful. 7 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:24,720 Speaker 1: It was the type of extreme that you usually don't want. 8 00:00:24,840 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 1: Let's break it down. The Nuggets were one of the 9 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: steadiest franchises in the NBA in the eighties. At the 10 00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:33,680 Speaker 1: center of their team was Alex English, a soft spoken 11 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:36,600 Speaker 1: small forward who was, by the numbers, the best scorer 12 00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:39,839 Speaker 1: of the eighties. Nobody scored more points in the decade 13 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:43,519 Speaker 1: than Alex English, and those points also converted to wins. 14 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:47,479 Speaker 1: English and the Nuggets made nine consecutive postseason appearances from 15 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 1: nineteen eighty two to nineteen ninety, but after English and 16 00:00:51,159 --> 00:00:55,480 Speaker 1: head coach Doug Mo left Denver in nineteen ninety, chaos ensued. 17 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: Dougmo's departure brought in Paul Westhead. West Head was actually 18 00:00:59,880 --> 00:01:03,040 Speaker 1: the head coach of the nineteen eighty Lakers championship team, 19 00:01:03,400 --> 00:01:06,720 Speaker 1: but shortly after that a divide occurred between west Head 20 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:10,200 Speaker 1: and point guard Magic Johnson. The story goes that Westhead 21 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:12,640 Speaker 1: wanted to implement an offense where the head coach had 22 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:15,800 Speaker 1: more power to call plays. Magic wasn't feeling that and 23 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:18,480 Speaker 1: gave the front office an ultimatum, It's either me or 24 00:01:18,520 --> 00:01:22,440 Speaker 1: westthead for what I imagine was an incredibly difficult and 25 00:01:22,560 --> 00:01:26,080 Speaker 1: time consuming decision, the Lakers sided with the most popular 26 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:29,240 Speaker 1: basketball player in the world and fired Paul Westhead. So 27 00:01:29,360 --> 00:01:32,720 Speaker 1: ten years later, Westhead arrives in Denver and again he 28 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: wants to implement a new offense. This offense, he says, 29 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:40,000 Speaker 1: will be unlike anything the NBA has ever seen. He 30 00:01:40,120 --> 00:01:42,480 Speaker 1: proclaimed that the Nuggets would be the first team in 31 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:45,559 Speaker 1: NBA history to score two hundred points in a game. 32 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:49,960 Speaker 1: I would describe that philosophy as rather extreme. West Head 33 00:01:50,040 --> 00:01:52,720 Speaker 1: wasn't lying. The Nuggets did lead the league in points 34 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:55,440 Speaker 1: per game in his first year. The problem is that 35 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:57,919 Speaker 1: they also gave up the most points in the league, 36 00:01:58,160 --> 00:02:01,000 Speaker 1: but not just the nineteen ninety one of all time. 37 00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:03,880 Speaker 1: The ninety one Nuggets gave up just under one hundred 38 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:06,600 Speaker 1: and thirty one points per game, a record that still 39 00:02:06,600 --> 00:02:09,400 Speaker 1: stands to this day. They finished the season twenty and 40 00:02:09,440 --> 00:02:11,960 Speaker 1: sixty two as the worst team in the NBA. The 41 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:16,079 Speaker 1: Westthead Era lasted just one more season, and again Denver suffered. 42 00:02:16,160 --> 00:02:18,320 Speaker 1: They went twenty four and fifty eight, good for the 43 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:21,440 Speaker 1: fourth worst record in the NBA. So in nineteen ninety two, 44 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:25,840 Speaker 1: Westtheads fired and incomes dan issel Thissle spent fifteen years 45 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:28,120 Speaker 1: as a player in the ABA in the NBA, and 46 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:30,880 Speaker 1: ended up in the Hall of Fame. Issle's first move 47 00:02:31,000 --> 00:02:32,799 Speaker 1: was to give the keys of the offense to ma 48 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:36,240 Speaker 1: Mood Abdoureuve, a third year player who they selected number 49 00:02:36,240 --> 00:02:40,320 Speaker 1: three overall in the nineteen ninety draft. Abdourou received spotty 50 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:43,400 Speaker 1: minutes under Westhead in his first two seasons, but with Issel, 51 00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:46,560 Speaker 1: he flourished. In Thissel's first year in nineteen ninety three, 52 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:50,919 Speaker 1: Abdureroof won Most Improved Player. In nineteen ninety four. Issle's 53 00:02:50,919 --> 00:02:53,960 Speaker 1: second season, Denver squeaked into the playoffs as the number 54 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:57,440 Speaker 1: eight seed. Their opponent was the sixty three win number 55 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:01,520 Speaker 1: one seeded Seattle SuperSonics, by far the best and most 56 00:03:01,560 --> 00:03:04,800 Speaker 1: electrifying team in the NBA. Seattle took the first two 57 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:07,560 Speaker 1: games in the five game series by double digits. By 58 00:03:07,600 --> 00:03:11,040 Speaker 1: the number, Denver was doomed. But over the next five days, 59 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:13,639 Speaker 1: the Nuggets took Game three, then a few days later 60 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:16,680 Speaker 1: they took Game four, and finally they took game five. 61 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:19,600 Speaker 1: They became the first eight seed to beat a one 62 00:03:19,600 --> 00:03:22,639 Speaker 1: seed in the playoffs. They almost took the next round, 63 00:03:22,680 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 1: but they fell to Utah in seven games. Over the 64 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:28,959 Speaker 1: next two years, Denver drafted incredibly well. In nineteen ninety five, 65 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:32,079 Speaker 1: they took Michigan standout Jalen Rose, a six foot eight 66 00:03:32,080 --> 00:03:34,680 Speaker 1: point forward who could do nearly everything on the court. 67 00:03:34,880 --> 00:03:38,040 Speaker 1: The next year they nabbed Antonio mcdicce, who entered the 68 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:41,160 Speaker 1: league as a walking double double. So here we are 69 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:45,320 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety six. Denver has abdul Roof at point, Bryan 70 00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: Stith at two, Rose at three, Make Dice at four, 71 00:03:49,000 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 1: and to Kenby Mtumbo at the five. This starting five, 72 00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:54,280 Speaker 1: no matter how you look at it was really solid. 73 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,000 Speaker 1: Mtumbo was the oldest of the group at twenty nine, 74 00:03:57,160 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 1: but everyone else was twenty six or younger. The Nuggs 75 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:01,880 Speaker 1: it seemed to be set up to be a threat 76 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: in the West for years to come, but there was 77 00:04:04,240 --> 00:04:08,680 Speaker 1: no gradual ascension into a Western Conference dynamo for this group. No, 78 00:04:09,400 --> 00:04:11,640 Speaker 1: Rose didn't develop into a two way star in a 79 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:15,480 Speaker 1: Nugget's uniform. Matumbo, already solidified as one of the best 80 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:18,640 Speaker 1: defenders of all time, wouldn't stay a Nugget for life. 81 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:21,719 Speaker 1: In fact, out of those five starters that I named 82 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:25,520 Speaker 1: just a few minutes ago, just one, Bryant Stith, was 83 00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:28,560 Speaker 1: on the team after the nineteen ninety seven season. So 84 00:04:28,720 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: what the hell happened? Well, the first domino fell when 85 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:36,240 Speaker 1: Joe Williams, a local Denver radio host, brought up on 86 00:04:36,440 --> 00:04:40,480 Speaker 1: air that their point guard, Mahmoud Abdureov hadn't been standing 87 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:43,839 Speaker 1: for the National Anthem just a month earlier. Abdu Roof 88 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:46,479 Speaker 1: dropped thirty two points and got the win against Michael 89 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:50,440 Speaker 1: Jordan's seventy two to ten nineteen ninety six Bowls, arguably 90 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:53,400 Speaker 1: the best team of all time. Little did he or 91 00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:55,760 Speaker 1: anybody else know that this would be one of his 92 00:04:55,880 --> 00:04:59,520 Speaker 1: last thirty point games in the NBA. Overnight, abdua Roof 93 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:02,279 Speaker 1: in the Nation Anthem became the biggest sports story in 94 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:05,560 Speaker 1: the world. Just a few months later, after the nineteen 95 00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:09,640 Speaker 1: ninety six season, Denver showed their hand on June thirteenth, 96 00:05:09,839 --> 00:05:13,120 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety six, just two days after the ninety six 97 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:16,480 Speaker 1: Finals ended. In a few months after that radio call, 98 00:05:17,040 --> 00:05:20,599 Speaker 1: Denver made two trades. The first order of business was 99 00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:24,840 Speaker 1: shipping out Abdureuve, who they deemed too controversial. They sent 100 00:05:24,920 --> 00:05:28,960 Speaker 1: him to Sacramento for Sarunas Marcealonis. Marcelonis was a good 101 00:05:28,960 --> 00:05:32,000 Speaker 1: player in a European legend, but he played just seventeen 102 00:05:32,080 --> 00:05:34,960 Speaker 1: games for the Nuggets in nineteen ninety seven before retiring. 103 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:39,520 Speaker 1: On the same exact day, Denver traded Jalen Rose Reggie 104 00:05:39,560 --> 00:05:42,120 Speaker 1: Williams in the tenth overall pick in the ninety six 105 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:46,080 Speaker 1: draft to Indiana for Mark Jackson Ricky Pierce in the 106 00:05:46,160 --> 00:05:49,320 Speaker 1: twenty third pick in the ninety six draft. On paper, 107 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:53,000 Speaker 1: this trade doesn't seem like a disaster. Mark Jackson was 108 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:55,120 Speaker 1: one of the most solid point guards in the NBA 109 00:05:55,400 --> 00:05:57,839 Speaker 1: and Ricky Pierce was a former All Star. But when 110 00:05:57,839 --> 00:06:00,080 Speaker 1: we dig a little bit deeper, you find that not 111 00:06:00,120 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: only was this trade bad, but it was a catastrophe. 112 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:06,039 Speaker 1: Let's start with Mark Jackson. Jackson played just fifty two 113 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:08,840 Speaker 1: games in Denver before they decided to trade him back 114 00:06:08,880 --> 00:06:12,360 Speaker 1: to Indiana for Vincent ask You, who ended up playing 115 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:15,440 Speaker 1: just one game in Denver, and Eddie Johnson, who was 116 00:06:15,520 --> 00:06:18,240 Speaker 1: waived by the team a week after the trade. It 117 00:06:18,240 --> 00:06:21,400 Speaker 1: gets worse. Ricky Pierce played a grand total of thirty 118 00:06:21,440 --> 00:06:24,599 Speaker 1: three games in Denver in nineteen ninety seven before getting 119 00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 1: traded to Charlotte for Anthony Goldwyer and George Zidek. Goldwyre 120 00:06:29,320 --> 00:06:32,440 Speaker 1: averaged eight points per game for Denver across two seasons, 121 00:06:32,560 --> 00:06:34,880 Speaker 1: and Zydec was waived by the team after appearing in 122 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:38,200 Speaker 1: eight games. That alone would deem the trade of failure. 123 00:06:38,440 --> 00:06:41,560 Speaker 1: They sent out Rose, who would play eleven more seasons 124 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:44,240 Speaker 1: in the NBA at a borderline all star level, for 125 00:06:44,360 --> 00:06:47,039 Speaker 1: less than a year of Mark Jackson in thirty three 126 00:06:47,080 --> 00:06:50,679 Speaker 1: games of Ricky Pierce. Ironically, Jackson and Rose would become 127 00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:54,200 Speaker 1: teammates in Indiana from nineteen ninety eight to two thousand. 128 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:58,159 Speaker 1: Together they made multiple deep playoff runs, including coming two 129 00:06:58,320 --> 00:07:01,560 Speaker 1: games short of the two thousand championship against the Lakers. 130 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:04,520 Speaker 1: And what about those picks in the Rose trade? If 131 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:07,480 Speaker 1: you remember, Denver swapped the tenth pick in the ninety 132 00:07:07,560 --> 00:07:09,800 Speaker 1: six draft for the twenty third pick in the ninety 133 00:07:09,840 --> 00:07:14,200 Speaker 1: six draft. With that tenth pick, Indiana took Eric Dampierre. 134 00:07:14,480 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: But I want us to just take a look at 135 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:19,760 Speaker 1: the players that were drafted right after ten, Kobe Bryant 136 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:24,400 Speaker 1: at thirteen, paijas Soyakovic at fourteen, Steve Nash at fifteen, 137 00:07:24,600 --> 00:07:27,440 Speaker 1: and Jermaine O'Neil at seventeen. You would think that after 138 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:30,800 Speaker 1: trading Rose, an athletic wing, Kobe Bryant would have been 139 00:07:30,840 --> 00:07:33,840 Speaker 1: a decent fit to replace him. In the same offseason 140 00:07:33,960 --> 00:07:36,720 Speaker 1: to Kembi Matumbo, who was a free agent, decided to 141 00:07:36,720 --> 00:07:40,960 Speaker 1: take a mega deal in Atlanta. So without Abduu roseen Matumbo, 142 00:07:41,400 --> 00:07:44,760 Speaker 1: Denver finished twenty one and sixty one in nineteen ninety seven, 143 00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:47,640 Speaker 1: good for the fourth worst record in the NBA. But 144 00:07:47,800 --> 00:07:50,760 Speaker 1: with a bad record comes a good draft pick number 145 00:07:50,840 --> 00:07:54,080 Speaker 1: five overall, they used that on big man Tony Batti, 146 00:07:54,360 --> 00:07:57,080 Speaker 1: who was a career role player and never averaged more 147 00:07:57,120 --> 00:07:59,640 Speaker 1: than ten points per game or seven rebounds per game 148 00:07:59,640 --> 00:08:02,840 Speaker 1: in a seat. Four picks later, Tracy McGrady went to 149 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 1: Toronto at number nine. Again, he would have been a 150 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:09,720 Speaker 1: decent replacement for Jalen Rose. Before the nineteen ninety eight season, 151 00:08:09,880 --> 00:08:13,160 Speaker 1: Denver moved on for mcdce. They shipped him to Phoenix 152 00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:16,040 Speaker 1: in a three team deal, and in nineteen ninety eight, 153 00:08:16,120 --> 00:08:19,520 Speaker 1: the Nuggets made history. No, it wasn't the same type 154 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:22,200 Speaker 1: of history as upsetting the number one seed Sonics in 155 00:08:22,280 --> 00:08:25,280 Speaker 1: ninety four or beating the seventy two to ten Bowls 156 00:08:25,280 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: in ninety six. This is what we like to call 157 00:08:28,040 --> 00:08:31,040 Speaker 1: the wrong side of history. The nineteen ninety eight Nuggets 158 00:08:31,080 --> 00:08:34,000 Speaker 1: won eleven and seventy one, good for the fifth worst 159 00:08:34,040 --> 00:08:37,600 Speaker 1: record in NBA history. They began the season zero to twelve, 160 00:08:37,960 --> 00:08:41,400 Speaker 1: were two and thirty eight after forty games, and suffered 161 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:45,800 Speaker 1: separate losing streaks of twenty three games and sixteen games 162 00:08:45,840 --> 00:08:49,360 Speaker 1: in that season. But again, as we've gone over, a 163 00:08:49,480 --> 00:08:53,120 Speaker 1: bad season means a good draft pick. Denver got the 164 00:08:53,240 --> 00:08:56,400 Speaker 1: number three overall pick in the nineteen ninety eight draft, 165 00:08:56,480 --> 00:09:00,560 Speaker 1: which they used on big Man raife Lefrance, Antwine, Jamison, 166 00:09:00,880 --> 00:09:05,280 Speaker 1: Vince Carter, Dirk Nowitzki, and Paul Pierce were all selected 167 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:08,559 Speaker 1: after Denver and in the top ten. It didn't get 168 00:09:08,640 --> 00:09:11,520 Speaker 1: much better for Denver in the years that followed. From 169 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:14,960 Speaker 1: nineteen ninety nine to two thousand and three, Denver failed 170 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:18,240 Speaker 1: to make the playoffs and went through four different head coaches. 171 00:09:18,559 --> 00:09:21,080 Speaker 1: In more than one of those seasons, they were among 172 00:09:21,160 --> 00:09:23,520 Speaker 1: the worst teams in the league. And that is a 173 00:09:23,600 --> 00:09:27,600 Speaker 1: recap of an utterly disastrous decade for the Denver Nuggets. 174 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:30,559 Speaker 1: I hope you guys enjoyed This is Forgotten season's host 175 00:09:30,679 --> 00:09:32,760 Speaker 1: Dylan Dreyfuss. I'll catch you guys next time.