1990 to 1999

1990-91: Denver Names New GM And New Coach

At Denver, Bickerstaff inherited one of the NBA's oldest rosters. He began by replacing Head Coach Doug Moe, who had piloted the Nuggets for more than nine seasons, with Paul Westhead, who had previously coached the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers. At the time of his hiring Westhead was coaching at Loyola Marymount University, where he had implemented a wacky, wide-open offensive system that had made the Lions the highest-scoring collegiate team in the nation.

Bickerstaff and the Nuggets set about rebuilding through judicious draft selections. Armed with the third overall pick in 1990, Denver selected Chris Jackson, a 6-1 guard from Louisiana State who later changed his name to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. In his freshman season in college Jackson had averaged 30.2 points and had been named an All-American; as a sophomore he had scored 27.8 points per game before turning pro.

The 1990-91 season saw Denver plummet to 20-62. The Nuggets lost seven games to start the season and never righted themselves. Westhead's philosophy was to pile up the points and hope the other team couldn't keep up; defense was an afterthought. Denver's resistance was particularly negligible during the first week of November, when the Nuggets logged three of the four most generous nights in franchise history.

The top opponent scoring mark against Denver-186 points recorded by Detroit in a 1983 triple-overtime game-was not broken this season. However, the shelling in November 1990 was prolonged. On November 2 Golden State scored 162 points to top the Nuggets by four; on November 7 San Antonio scored 161 for an eight-point victory. Phoenix was getting the message, and on November 10 the Suns besieged the Nuggets for 173 points and a 30-point win.

Denver's season record was an all-time worst both at home (17-24) and on the road (3-38). For the year, the Nuggets surrendered 130.8 points per game to opponents, shattering their own 1981-82 NBA record for points allowed. They missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

For all the season's futility, some good young players were showing glimpses of promise. Chris Jackson scored 14.1 points per game, better numbers than any first-year Nuggets player had posted since the franchise had joined the NBA in 1976-77. With the roster in transition, the team's scoring leaders were Michael Adams (26.5 ppg) and Orlando Woolridge (25.1), both of whom had inflated numbers because of Westhead's offensive scheme.

1991-92: Denver Finds A Nugget In Mutombo

In 1991-92 Denver took baby steps in the right direction and finished 24-58. The Nuggets put up a valiant effort for much of the year, reaching 17-26 before reeling through a 6-24 stretch that doomed the season. The team saved the worst for last, losing 11 straight in March and April.

Mutombo made the NBA All-Rookie Team and was the only rookie to play in the 1992 NBA All-Star Game. For the season, he averaged 12.3 rebounds and finished runner-up to Charlotte's Larry Johnson for the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. Mutombo and Greg "Cadillac" Anderson were rugged on the boards. Anderson set a new team record for total rebounds with 941, erasing George McGinnis's standard that had survived since 1978-79. Mutombo was right behind him with 870 boards and would have eclipsed Anderson if not for a thumb injury that ended his season after 71 games.

1992-93: Local Hero Returns To Coach Nuggets

The best news for Denver was the coming of age of point guard Chris Jackson-who changed his name to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf in July 1993-who enjoyed a breakthrough season. He posted career highs in every offensive category and won the NBA's Most Improved Player Award. Jackson set a new team record for free-throw percentage at .935, erasing Walter Davis's 1989-90 mark. He also rained in 70 of 197 three-point attempts. Jackson led the team in scoring with 19.2 points per game, followed by Reggie Williams (17.0 ppg), LaPhonso Ellis (14.7), and Dikembe Mutombo (13.8).

Ellis, a 6-8, 240-pound forward, was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team after becoming the first Denver rookie to start all 82 games. Mutombo also had a stellar season. He pulled down a season-high 23 rebounds against Miami on March 15, and on April 18 he stymied the Los Angeles Clippers by blocking 12 shots to match the franchise record set by Julius Keye in 1972. Mutombo rewrote the Nuggets' NBA-era single-season rebounding records. He finished second in the NBA in offensive rebounds with 344, and grabbed a total of 1,070 boards for an average of 13.0 per game. (The club's all-time individual mark for most rebounds in a season in Nuggets franchise history, including the ABA years, belongs to Spencer Haywood, who in 1969-70 collected 1,637 boards for a 19.5 average.)

At the end of the 1992-93 season the Nuggets were clearly a team on the rise, and they were beginning to generate a new atmosphere of excitement and optimism in the Mile High City.

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1993-94: Oh My! Nuggets Knock Off Sonics In Postseason

The Nuggets' first-round chances looked slim against the swaggering Seattle SuperSonics, who had blitzed through the year with the league's best record. The Sonics won the first two games, but in Denver the Nuggets used the shotblocking presence of Dikembe Mutombo, along with career performances by Reggie Williams, Brian Williams, and Robert Pack, to win Games 3 and 4.

Denver won Game 5 in Seattle to become the first No. 8 seed in history to defeat a No. 1 seed. The Nuggets then injected excitement into the conference semifinals. After losing three straight games to the Utah Jazz, Denver rallied with three straight wins to force a Game 7, in which Utah prevailed, 91-81.

During the regular season the Nuggets were led once again by Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, who scored 18.0 points per game and on the last day of the campaign came within one free throw of setting a single-season record for free-throw percentage. He finished at .956, just short of Calvin Murphy's .958 set in 1980-81. Mutombo led the NBA in blocked shots with 4.10 per game and also set an NBA Playoff record with 38 blocks in the seven-game series against the Jazz.

1994-95: Injuries, Coaching Changes Dash Denver's Mile-High Hopes

Denver's run in the 1994 Playoffs had placed high expectations on the team for the 1994-95 season, but because of a number of problems the Nuggets couldn't match those forecasts. Forward LaPhonso Ellis, who had placed second on the squad in scoring and rebounding in 1993-94, injured his knee in the preseason and missed the first 76 games of the campaign. In addition, guard Robert Pack, who early in the season was among the league leaders in both points and assists, missed 40 games with a knee injury.

Denver went through three head coaches in 1994-95. Dan Issel resigned with the team at 18-16. Assistant Coach Gene Littles was then named interim head coach, but when the Nuggets stumbled to a 3-13 mark under Littles, General Manager Bernie Bickerstaff took over on February 20 and guided the team for the remainder of the season. Denver finished at 41-41 and qualified for the playoffs on the last day of the regular season with a dramatic win over the Sacramento Kings, with whom the Nuggets were battling for the final playoff spot.

Dikembe Mutombo, who led the league in blocked shots (3.91 per game) and was second in rebounding (12.5 rpg), won NBA Defensive Player of the Year honors and played in the All-Star Game. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf again topped the team in scoring (16.0 ppg). The Nuggets were one of only two NBA teams to have seven players who each put up at least 10 points per outing. Rookie Jalen Rose showed promise in the backcourt, breaking into the starting lineup late in the season and averaging 8.2 points and 4.8 assists. At season's end he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

1995-96: Mutombo and Abdul-Rauf Bid Farewell

McDyess, who averaged 13.4 points and 7.5 rebounds, was quickly an effective inside player, earning All-Rookie First Team honors. His success complemented the skills of Mutombo, a 1996 All-Star, who led the league in blocked shots (4.49 per game) and was fourth in rebounding (11.8). The front line, though, still suffered from the absence of LaPhonso Ellis, who missed the first 37 games of the season with an injury. The Nuggets got out of the gate at 1-8 and never recovered, finishing 35-47 and out of the playoff hunt. Denver was one of only a handful of teams to beat the Chicago Bulls, though, posting a 105-99 win at McNichols Arena on February 4.

Abdul-Rauf, who once again led the league in free throw percentage (.930) and led the team in scoring (19.2), touched off a nationwide controversy by refusing to stand for the singing of the national anthem because of his Islamic Faith. After a one-game suspension on March 12, Abdul-Rauf relented, agreeing to stand and pray during the anthem. Not long afterward, an injury sent him to the sidelines for the remainder of the season.

At the end of the season, Denver said goodbye to its top two performers. Mutombo signed a free agent contract with the Atlanta Hawks, and a trade sent Abdul-Rauf to Sacramento, as Bickerstaff and the Nuggets looked to retool the team for the 1996-97 season.

1996-97: Close Losses Nip Nuggets

Denver never recovered from a slow start. The team won only four of its first 13 games, prompting GM/Head Coach Bernie Bickerstaff to hand the coaching reigns to veteran Dick Motta for the remainder of the season. It marked the 25th season as a head coach for Motta, who ended the season trailing only Lenny Wilkens and Red Auerbach in all-time victories.

Motta had some good young talent in his starting frontcourt, including center Ervin Johnson and forwards Antonio McDyess and LaPhonso Ellis. Johnson, a free agent signee from the Seattle SuperSonics, finished fourth in the NBA in rebounding (11.1 rpg) and fifth in blocks (2.77 bpg). McDyess averaged better than 18 points and 7 rebounds per game, while Ellis, returning from a severe knee injury, averaged a career-best 21.9 ppg, including a career-high 39 points against San Antonio. Alas, just as Ellis had re-emerged as one of the league's up-and-coming stars, he tore his right Achilles tendon on April 4, earning him another long summer of rehabilitation.

Running the offense at the start of the season was talented veteran Mark Jackson. Jackson was leading the league in assists and enjoying a tremendous season when the Nuggets dealt him to the Indiana Pacers, beginning a youth movement. Bickerstaff also left the Nuggets midseason, to pursue a coaching opportunity with the Washington Bullets.

His replacement as general manager, Allan Bristow, continued to turn over the Nuggets roster at the trading deadline -- by season's end, a franchise-record 23 players saw action. Bristow resumed his sweeping changes in the offseason, replacing Motta with former Nugget Bill Hanzlik. Trades netted the Nuggets a trio of first-round draft picks, including Tony Battie, the fifth overall selection in the 1997 NBA Draft.

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1997-98: Searching for Silver Linings

The next generation includes four rookies; Bobby Jackson, Danny Fortson, Tony Battie and Eric Washington. Jackson, acquired on draft day from Seattle, and Fortson, a bruising 6-7, 260 pound forward, both represented the West in the Schick Rookie Game at All-Star Weekend, with Jackson scoring 15 points to lead the West. The youth movement also included the development of a pair of third-year guards, Anthony Goldwire and Cory Alexander, both of whom exhibited flashes of excellence.

The preseason trade that sent Antonio McDyess to Phoenix, disabled the Nuggets in the short term, but netted three first-round draft picks in the next two years, and cleared salary cap room for the Nuggets to lure free agents during the offseason. Looking ahead, the Nuggets will also once again have the services of Eric Williams. A talented third-year player acquired by Denver in the preseason, Williams established himself as Denver's top scoring threat during the team's first four games before tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that sidelined him for the remainder of the year.

For VP of Basketball Operations Allan Bristow and coach Bill Hanzlik, the stay in Denver was a short one. Dan Issel replaced Bristow on March 25, and pledged to redirect the franchise back to the success it enjoyed while he was the star player, and during his brief tenure as coach, when the Nuggets shocked the NBA world with a first-round victory over the top-seeded Sonics. Hanzlik was relieved of his duties after the season.

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1998-99: Welcome Back, Antonio

The Nuggets were only 14-36 during the lockout-shortened season. But, under first-year coach Mike D'Antoni, they posted more victories in 50 games than they did the previous season (11) in 82 games.

McDyess, an All-NBA Third Team selection, posted career-highs with 21.2 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.46 steals per game. Point guard Nick Van Exel, a 1998 All-Star who was acquired in a trade with the Lakers, averaged 16.5 points and 7.4 points.

Danny Fortson averaged 11.6 rebounds (fourth in NBA) and led the league with 4.2 offensive boards per game. Denver native Chauncey Billups returned home in a trade with Toronto and was third on the Nuggets in scoring (13.9 ppg).

Denver's frontcourt was depleted by injuries to a pair of rookies. Starting center Raef LaFrentz averaged 13.8 points and 7.6 rebounds in the first 12 games before a knee injury sidelined him for the rest of the season. Keon Clark missed the final 20 games because of a partially collapsed lung.

The Nuggets played their final season at McNichols Sports Arena, their home since 1975. They would move into the brand-new Pepsi Center in 1999-2000.

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