Thursday night represents one of the biggest events on the NBA calendar, as all 30 teams convene to welcome a new crop of prospects into the league at the NBA Draft.
The Denver Nuggets -- who hold the No. 21 overall pick -- have spent the last few weeks working out a significant number of players. They've truly left no stone unturned as they prepare to make a first round selection.
There is also the possibility of a trade, as draft night deals are a massively common practice in the NBA. What the Nuggets do specifically remains to be seen, but plans are taking form in the final hours.
General manager Calvin Booth and head coach Michael Malone have made it known that they are completely on the same page. That organizational confidence should provide a boost with big decisions ahead on draft night.
Here, we'll break down a brief history of the Nuggets at the draft, and provide some important information for Thursday night's festivities at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Nuggets at the Draft
The Nuggets have a long history of success in the NBA Draft. This tradition of making strong selections began with three consecutive moves in the 1990's.
In the 1990 Draft, the Nuggets used the No. 3 overall pick to land Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, who remains one of the most remembered players in franchise history.
They followed that up by taking one of the best big men of all time -- Dikembe Mutombo -- with the No. 4 pick in 1991. The next year, 1992, it was LaPhonso Ellis with the fifth pick.
This string of picks would usher in a new era of Nuggets basketball. But the top tier draft choices wouldn't end there, as they selected Carmelo Anthony with the No. 3 overall pick in the historic 2003 Draft.
However, it's the recent segment of Nuggets draft picks that have truly given the franchise its strong reputation on Draft day. In the last few years, Denver has hit on multiple players from all across the 60-pick landscape.
It started in 2014, when the Nuggets made perhaps one of the best selections in the history of NBA Draft, taking superstar center -- and now back-to-back MVP -- Nikola Jokić with the 41st overall pick.
They built on that just two years later, taking Jamal Murray at No. 7 in 2016. In 2017, Monte Morris was another second round gem at No. 51.
2018 saw Denver take a swing at the back-end of the lottery with Michael Porter Jr. In the months leading up to the draft, Porter was seen as a potential No. 1 pick before falling to the Nuggets at 14.
Zeke Nnaji at No. 22 in 2020 and Bones Hyland at No. 26 in 2021 rounded out a seven-year stretch of elite picks. And now, the Nuggets are hoping to continue the trend with the No. 21 selection.
Draft Information
The 2022 NBA Draft is scheduled to begin on June 23 on 6:00 p.m. MT.
The first round will air on both ESPN and ABC, with the second round airing exclusively on ESPN.
The Nuggets hold the No. 21 overall selection, currently in between the San Antonio Spurs (20) and the Memphis Grizzlies (22).