Andre Miller

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Since about 2000, there were few NBA tasks tougher than getting to the playoffs in the Western Conference. But even with a Mission: Impossible degree of difficulty, the Nuggets found a way to become postseason mainstays anyway.

In 41 NBA seasons, the Nuggets have made the playoffs 24 times. Outside of a stretch of nine straight playoff appearances in the 1980s, there was not a more memorable run of getting to the postseason than the Nuggets doing so for 10 straight years from 2003-13.

Playoffs became the most satisfying forgone conclusion.

The Pepsi Center never rocked the way it did during these 10 seasons, buoyed by the full tilt energy of a team that marched through regular seasons with the precision of a marching band. But if anyone claimed they could see any of this coming, that would be a hard sell.

The Nuggets had floundered since making the playoffs in consecutive seasons in 1994 and 1995. The drought reached eight straight seasons without making the postseason, the longest stretch in team history. But then the team’s fortunes changed in a blink of an eye. In 2003, the Nuggets selected Carmelo Anthony with the third pick of the NBA draft. The team never missed a postseason while he was in Denver.

Adding to Anthony’s greatness on the court was coach George Karl’s smarts on the bench. Hired during the 2004 season after the Nuggets sloshed out of the gate, he led them on a 32-8 march through the remainder of that season. The Nuggets never won fewer than 53 percent of their games in any season under Karl.

Surrounding Anthony was a fun cast of characters – the fiery Kenyon Martin, the fun-loving Chris “Birdman” Andersen, the big shot-making Chauncey Billups, the 3-point shot making J.R. Smith, the steady Andre Miller, and the constantly smiling Nene, among them.

All were as memorable as the wins they put on the court in a 10-year span no Nuggets fan will ever forget.

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#TheGoldenAge: 10 Straight Seasons of Playoffs

When the Denver Nuggets acquired All-Star power forward Kenyon Martin on July 15, 2004, it was widely applauded as a bold move for a young team on the rise in the Western Conference.

Behind rookie forward Carmelo Anthony and playmaking point guard Andre Miller, the Nuggets had reached the playoffs the previous season and were looking to add scoring, defense and toughness to the roster.

Despite breaking his leg in his final game at the University of Cincinnati, Martin was the No. 1 overall pick of the 2000 NBA Draft, and he subsequently helped lead the New Jersey Nets to back-to-back appearances in the NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003.

Martin didn’t disappoint in his first season in Denver, averaging 15.5 points and 7.3 rebounds as the Nuggets won 49 games – their highest victory total in 27 years.

Within a few weeks of Denver’s playoff exit in 2005, Martin underwent microfracture surgery on his left knee – a harbinger of things to come over the next 18 months. He needed microfracture surgery on his right knee two games into the 2006-07 season.

After another extensive rehab, Martin returned to play 71 games in 2007-08 and he was a key member of the team that advanced to the Western Conference finals. Martin averaged 10.9 points and 5.9 rebounds and served as a defensive stopper during the memorable 16-game run.

Martin became a free agent in 2011 and played in China before returning to the NBA with the Los Angeles Clippers. He remains 24th on Denver’s career scoring list with 4,553 points.

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July 15, 2004: Nuggets acquire All-Star forward Kenyon Martin

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