By Warren Blatt Jun 20, 2007, 16:05 GMT
- The Denver Nuggets don't have any picks in this year's draft. They finished 45-37 in the 2006-07 campaign, but were eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs for the fourth straight year.
The Nuggets, who were ousted by San Antonio in five games in the first round, made a blockbuster trade when they acquired Iverson on December 19th from the Philadelphia 76ers for a pair of 2007 first-round draft picks, point guard Andre Miller and forward Joe Smith.
At first, the Nuggets struggled but the team eventually jelled and they put together a season-best eight-game winning streak from April 1-13, which helped them move securely into a playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Carmelo Anthony, who averaged a team-best 28.9 points per game, and Iverson are still learning to play together, while center Marcus Camby, Nene, Steve Blake, who was acquired from Milwaukee during the season, and J.R. Smith are all important pieces to the puzzle for head coach George Karl, who arguably did his best job as a head coach this past season.
Camby, who was the Defensive Player of the Year, registered 11.2 points and a team-best 11.7 rebounds per game, while Iverson averaged 26.3 points and 7.2 assists in 65 games for Philadelphia and Denver.
By acquiring Iverson, the Nuggets showed that they are trying to win now. They need some help on the glass and could use some help off the bench in the backcourt. With no picks going in, Denver will most likely be a spectator at this year's draft.
Key Player(s): Carmelo Anthony (Forward), Steve Blake (Guard), Marcus Camby (Center), Reggie Evans (Forward), Allen Iverson (Guard), Linas Kleiza (Forward), Kenyon Martin (Forward), Eduardo Najera (Forward), Nene (Center/Forward), J.R. Smith (Guard).
Team Needs: Rebounding, depth at guard.
Draft picks: NONE.
© 2007 The Sports Network
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