Denver Stiffs - The Denver Stiffs bracket for the Greatest Denver Nugget in franchise history

#NuggetsGreats: Melo versus Joker in the Championship

2020-04-15T12:22:58-06:00

Vote here!

Well, we are finally here. The championship round. After over two weeks of debate, several upset fans and analysts, and some surprising results, we finally came back to the two most important players of Denver Nuggets franchise history after 2000. While arguments can be made for Alex English, David Thompson, Dan Issel, and other stars of previous generations, Nuggets fans wanted to see Nikola Jokic and Carmelo Anthony face off for the title: greatest Nugget in franchise history.

In one corner...Nikola Jokic:

Nikola Jokic certainly has the argument for “highest peak performance” in Nuggets history. He might also be the most well-rounded and skilled player in Nuggets history. The non-cumulative catch-all metrics like Win Shares/48, PER and Box +/- already say Jokic is the greatest Nugget of all time (by a fairly wide margin) and even cumulative stats like VORP and win shares show Jokic rising fast in the top ten among a group of players whose time with Denver has long since passed. That is the crux of this matchup, where do we place longevity and proven results versus the potential of what Jokic could accomplish in Denver.

Joker’s individual dominance combined with an ability to elevate the team around him made him the top seed in the entire bracket. He is one of just six players to average 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists per game, doing so during 2018-19 and 2019-20. His 40 triple-doubles rank second in franchise history behind Fat Lever. In his first playoff appearance, Jokic averaged 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists per game, becoming just the second player in NBA history to ever do so in the playoffs, joining Oscar Robertson in 1963.

There’s no doubt that Jokic will go down as the best player in franchise history if he stays with Denver for the rest of his career. The only question is whether Jokic is already at that level? Nuggets fans seem to think so.

In the other corner...Carmelo Anthony:

On the other side of the Finals bracket, we have Carmelo Anthony, the man who resurrected Denver from the abysmal late 90s era and brought a new era of success and perennial playoff appearances in his wake. Melo made the postseason every single season he was in Denver and was thought of as the centerpiece of the franchise. His exit was messy, but his contributions to the Nuggets were undeniable.

Carmelo Anthony was an elite 1-on-1 scorer from the moment he joined the team. In nearly eight seasons with the team, Anthony and the Nuggets never missed the playoffs, and Melo had many signature moments along the way. His battles with LeBron James and Kobe Bryant were mostly incredible, and he nearly willed the Nuggets to their first NBA Finals appearance in 2008-09. His 24.8 points per game during his Nuggets tenure is second in franchise history (minimum of 10,000 minutes played) to only Alex English, and it helps encapsulate just how impressive his scoring was. He made difficult shots and may have been the best 1-on-1 player in the NBA for a time.

Melo went farther in the playoffs than Jokic has during the early segments of his career, and that could matter for Nuggets fans in this vote for the greatest Nugget. Melo did ask for a trade though, and that hurts his standing in the eyes of many. Either way, it’s clear that Melo is probably the greatest scorer in Nuggets franchise history. While Alex English averaged more points per game, those 1980’s Nuggets played faster and had more possessions. Thus, Melo has actually scored more points per 100 possessions than any Nugget in history. He was a walking bucket to be clear.

Well, what will it be Nuggets fans? The all-around superstar center who can rack up triple doubles? Or will it be the pure scorer who put the Nuggets back on the map after years of ineptitude?

You decide.

#NuggetsGreats: The Semi Finals

2020-04-13T12:14:20-06:00

Jena Garcia - DenverStiffs.com

And then there were four

We’re fast approaching the end of our #NuggetsGreats series where you the fans determine who is the greatest player in Denver Nuggets history. After a couple weeks of voting we’ve reached the last four players on the list. Today we determine who moves on to the finals.

As a reminder, seeding for this bracket was voted on by the fans and the winners of each round are voted on here, on Twitter and on Instagram. First things first, here are the results from our polls on Saturday determining the winners of our last two regions.

Saturday’s results: Chauncey beats Deke in a tight race

You can tell the choices are getting tougher as no player from Saturday’s matchups swept voting across our three platforms. As we have seen in other rounds, the more recent players tend to dominate the Instagram voting, the players from bygone eras perform better on the site and Twitter is somewhere in between. This was true again in both the Dan Issel vs Carmelo Anthony matchup as well as the Chauncey Billups vs Dikembe Mutombo matchup.

Melo was able to overcome Issel’s small margin in site voting through the social media platforms but Chauncey and Deke were deadlocked after site and Twitter voting. As to be expected, the more recent player won out on Instagram and thus it will Chauncey who advances.

#Nuggets Greats Final Four

A matchup of one seeds and one that unfortunately won’t be in the finals as these two players seem to have been the most dominant in the voting. On Jokic’s side we have the argument that he very well could be the most well-rounded and skilled player in Nuggets history. The non-cumulative catch all metrics like WS/48, PER and Box +/- already say Jokic is the greatest Nugget of all time (by a fairly wide margin) and even cumulative stats like VORP and win shares show Jokic rising fast in the top ten among a group of players who’s time with Denver has long since passed. That is the crux of this matchup, where do we place longevity and proven results versus the potential of what Jokic could accomplish in Denver.

For English’s side he’s got the benefit of a fully completed tenure. He has led his team to a Conference Finals, he has led his team to multiple playoff births and series victories. He is the all time leader in points, assists and field goals. His career scoring average in Denver is also at the top of the list. His jersey hangs in the rafters. These are all things Jokic could, and very well may, accomplish but as of today he has not. Until Nikola graced a Denver uniform the debate of the GOAT Nugget generally was a consensus answer: Alex English. For my money, no way we can put Joker over The Blade just yet.

On the other side of the semi-finals we have a matchup between the staples of the ‘09 team. Carmelo Anthony is the man who resurrected Denver from the abysmal late 90s era and brought a new era of success and perennial playoff appearances in his wake. Melo made the postseason every single season he was in Denver and was generally thought of as the centerpiece of the franchise. His exit was messy, but his contributions to the Nuggets were undeniable.

Melo’s lack of playoff success works against him almost as much as his exit though and in this matchup it will be highlighted. The one time Carmelo advanced past the first round in a Nuggets uniform is also the same year the Nuggets traded for Chauncey Billups. As the leader the team, it was Chauncey who proved to be what the Nuggets (and Melo) needed to get to the next step. He is also the hometown kid. George Washington high school, University of Colorado and two stints with the Nuggets, it’s hard to think of a better example of homegrown talent in Colorado than Chauncey. On the other hand, if longevity matters at all then he should have been eliminated much earlier. Chauncey played just 259 games in a Nuggets uniform, which is barely more than three seasons combined (he did it over 4.5 seasons). For that reason, I don’t think there’s any way you can pick him over Melo.

#NuggetsGreats: Melo and Mutombo regional finals

2020-04-11T12:00:44-06:00

We’re getting down to the tough decisions

We’re rounding into the home stretch here on our #NuggetsGreats series where you the fans have been voting in an elimination style tournament to figure out who is the greatest Nugget of all time. We’re going to take care of the finals in two regions today as we prepare to crown a champion next week.

As a reminder, seeding for this bracket was voted on by the fans and the winners of each round are voted on here, on Twitter and on Instagram. First things first, here are the results from our polls on Thursday determining the winner of the other two regions.

Thursdays results: no surprises

We closed out the Joker and Blade regions on Thursday and no surprise Nikola “Joker” Jokic and Alex “The Blade” English we’re the winners. Despite my lobbying for the merits of David Thompson, Jokic more than doubled him up on votes, an indication the fanbase clearly expects Jokic to accomplish much bigger things than he already has with the team.

On The Blade side of things there wasn’t much of a contest. As expected English ran away with the votes against his former teammate Fat Lever. This isn’t in anyway a criticism of the GOAT Nuggets point guard, but English was the clear leader of the 80s era and so he’s naturally going to beat the clear number two on those teams.

Carmelo Anthony (1) vs Dan Issel (3)

A match of two icons in Denver and two players who should both have their jersey’s in the rafters when it’s all said and done. On the newer school side we have Carmelo Anthony, a scoring dynamo who brought the Nuggets to the playoffs every year of his career here, but not much else. Despite limited success in the playoffs, Melo still spearheaded one of the most successful eras in Nuggets history. Even more importantly, he did that following the worst era of franchise history and almost single handedly resurrected the franchise. If the Nuggets end up with Darko Milicic instead of Carmelo Anthony in that 2003 draft there’s no telling how long the franchise stays mired in ineptitude.

Melo’s opponent is a Hall of Famer and one of the greatest centers to ever play the game. Issel tops Melo in almost every statistical category while in Denver. He scored more points, he pulled down more rebounds, hell, he even had more steals and assists. Now some of this has to do with the fact that Issel played ten seasons in Denver to Melo’s seven and a half but it also has a lot to do with how dominant Issel was. He’s somewhat forgotten when talking about who is the best Nugget of all time because a lot of the damage he did was in the ABA and also he started his prime playing for the Kentucky Colonels. Still, for my money this isn’t a tough choice. Issel should win this matchup. That’s not a knock on Melo, thats a statement of how great Issel is.

Dikembe Mutombo (1) vs Chauncey Billups (2)

In the Mutombo region we have two all time favorites facing off against each other. Chauncey Billups is the hometown kid. He went to High School in Denver, he went to college at CU, and he was the missing piece in the Melo era that nearly got the team to the finals (perhaps the missing piece was actually someone who could inbound the ball). Working against Billups is the tenure. His time with the Nuggets was bright (at least the second time around) but it was short as he spent just two and a half seasons here after returning to the team in the Allen Iverson trade. Any other player who made it this far in the bracket has a considerably longer tenure than Chauncey, but perhaps none are remembered as fondly.

Working in Chauncey’s favor in this matchup is his opponent didn’t have a long tenure either as Mutombo’s time in Denver was only five seasons long. Mutombo also didn’t have the same playoff success. Like Chauncey he made it to the postseason twice, but unlike Chauncey he could not push the team past the Western Conference semis. Also unlike Chauncey, he chose to leave. Still, perhaps the most iconic moment in Nuggets history is Deke holding the ball above his head in joy after Denver became the first 8 seed to upset a one seed. He is the most dominant defender in Nuggets history and the all time leader in blocks per game. Also, it’s not a Melo situation where he forced his way out, rather he was forced out by a front office who clearly didn’t value his services. This matchup might be the toughest call we’ve had yet.

#NuggetsGreats: Round 3 for Joker Region and Blade Region

2020-04-09T12:30:47-06:00

Vote here!

The #NuggetsGreats bracket is progressing toward some very difficult matchups. After knocking out the lower tier matchups, only the Elite Eight remain—two in each region. Today, we focus on the Joker Region and the Blade Region.

In the Joker Region, top seed Nikola Jokic defeated LaPhonso Ellis, an integral member of the 1990’s squad that defeated the top seeded Seattle Supersonics in the 1994 playoffs. Jokic’s contributions over the first five years of his career have put him in special company in franchise history, and fans continue to vote him through. Second seed David Thompson also took down Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, as the perimeter sharpshooter just couldn’t match up with one of the most important pieces of Nuggets franchise history. The Skywalker helped put the Nuggets on the NBA map as they transitioned from the ABA, and Thompson’s athleticism was the biggest reason why.

In the Blade Region, top seed Alex English took down Allen Iverson in a landslide, unsurprising given how much more time English spent in a Nuggets uniform than A.I. did. While Iverson had a couple of special seasons in Denver, English was the engine behind Denver’s success during the entire 1980’s. Second seed Fat Lever also ousted Third seed Ty Lawson relatively easily as his versatility and contribution to the Golden Age of Nuggets basketball in the 1980’s really struck a chord with Nuggets fans.

Now, here comes our first two matchups of the Elite Eight!

Nikola Jokic (1) vs David Thompson (2)

Jokic’s standing in franchise history needs little explanation, but his individual dominance combined with an ability to elevate the team around him made him the top seed in the entire bracket. He is one of just six players to average 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists per game, doing so during 2018-19 and 2019-20. His 40 triple-doubles rank second in franchise history behind Fat Lever.

Even more than that though: Nikola Jokic gave the current version of the Nuggets a clear direction. Stuck trying to pick up the pieces after the Carmelo Anthony trade, George Karl’s firing and Masai Ujiri’s departure, and the disaster that was the Brian Shaw era, Jokic almost immediately gave the Nuggets someone they could build their around. He may be untraditional, but his style has proved to work these last few years as the Nuggets have returned to playoff caliber basketball. Jokic helped the Nuggets advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in a long time in the 2019 playoffs, and there’s no reason to expect him to slow down.

On the other side, the Skywalker, David Thompson, was one of the most athletic guards in NBA history and an inspiration for Michael Jordan. Thompson spent seven seasons with the Nuggets, one during their time in the ABA, and dominated as a scorer and slasher to the basket. He once scored 73 points in one game and was possibly the best player in the NBA during the 1977-78 season. Thompson averaged 24.1 points per game during his Nuggets career and set a new standard for guard scoring in the 1970’s. He truly was one of the best players to ever play the game, tying George Gervin in that 1977-78 season for the scoring title.

These two players are the two bookends of the Nuggets franchise, the first and only two in Nuggets history to achieve All-NBA First Team status. There are no wrong answers here between who was the better Nugget. Both have an incredible claim.

Alex English (1) vs Fat Lever (2)

English played parts of 11 seasons with the Nuggets and was the top scorer in the NBA for the entire 1980’s decade. Not Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, or any other mainstream greats. English had a versatile scoring skillset with elite touch in the midrange, generally focusing on hitting short jumpers in Denver’s fast paced offense. He was so good at, and the supporting cast around him was strong enough, that he helped guide the Nuggets to nine straight playoff appearances, including one Conference Finals against the Showtime Los Angeles Lakers.

It was very rare for the Nuggets to draw significant attention, but during the 1980’s, they had the fourth best record in the Western Conference. The Lakers were the cream of the crop, but the Nuggets were consistently there in that second group of teams vying for position. English was the biggest reason why, as the Nuggets could count on his productive scoring every single game. He was a machine in the midrange, scoring with grace and touch that most 6’7 scorers didn’t utilize in that era.

His partner in crime for much of the 1980’s was Fat Lever. Lever played basketball like he was using a Swiss Army knife. He averaged 17.0 points, 7.5 assists, and 7.6 rebounds during his six seasons with the franchise. His versatility and ability to rack up triple doubles complemented the elite scoring prowess of English during the 1980’s.

Lever truly filled up the box score and made life easier for the players around him. He never had a season in Denver averaging under 6.5 assists, nor a season averaging under 5.0 rebounds. Lever was a machine. His 43 triple-doubles lead the Nuggets franchise all-time, and some of the numbers he put up were mind-boggling. In separate games, he amassed 38 points, 23 assists, and 22 rebounds as a 6’3 point guard. Lever has the most games with 20+ rebounds in NBA history among guards 6’3 and under at four, which is just absurd. He helped contribute to Denver’s winning ways in the 1980’s, along with English, and consistently had the Nuggets as an elite team in the NBA.

Both English and Lever were essential to the 1980’s Nuggets, and it feels blasphemous to pick one over the other. Still, it has to be done, and you get to decide.

#NuggetsGreats: The Mutumbo Region - Round 2

2020-04-08T10:00:00-06:00

In the tournament to find the greatest Denver Nugget of all time, we’re on to the Round of 16. Today, we’re looking at the second round matchups from the Dikembe Mutumbo region. While we saw some upsets in other portions of the bracket, this region was largely chalk with most favorites winning. Mutumbo, Chauncey Billups and Danilo Gallinari all advanced as favorites. The lone upset came courtesy of the fifth seed Gary Harris, who outdueled Kiki Vandeweghe, much to the chagrin of fellow Stiff Jena Garcia.

Mutumbo Region Round 2

Dikembe Mutumbo (1) vs Gary Harris (5)

Mutumbo dominated his matchup with Aaron Afflalo en route to an easy win, and he’ll be looking to do that again in Round 2. During his time with Denver, he was a three-time All Star, and he was consistently one of the most influential defensive players of that time in the NBA. The team made a pair of playoff appearances, and Mutumbo was just the far-superior player by the time his career was over, even though it wasn’t exclusively in Denver.

His opponent is none other than Gary “Garris” Harris. Harris pulling off the upset was quite surprising, and it was obvious that there was some recency bias involved. Despite that recency bias, he still barely snuck out the victory. I don’t see that happening again. Harris has one year as an outlier for great production, and he’s struggled with consistency otherwise. If he pulls off this win, the Harris Hive will deserve all of the credit.

Chauncey Billups (2) vs Danilo Gallinari (3)

This is the matchup we all want to see, and I think this is where things get really interesting. Chauncey “Mr. Big Shot” Billups cruised to an easy victory in Round 1 over Kenneth Faried, which brought a slight tear to my eye. Billups was an outstanding player throughout his career, and he nearly helped lead Denver to the finals during the 2008-09 season. Billups was an All Star in each of his seasons in Denver, and I think that’s going to help carry him with a lot of people. He wasn’t the best player on his teams in Denver, but he was close to it.

On the other side, we have the dark horse to win this bracket in Danilo Gallinari. The Rooster struggled with health during his time in Denver, but, when he was on the floor, he was the best player Denver had. He gave them a decent option from 3-point range with a 36.6 percent mark during his time, and he was poised to be the next face of the franchise after the departure of Carmelo Anthony. If he had been able to stay healthy, it’s very possible that he’d be the number two next to Nikola Jokic.

I think the winner of this bracket could very easily come out of this matchup. They both have the recency factor in their favor, and they also have their own particular sect of fans that can get out and vote for them. In fact, whoever wins this matchup, is going to upset Mutumbo, who I expect to win in the other matchup of this bracket.

#NuggetsGreats: The Melo Region - Round 2

2020-04-07T12:24:01-06:00

Vote here!

Round 2 of the Melo Region of the Denver Stiffs #NuggetsGreats bracket takes place today. This region is named for Carmelo Anthony, one of the best 1-on-1 scorers in NBA history and the biggest reason the Nuggets made the playoffs in every season of his Nuggets tenure.

Now, onto today’s bracket:

Melo Region Round 1

Carmelo Anthony (1) vs Kenyon Martin (5)

The player that brought the Nuggets back to the playoffs following a 17 win season, Carmelo Anthony was an elite 1-on-1 scorer from the moment he joined the team. In nearly eight seasons with the team, Anthony and the Nuggets never missed the playoffs, and Melo had many signature moments along the way. His battles with LeBron James and Kobe Bryant were mostly incredible, and he nearly willed the Nuggets to their first NBA Finals appearance in 2008-09. His 24.8 points per game during his Nuggets tenure is second in franchise history (minimum of 10,000 minutes played) to only Alex English, and it helps encapsulate just how impressive his scoring was. He made difficult shots and may have been the best 1-on-1 player in the NBA for a time.

More than anything, Melo put the Nuggets back on the map as a franchise. They were searching for someone to take the reins, and Melo pointed them back in the right direction.

While Melo was the scorer and offensive playmaker, Kenyon Martin was the enforcer and defensive anchor. Even though he had injury issues in Denver, Martin was still a great athlete, accumulating 661 regular season dunks in his seven seasons with the Nuggets. Martin spent the same amount of time in Denver as Melo and helped deliver the swagger and attitude every team needed to advance in the playoffs. Without Martin, those 2000’s Nuggets squads are likely much different.

Jamal Murray (2) vs Dan Issel (3)

So far in Jamal Murray’s four years as a Nugget, he has slowly but surely established himself as the second best player on the team behind Nikola Jokic. Murray shows occasional flashes of top level scoring and playmaking but mostly remains very consistent as a significant threat to the opposing team. His two-man game with Jokic as become the staple of Denver’s offense today, and it was Murray’s shot against the San Antonio Spurs that helped the Nuggets advance to the second round for the first time singe the 2008-09 season.

Murray clearly has more development still to come and more great years to give to the Nuggets. He begins his five-year max contract next season and will be looking to take another leap as a star in today’s NBA.

Dan Issel, nicknamed The Horse, spent 10 of his 15 seasons with the Nuggets, including one year when the Nuggets were an ABA franchise. He averaged over 20 points and 8 rebounds per game in a Nuggets uniform, serving as the second option offensively behind two Nuggets greats in separate eras: David Thompson and Alex English. The Nuggets made the playoffs in all but two of Issel’s 10 seasons with the team, and his production was some of the most important in Nuggets franchise history. He was never truly “the guy” but was always a key cog in whatever the Nuggets did. For being such a big guy on the court, Issel always moved pretty well, and he played with an edge as a scorer the Nuggets always needed.

#NuggetsGreats: The Blade Region - Round 2

2020-04-06T12:00:00-06:00

Vote here!

We are roughly halfway through our #NuggetsGreats tournament, and the next vote comes in the second round of The Blade Region. Titled for Alex English’s nickname, this region saw all four of the top seeds advance, and it includes some very interesting names. The aforementioned English advanced in a landslide over the massively underrated 8 seed Bobby Jones. Fat Lever advanced rather comfortably. Ty Lawson and Allen Iverson were locked in close matchups over Nick Van Exel and Marcus Camby respectively, but the two small guards won out and advanced to this round.

With some very interesting matchups on deck, let’s take a closer look.

Alex English (1) vs Allen Iverson (4)

The Blade versus The Answer. English versus Iverson. The two players were elite in their own ways, but the one trait that united the two of them: both could flat out score. English averaged 25.9 points per game during his Denver Nuggets career, while Iverson averaged 25.6 points per game himself. English’s scoring came over a much larger period of time, with English amassing nearly 30,000 minutes played in a Nuggets uniform alone, not even including the playoffs. Iverson played a little over 5,500 minutes in a Nuggets uniform by comparison.

English played parts of 11 seasons with the Nuggets and was the top scorer in the NBA for the entire 1980’s decade. Not Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, or any other mainstream greats. English had a versatile scoring skillset with elite touch in the midrange, generally focusing on hitting short jumpers in Denver’s fast paced offense. He was so good at, and the supporting cast around him was strong enough, that he helped guide the Nuggets to nine straight playoff appearances, including one Conference Finals against the Showtime Los Angeles Lakers.

Iverson didn’t have near the amount of longevity or playoff success of English, but his individual seasons with Denver were highly impressive. Only five other players managed to accumulate 2,100 points, 500 assists, and 160 steals in a single season: Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Stephen Curry. Those are individually astounding numbers put up only by five top 20 players of all-time, and they underscore just how impressive Iverson was in Denver. He and Carmelo Anthony teamed up to form one of the most lethal 1-on-1 scoring duos ever, and Iverson contributed 7.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game on top of that. Unfortunately, that Nuggets squad ran into a brick wall in the first round of the 2008 playoffs in the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.

So, will it be the longevity and overall excellence of English or the flash-in-the-pan greatness of Iverson?

Fat Lever (2) vs Ty Lawson (3)

Two of the most important point guards in Nuggets franchise history square off here, and they impacted the game in vastly different ways. Fat Lever played basketball like he was using a Swiss Army knife. He averaged 17.0 points, 7.5 assists, and 7.6 rebounds during his six seasons with the franchise. His versatility and ability to rack up triple doubles complemented the elite scoring prowess of English during the 1980’s. Ty Lawson played basketball like he was using a scalpel. He averaged 14.2 points and 6.6 assists per game during his six seasons with the Nuggets, using his lightning speed and quickness to create elite offense for himself and others.

For those 1980’s Nuggets, Lever truly filled up the box score and made life easier for the players around him. He never had a season in Denver averaging under 6.5 assists, nor a season averaging under 5.0 rebounds. Lever was a machine. His 43 triple-doubles lead the Nuggets franchise all-time, and some of the numbers he put up were mind-boggling. In separate games, he amassed 38 points, 23 assists, and 22 rebounds as a 6’3 point guard. Lever has the most games with 20+ rebounds in NBA history among guards 6’3 and under at four, which is just absurd. He helped contribute to Denver’s winning ways in the 1980’s, along with Alex English, and consistently had the Nuggets as an elite team in the NBA.

Lawson began his career as a bench player behind Chauncey Billups, but after Billups and Carmelo Anthony were traded to the New York Knicks for Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, and other stuff, Lawson became the starting point guard and ran the show in Denver for several years. He was the driving force offensively on the 2012-13 Nuggets that won 57 games, averaging 16.7 points and 6.9 assists per game, both team highs. At one point, there were fair comparisons between Stephen Curry and Ty Lawson as point guards drafted in the 2009 draft before their careers went in opposite directions after the 2013 playoffs.

Unfortunately for Lawson, the two best individual seasons of his Nuggets career came during the Brian Shaw era, a time when injuries and losing marred what could have been some solid teams after Andre Iguodala left for the Golden State Warriors. Lawson also dealt with off-the-court issues, including multiple DUI’s during the final stretches of his Nuggets tenure. That cut short one of the best careers for a point guard in Nuggets history, and his ability to impact an offense and help elevate everyone around him helped mask some inadequacies of a good-not-great Nuggets squad.

So, the 6’3 do-everything point guard during a winning era for the Nuggets, or a 5’11 (if that) lightning bug that could help the Nuggets create elite offense in any situation? You decide.

#NuggetsGreats: The Joker Region - Round 2

2020-04-03T12:00:00-06:00

Vote here!

The first round of the Joker Region Denver Stiffs #NuggetsGreats bracket finished up earlier this week, with the top four seeds advancing to the second round. The top seeded Nikola Jokic is the namesake for this group, and joining him are Nuggets legends David Thompson, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, and LaPhonso Ellis. Jokic and Thompson bookend the Nuggets franchise as the two most talented players at the beginning of franchise history and in present day. Abdul-Rauf and Ellis played together on the early to mid 1990’s squad, known for several iconic victories alongside Dikembe Mutumbo.

Let’s take a closer look at the matchups:

Nikola Jokic (1) vs LaPhonso Ellis (4)

LaPhonso Ellis spent six seasons in a Nuggets uniform, contributing to Denver’s signature upset victory over the 1st seed Seattle Supersonics in the 1993-94 season. He was a dominant scorer, rebounder, and athlete before injuries derailed his career, and he would without a doubt be one of the most renowned Nuggets in franchise history had those injuries not occurred. Still, he was absolutely dominant in his time with the team and instilled fear into opposing players and coaches.

David Thompson (2) vs Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (3)

The Skywalker, David Thompson, was one of the most athletic guards in NBA history and an inspiration for Michael Jordan. Thompson spent seven seasons with the Nuggets, one during their time in the ABA, and dominated as a scorer and slasher to the basket. He once scored 73 points in one game and was possibly the best player in the NBA during the 1977-78 season. Thompson averaged 24.1 points per game during his Nuggets career and set a new standard for guard scoring in the 1970’s.

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf was the Stephen Curry of the 1990’s. His shooting ability and jittery style was extremely unique for his era, and when he was open, he made teams pay. He led the NBA in free throw percentage on two separate occasions, and his six seasons with the Nuggets were excellent. 16.0 points and 4.0 assists per game in his Nuggets tenure while shooting 35.4% from three-point range and 91.6% from the free throw line. Very solid numbers that included several stretches with him coming off the bench.

You have until 9pm tonight to vote!