2013-2014 Finish: 45-37

Season Highlight

Making the playoffs. Being the third youngest roster in the NLL, it was meant to be a rebuilding year for the Nuggets after they traded away big man Dwight Howard. But these Denver youngsters played inspired ball, lead by 3^rd year players John Wall and Derrick Favors, the guys they received for Howard. Denver cruised to an impressive 45 win season, placing sixth in the Western conference and a first round matchup against Howard’s Blazers.

Season Lowlight

Getting swept in the first round. With the major distraction of their GM being escorted kicking and screaming from the NLL premises, the Nuggets were ousted in 4 games by their former favourite son, Dwight Howard and his new Trail Blazer teammates. This was not the ending that the Denver fans had hoped for, a very early exit and the uncertainty of going into the off-season without a GM. Luckily they have found a new GM, in NLL debutant Rootsey.

Best Trade

The Denver Nuggets send Kirk Hinrich and Travis Outlaw to the Sacramento Kings. The Sacramento Kings send Gary Neal and Alex Len to the Denver Nuggets.

Tough to pick a best trade for the Nuggets, i wasn’t a big fan of many of the deals made this past season. This one caused a stir among the NLL community, so is probably the pick of the bunch. Denver receive the talent laden rookie big Andrew Len and the handy Gary Neal for regressing backup PG Kirk Hinrich and journeyman Travis Outlaw.

Worst Trade

The Denver Nuggets send Manu Ginobili, Udonis Haslem, Dwight Howard, Tyshawn Taylor and Mike Muscala to the Portland Trail Blazers. The Portland Trail Blazers send Kwame Brown, Travis Outlaw,Kendrick Perkins, John Wall, Derrick Favors and Lucas Nogueira to the Denver Nuggets. 

The Denver Nuggets receive 20 GM points. The Portland Trail Blazers trade -20 GM points.

Although Wall and Favors represent the future of the Nuggets, Howard is the most dominant big man in the NLL and he and Manu Ginobili enjoyed excellent seasons, culminating in a  first round sweep over the Nuggets, if this trade didn’t happen, Denver would likely be the ones doing the sweeping.

Other Notable Trades

The Charlotte Bobcats send CJ Miles to the Denver Nuggets. The Denver Nuggets send Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to the Charlotte Bobcats. 
The Charlotte Bobcats send a 1st-Rounder (Cha) to the Denver Nuggets. The Denver Nuggets send a 2nd-Rounder (Den) to the Charlotte Bobcats. 

CJ Miles put up a bunch of points in Denver, helping them to a playoff berth, however Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is young and athletic, with a lot of upside. This deal probably depends on how much MKG can improve.

The Denver Nuggets send Dion Waiters and Robbie Hummel to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Otto Porter to the Denver Nuggets. 

The Denver Nuggets trade -2 GM points.The Minnesota Timberwolves receive 2 GM points.

I really don’t rate either of these guys, but at least Waiters is more of a known quantity, who has shown the ability to score. Porter hasn’t really shown anything as yet, so probably prefer Waiters at this stage.

The Denver Nuggets send Evan Fournier to the Memphis Grizzlies. The Memphis Grizzlies sendDanilo Gallinari to the Denver Nuggets. 
The Denver Nuggets send a 1st-Rounder (Den) to the Memphis Grizzlies. The Memphis Grizzlies send a 1st-Rounder (Phi) to the Denver Nuggets.

The first deal by new GM Rootsey. In comes the hot shooting Gallinari for young French wing Fournier. I know former GM Nick was a big Fournier fan, but I think a healthy Gallinari is definitely an upgrade, hopefully he can get healthy.

Best FA Signing

Martell Webster- A really handy signing for the Nuggets, Webster enjoyed one of his best NLL season’s, starting in 62 games and averaging 14 points per. Unfortunately a back injury will delay his second season in Denver.

Worst FA Signing

Stephen Jackson- Jackson lasted a whole 10 days in Denver, enough said.

Star

John Wall- Tasked with the job of leading this young Denver outfit, Wall excelled, playing and starting in all 82 games. It was one of the most impressive individual seasons by an NLL Point Guard, with Wall averaging 26 points, 10 assists and 6 rebounds per game.

Surprise

Alex Len- A talented but raw rookie big man, Len was supposed to take awhile to adjust to the NLL game. But the youngster started like a house on fire in his first season, and while the long and gruelling season eventually caught up with him, averages of 10 points and 8 rebounds per game was a nice start.

Goat

Former GM Nick- The young, brash, confident and often outspoken Australian draft guru was relieved of his duties as Denver GM, culminating in a fiery and confrontational exit. Nick had been in cruise control for a long time, often drawing the ire of the Commissioners for his confrontational attitude, lack of participation and accountability, and his refusal to change. And it was this refusal to change which eventually became his downfall.

Draft Report Card

James Young- An impressive scoring freshman out of Kentucky, Young will hopefully help fill in for the injured Martell Webster while he recovers from back surgery.

Mitch McGary- A high IQ big man out of Michigan, McGary has size and strength to play right away, and will help add depth to the Nuggets frontcourt.

Josh Huestis- A bit of a forward tweener, Hustis has athleticism and can defend both forward positions well. He will actually start his NLL career in the D-League.

Looking to the Future

With a strong season under their belts, these young Nuggets can surely only improve from here. With some quality acquisitions in Gallinari, two incoming 2014 first round draft selections and a plucky wide eyed GM, another playoff appearance and hopefully some playoff wins should be the goal.

Upcoming Free Agents

John Wall- A restricted free agent, coming off a career season, Wall is about to get paid. And he deserves every penny. Expect Denver to match any offer thrown his way.

Derrick Favors- Also a restricted free agent, Favors is also likely to remain in Denver for the long haul.

DeJuan Blair- Blair will be a sign and trade, and it’s unlikely Denver get much value back for him.

CJ Miles- Miles looks likely to cash in on his strong season, and offer himself to the highest bidder in free agency.

Emeka Okafor- Okafor’s status is currently unknown, it’s probably unlikely that he will return to Denver, however injury may prevent him from returning to the NLL at all.