For now, the Nuggets are fool's gold

Sporting News, The, Feb 14, 2000 by Stephen Siegel

The Nuggets are a pretty good team; better, in fact, than they were before trading guard Ron Mercer, their leading scorer, last week.

If the Nuggets played in the Eastern Conference, they would be a lock for the playoffs. But unfortunately for Denver, they play in the Western Conference and would need a miracle to avoid being a lottery team once again.

By all accounts, the trade of locker-room cancer and free agent-to-be Mercer--along with throw-ins Chauncey Billups and Johnny Taylor--to Orlando for Tariq Abdul-Wahad and Chris Gatling was a great move for Denver. Mercer may have been the team's top scorer, but he rarely played defense and often lost focus. Defense happens to be Abdul-Wahad's specialty, and Gatling gives the team an inside presence it lacked off the bench. In fact, in its first game after the trade, Denver scored 135 points in routing the Bucks, one of the East's top teams.

But in the talent-rich Western Conference, Denver resides in ninth place overall, and that doesn't figure to change because each of the teams ahead of it is better than it is. The Lakers, Blazers and Spurs are elite teams. The Kings, Jazz and Timberwolves are close to elite, and the Supersonics and Suns have elite players who can win games by themselves. Unless those teams have catastrophic injuries or complete breakdowns, they will continue to hum along.

Denver has Nick Van Exel, who still can get hot and score with the best in the league, trot "getting hot" means he's often cold. Antonio McDyess is a great player, but he has his off games too. Raef LaFrentz is better than anyone imagined, but he can't compete with true centers. After that, the Nuggets are role players.

Coach and president of basketball operations Dan Issel is committed to the core group of players, and the Nuggets are committed to Issel. That's a good sign for a team that has had a revolving door to the locker room in recent years. If the club can re-sign Abdul-Wahad and Gatling, both free agents after the season, it could have a bright future.

For now, though, Denver should just try to win some and have fun--reaching the playoffs won't happen.

TSN's Power Poll

Rk.   Team              W-L     Comment

 1.   Portland        35-11     If Kukoc ends up a Blazer, there
                                  will be no excuse for not winning
                                  it all.
 2.   L.A. Lakers     35-11     Team must make it past the break
                                  and regain comfort level.
 3.   San Antonio     30-16     Duncan's face-up bank shot is
                                  becoming deadly.
 4.   Indiana         30-16     With McKey healthy, Bird has even
                                  more quality depth.
 5.   Seattle         30-18     If McCoy can continue his
                                  improvement after the break,
                                  Sonics are set.
 6.   Sacramento      28-17     How is Webber not an All-Star
                                  starter? He should use that
                                  as motivation.
 7.   Miami           29-16     Bad news: It appears Hardaway's
                                  injuries finally are catching
                                  up to him.
 8.   Minnesota       27-18     Jackson is stepping up, and KG
                                  is putting up monster numbers.
 9.   New York        27-17     Ewing is showing why it would be
                                  a mistake to trade him.
10.   Phoenix         26-19     Getting Marion back should give an
                                 indication of how good Suns can be.
11.   Utah            27-18     First six-game losing streak in 17
                                  years left team reeling.
12.   Charlotte       25-20     Hornets must continue to have
                                  someone different step up
                                  every game.
13.   Toronto         25-20     If only a point guard would
                                  emerge ...
14.   Milwaukee       26-22     Robinson seems to have a knack for
                                  hitting game-winning shots.
15.   Philadelphia    25-21     Ratliff's coming on, but it doesn't
                                  matter when Geiger is playing
                                  this badly.
16.   Detroit         23-23     Stackhouse deserves his All-Star
                                  selection, but he needs Hill
                                  healthy.
17.   Orlando         22-26     Don't let the smiles fool you--Magic
                                  will keep Mercer only if it has
                                  to.
18.   Denver          21-24     Don't let the frowns fool
                                  you--getting rid of Mercer
                                  was a good move.
19.   Boston          21-25     Don't you get all warm inside when
                                  Pitino talks about his love for
                                  Walker?
20.   Houston         19-28     Not sure what a "mild" hernia is;
                                  the Rockets hope Francis' is very
                                  mild.
21.   Dallas          19-27     Match made in heaven: Rodman is
                                  staying at owner Cuban's
                                  guest house.
22.   Cleveland       19-28     Cavs cannot afford to be without
                                  Sura for too long.
23.   Atlanta         18-27     With one All-Star, Hawks have one
                                  thing going for them, which is
                                  nice.
24.   New Jersey      17-29     Nice guy Van Horn is now publicly
                                  questioning Casey.
25.   Washington      15-33     Howard actually is starting to
                                  show some signs of athleticism.
26.   Vancouver       13-32     It seems like the Grizzlies are
                                  playing well, but where are the
                                  wins?
27.   Golden State    12-32     Gotta make sure to hold on to
                                  Higgins--obviously, he's key
                                  to success.
28.   Chicago          9-35     Will never attract free-agent star,
                                  but could build a winner through
                                  draft.
29.   L.A. Clippers   11-35     Back in accustomed spot after
                                  consecutive losses by a total of
                                  77 points.