Mr.Bottomtooth
05-09-2008, 09:13 PM
Nuggets have to change
By Mark Kiszla
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 05/09/2008
The math does not compute for the Nuggets.
Somebody has to go.
Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and Marcus Camby are the team's big three. But they proved to be a big zero in the NBA playoffs.
Convinced they must make a significant change to compete for a championship, it's no secret the Nuggets will actively pursue trade options. What's more significant, according to a source familiar with the team, is nobody on the Denver roster has been deemed absolutely untouchable.
The Nuggets want to make a deal.
The challenge will be to get the Nuggets front-office team of basketball operations vice president Mark Warkentien, player personnel veep Rex Chapman and executive adviser Bret Bearup, who have sometimes worked at cross purposes since the blockbuster acquisition of Iverson, on the same page in any trade proposal.
It will cost franchise owner Stan Kroenke in excess of $44 million plus luxury taxes to keep Anthony, Iverson and Camby on the team payroll next season. That's simply not a smart investment in three star players who recently won 50 regular-season games, then went down without much of a fight against the Los Angeles Lakers in the playoffs.
Somebody has to go.
Despite his impressive defensive statistics, Camby's value as trade bait has been hotly debated by Denver management for the past 12 months. While the Nuggets tried to pry one of the young stars from the Atlanta Hawks in return for Camby last spring, a 34-year-old center now would likely have more appeal to a contender looking for the final piece to its championship puzzle.
As the Nuggets bet Iverson will not choose to opt out of a contract scheduled to pay him a salary in excess of $20 million next season, the team remains uncertain of what to do with the 32-year-old guard down the road, especially when Denver considers A.I. could be attractive to a potential trade partner looking for a marquee name to sell tickets in the short term and provide roster flexibility in the long term.
While the Nuggets have given no indication they will actively shop Anthony, the constant drama in the life of their 23-year-old forward has become the source of enough frustration within team headquarters that Denver would be willing to listen if somebody made a trade offer too good to refuse for Melo. The problem? In a league where stars such as Kobe Bryant and LeBron James dominate, it's difficult to come out ahead when trading a singular immense talent for any combination of players and draft picks.
Denver will not stand pat. With a draft choice late in the first round, it's believed the Nuggets are eyeing North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson. The team also is known to have recently scouted young European center Marc Gasol, currently property of the Memphis Grizzlies and a prospect who might be ready to emerge from the shadow of his big brother with the Lakers.
If the Nuggets want to make a blockbuster deal capable of altering the chemistry of a squad whose success seems to be less than the sum of its parts, however, they must move Camby, Iverson or Anthony. Who would get shown the door?
Maybe the more pertinent question is: Can Warkentien, Chapman and Bearup agree on what direction to take the Nuggets?
To put it nicely, this is a management team of three strong-willed, opinionated basketball men who too often appear to be competing for the ear of Kroenke.
For example: At the trade deadline in February, the Nuggets irked NBA teams from coast to coast when the front-office staff simultaneously worked deals for Sacramento defensive wizard Ron Artest and Memphis shooter Mike Miller, only to come off as an organization whose left hand was unaware of what the right hand was doing.
As the Nuggets struggled to make the playoffs only to be rudely bounced by the Lakers in the first round, it was not unusual to see Warkentien or Chapman take separate turns consulting and consoling Kroenke in the arena seats or a hallway outside the locker room.
If the Denver front office cannot give the boss better advice or results, why should Kroenke continue to listen?
Before the Nuggets can build a championship identity, this is a basketball organization that needs to find its voice.
http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_9199420
By Mark Kiszla
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 05/09/2008
The math does not compute for the Nuggets.
Somebody has to go.
Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and Marcus Camby are the team's big three. But they proved to be a big zero in the NBA playoffs.
Convinced they must make a significant change to compete for a championship, it's no secret the Nuggets will actively pursue trade options. What's more significant, according to a source familiar with the team, is nobody on the Denver roster has been deemed absolutely untouchable.
The Nuggets want to make a deal.
The challenge will be to get the Nuggets front-office team of basketball operations vice president Mark Warkentien, player personnel veep Rex Chapman and executive adviser Bret Bearup, who have sometimes worked at cross purposes since the blockbuster acquisition of Iverson, on the same page in any trade proposal.
It will cost franchise owner Stan Kroenke in excess of $44 million plus luxury taxes to keep Anthony, Iverson and Camby on the team payroll next season. That's simply not a smart investment in three star players who recently won 50 regular-season games, then went down without much of a fight against the Los Angeles Lakers in the playoffs.
Somebody has to go.
Despite his impressive defensive statistics, Camby's value as trade bait has been hotly debated by Denver management for the past 12 months. While the Nuggets tried to pry one of the young stars from the Atlanta Hawks in return for Camby last spring, a 34-year-old center now would likely have more appeal to a contender looking for the final piece to its championship puzzle.
As the Nuggets bet Iverson will not choose to opt out of a contract scheduled to pay him a salary in excess of $20 million next season, the team remains uncertain of what to do with the 32-year-old guard down the road, especially when Denver considers A.I. could be attractive to a potential trade partner looking for a marquee name to sell tickets in the short term and provide roster flexibility in the long term.
While the Nuggets have given no indication they will actively shop Anthony, the constant drama in the life of their 23-year-old forward has become the source of enough frustration within team headquarters that Denver would be willing to listen if somebody made a trade offer too good to refuse for Melo. The problem? In a league where stars such as Kobe Bryant and LeBron James dominate, it's difficult to come out ahead when trading a singular immense talent for any combination of players and draft picks.
Denver will not stand pat. With a draft choice late in the first round, it's believed the Nuggets are eyeing North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson. The team also is known to have recently scouted young European center Marc Gasol, currently property of the Memphis Grizzlies and a prospect who might be ready to emerge from the shadow of his big brother with the Lakers.
If the Nuggets want to make a blockbuster deal capable of altering the chemistry of a squad whose success seems to be less than the sum of its parts, however, they must move Camby, Iverson or Anthony. Who would get shown the door?
Maybe the more pertinent question is: Can Warkentien, Chapman and Bearup agree on what direction to take the Nuggets?
To put it nicely, this is a management team of three strong-willed, opinionated basketball men who too often appear to be competing for the ear of Kroenke.
For example: At the trade deadline in February, the Nuggets irked NBA teams from coast to coast when the front-office staff simultaneously worked deals for Sacramento defensive wizard Ron Artest and Memphis shooter Mike Miller, only to come off as an organization whose left hand was unaware of what the right hand was doing.
As the Nuggets struggled to make the playoffs only to be rudely bounced by the Lakers in the first round, it was not unusual to see Warkentien or Chapman take separate turns consulting and consoling Kroenke in the arena seats or a hallway outside the locker room.
If the Denver front office cannot give the boss better advice or results, why should Kroenke continue to listen?
Before the Nuggets can build a championship identity, this is a basketball organization that needs to find its voice.
http://www.denverpost.com/sports/ci_9199420