Denver says sayonara to Kiki Vandeweghe

[CubanMustGo]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2435011

DENVER -- Kiki Vandeweghe won't be the one fixing the Denver Nuggets this summer. Team owner Stan Kroenke said Friday that he's not going to extend his general manager's contract.

Vandeweghe reshaped the Nuggets and returned them to respectability after taking over as GM on Aug. 9, 2001, but speculation about his future ran rampant all season as Kroenke stayed silent regarding an extension.

Thed 47-year-old Vandeweghe met with Kroenke on Friday, four days after the Nuggets bowed out of the playoffs in the first round for the third straight season.

"After meeting with Kiki today, we agreed his contract will not be extended. We appreciate the time he spent with the Nuggets and wish him good luck as he seeks out his next challenge," Kroenke said in a statement. "We remain focused on attaining our goal of establishing a team that consistently competes at the highest levels and will make every effort to achieve that goal."

Kroenke didn't say if he had anyone in mind to replace Vandeweghe.

Although there's no real urgency to get a personnel man in place because the Nuggets don't own a first-round selection in the June 28 draft, there are many issues confronting the club this offseason.

Star Carmelo Anthony is eligible for a contract extension of some $80 million and there's the question of what to do with fiery forward Kenyon Martin, who was suspended in the playoffs for insubordination.

Coach George Karl also issued a plea this week for more shooters after the Nuggets' dismal performance in the playoffs, although his wish list didn't stop there.

"How about four?" he said. "Can we get a big man who can make a shot? Can we get a true shooter on a 3-point line? Maybe a scorer and a shooter? A penetrator?"

Vandeweghe didn't answer a phone call from The Associated Press on Friday, but in a statement released by the team, he said: "I am truly grateful to Mr. Kroenke for the opportunity he gave me and for everything I have learned from this experience. I am excited about moving in a new direction."

Vandeweghe began his 13-year NBA playing career in Denver in 1980 after leading UCLA to the national championship game as a senior. Vandeweghe, a two-time All-Star, averaged 23.3 points in 293 games for the Nuggets.

Denver was expected to jump into the elite echelon of the Western Conference this season but injuries and inconsistencies did them in. Although the Nuggets won their first divisional le in 18 seasons, they were bounced from the playoffs in five games by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Afterward, Vandeweghe said he would go to work as usual even though his contract was set to expire Aug. 1 and there were no signs Kroenke wanted him to stick around.

"The first thing is to get over this loss and get our team healthy," he said Tuesday. "After that, I'm sure we'll sit down at some point to discuss my situation. That's all I can do."

Vandeweghe reshaped the Nuggets during his tenure, changing them from a perennial lottery team to one that won its first division le since 1988 despite injuries to forwards Nene and Martin and center Marcus Camby, among others.

He got Nene and Camby in a draft-day deal from the New York Knicks in 2002. But his best move came a year later, when he selected Anthony with the third pick in the 2003 draft, and the Nuggets improved their win total by 26 and reached the playoffs for the first time since 1995.

He acquired Martin in 2004 from the New Jersey Nets for three first-round draft picks, which he had stockpiled through a series of deals, and Karl came aboard midway through last season and led Denver to the playoffs again.

This season began with high expectations but Nene went down in the opener with a torn knee ligament that sidelined him all season, and the team never found a rhythm on the court or chemistry in the locker room.

Vandeweghe was the first to pay the price.

[RON ARTEST]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2435011

DENVER -- Kiki Vandeweghe won't be the one fixing the Denver Nuggets this summer. Team owner Stan Kroenke said Friday that he's not going to extend his general manager's contract.

Vandeweghe reshaped the Nuggets and returned them to respectability after taking over as GM on Aug. 9, 2001, but speculation about his future ran rampant all season as Kroenke stayed silent regarding an extension.

Thed 47-year-old Vandeweghe met with Kroenke on Friday, four days after the Nuggets bowed out of the playoffs in the first round for the third straight season.

"After meeting with Kiki today, we agreed his contract will not be extended. We appreciate the time he spent with the Nuggets and wish him good luck as he seeks out his next challenge," Kroenke said in a statement. "We remain focused on attaining our goal of establishing a team that consistently competes at the highest levels and will make every effort to achieve that goal."

Kroenke didn't say if he had anyone in mind to replace Vandeweghe.

Although there's no real urgency to get a personnel man in place because the Nuggets don't own a first-round selection in the June 28 draft, there are many issues confronting the club this offseason.

Star Carmelo Anthony is eligible for a contract extension of some $80 million and there's the question of what to do with fiery forward Kenyon Martin, who was suspended in the playoffs for insubordination.

Coach George Karl also issued a plea this week for more shooters after the Nuggets' dismal performance in the playoffs, although his wish list didn't stop there.

"How about four?" he said. "Can we get a big man who can make a shot? Can we get a true shooter on a 3-point line? Maybe a scorer and a shooter? A penetrator?"

Vandeweghe didn't answer a phone call from The Associated Press on Friday, but in a statement released by the team, he said: "I am truly grateful to Mr. Kroenke for the opportunity he gave me and for everything I have learned from this experience. I am excited about moving in a new direction."

Vandeweghe began his 13-year NBA playing career in Denver in 1980 after leading UCLA to the national championship game as a senior. Vandeweghe, a two-time All-Star, averaged 23.3 points in 293 games for the Nuggets.

Denver was expected to jump into the elite echelon of the Western Conference this season but injuries and inconsistencies did them in. Although the Nuggets won their first divisional le in 18 seasons, they were bounced from the playoffs in five games by the Los Angeles Clippers.

Afterward, Vandeweghe said he would go to work as usual even though his contract was set to expire Aug. 1 and there were no signs Kroenke wanted him to stick around.

"The first thing is to get over this loss and get our team healthy," he said Tuesday. "After that, I'm sure we'll sit down at some point to discuss my situation. That's all I can do."

Vandeweghe reshaped the Nuggets during his tenure, changing them from a perennial lottery team to one that won its first division le since 1988 despite injuries to forwards Nene and Martin and center Marcus Camby, among others.

He got Nene and Camby in a draft-day deal from the New York Knicks in 2002. But his best move came a year later, when he selected Anthony with the third pick in the 2003 draft, and the Nuggets improved their win total by 26 and reached the playoffs for the first time since 1995.

He acquired Martin in 2004 from the New Jersey Nets for three first-round draft picks, which he had stockpiled through a series of deals, and Karl came aboard midway through last season and led Denver to the playoffs again.

This season began with high expectations but Nene went down in the opener with a torn knee ligament that sidelined him all season, and the team never found a rhythm on the court or chemistry in the locker room.

Vandeweghe was the first to pay the price.

good he wasnt doing anyway.

[NuGGeTs-FaN]

good he wasnt doing anyway.

the dude did the biggest salary dump in NBA history and turned the Nuggets into a playoff team............ he made a mistake with Kmart and Skita but he did the team alot of good. Its true that he isnt the guy that would take the NUggets to the next level but he has done alot for the organisation

its all part of GK's plan...........him and stan run the team, Kiki's stay was over once Stan pushed the signing of GK

[Horry For 3!]

He ed up by not getting rid of Kenyon, I think that is what cost him. Also the Nuggets not getting out of the first round.

[Darrin]

5 years before Vandeweghe:
1995-96: 37-45 (.451) - last season with Dikembe Mutombo
1996-97: 21-61 (.256)
1998-99: 14-36 (.280)
1999-00: 35-47 (.427)
2000-01: 40-42 (.488)

147-231 (.389) - no winning seasons, no playoffs.

5 Years with Vandeweghe:
2001-02: 27-55 (.329)
2002-03: 17-65 (.207)
2003-04: 43-39 (.524) - first winning season since 1994.
2004-05: 49-33 (.598) - most wins since 1988
2005-06: 44-38 (.537) - first division le in 17 years.

180-230 (.439) - three winning seasons, three playoff appearances, a division le.

When he took over that team, they had a 60-million dollars payroll to win 35-40 games. He cleaned all that up, signed big name free agents, drafted Carmelo Anthony, and took chances that worked out well (trading McDyess for Camby and Nene) and ones that haven't (drafting Nikoloz Tskitishvili and trading Jameer Nelson).

The game of chicken he played with Larry Brown and Mike D'Antoni in the 2003 offseason ended up with him losing both coaching candidates with two others pulling out the race. That made it a very messy situation with Jeff Bzdelik because he was never wanted by the team. All of this showed his inexperience as a GM.
The bottom line is that the Nuggets now have one of the best on their sidelines.

He turned Denver into a relevant NBA franchise again. If there's one knock on him, it's that he had a hard time molding the Nuggets from a good team into a great one. That's what makes me think this is a great situation for both parties. They need to tweak that team, and I'm not sure he was the guy to get it done.

I think this gives him a fresh perspective and I'd assume he'd be hired fairly soon, perhaps as a replacement for Brian Colangelo in Phoenix, for Mitch Kupchak for the LA Lakers, or what I think would be the best situation for him - GM for the Knicks.

[Obstructed_View]

Bad, bad decision on Denver's part. Look for them to go back to 30 wins a season and lose all their talent. I wonder if this situation would have happened if the Nuggets had beaten Memphis in the first round instead of losing to the Clips.

[NuGGeTs-FaN]

they will keep Melo and Nene, thats all they need to build around

noone but those two should feel safe and anyone of them could be gone next season if the right deals come along

[Obstructed_View]

Just out of curiosity, what have Carmelo and Nene done to feel safe?

[NuGGeTs-FaN]

Just out of curiosity, what have Carmelo and Nene done to feel safe?

Melo has had an all-star year and would have had a great postseason if he had some shooters as teammates.......He was getting doubled and tripled from the very beginning and kicking it out to teammates they couldnt hit a shot to save their lives. The clips ended up leaving guys wide open and collapsing on melo, even then they couldnt hit a shot.....

Nene has been out all season as you know but he has the size, strength and low post presence that the Nuggets have lacked. Camby is too skinny to go down low and post up, Evans is too busy grabbing Nuts, K relied on creating a J for himself, Elson is no good etc etc etc

The nuggets Need Nene's lowpost presence on both offense and defense.....He will be back if the Nuggets organisation knowss whats good for them

but there is also the risk of him turning out to be an injury prone big man and thats exactly what the Nuggets dont need AGAIN

[Obstructed_View]

Interesting. The only reason I would deem Anthony untouchable is because it would be nearly impossible to get equivalent value for him. You don't even trade him straight up for KG because of the age difference and the upside. If 'melo develops some leadership ability, which is what his team really needed in the playoffs, he'll be dangerous. IMO you pull the trigger on a good offer for Nene, just because of the risk you mentioned.