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Nuggets Draft Review
Topic Started: Jun 1 2009, 04:01 AM (99 Views)
carlos51093
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Nuggets Draft Review
An in-depth look at the Nuggets first six picks,

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As one of the teams most effected by the SSBL redraft, the Denver Nuggets came into the draft with the fourteenth pick in the first round. The Nuggets, who had made the playoffs every year since the 1981-1982 season, came in looking to build a winning team. Gone were Alex English, Michael Adams, and Lafayette Lever, and the Denver Nuggets looked to bring in a new roster and a new identity to a team that was once a scoring powerhouse averaging nearly 109 Points Per Game in the 1988 season. While the Nuggets made the playoffs in 1988, the team was looking to turn the page and use the creation draft to build their team on defense. On the clock with the fourteenth pick in the draft, the Nuggets added a great Point Guard to be the corenerstone for their franchise.

Magic Johnson

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With their first pick of the draft, the Denver Nuggets decided to go with what they felt was the most important position on the court, Point Guard. Not only did they fill an important position with this pick, but they also got one of the all-time greats, something the Nuggets management thought would be impossible. While many teams were picking for youth and looking for that young player who could carry their team for many years, one of the best players to ever play slipped through the hands of half the league's hands an landed in Denver at fourteen.

Magic Johnson can do it all on the court. Not only will he be the team's main play maker, but he will also most likely be their leading scorer and a lock-down perimeter defender. At 6'9", Johnson gives them amazing size and strength at Point Guard and a great rebounder away from the basket. Magic Johnson will continue the great play he showed in Los Angeles playing for the Lakers and will look to lead the Nuggets to their eighth straight playoff appearance. The Nuggets are already expecting big things out of Johnson and hope that they have the right pieces alongside him to win the Nuggets their first NBA Championship.

Sam Bowie

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With the Point Guard position filled, the Nuggets were looking to add a big man for Magic Johnson to dump the ball to in the paint. With the sixteenth pick in the second round, the Nuggets were able to fill that need with Sam Bowie, a fifth year player out of Kentucky. Although the twenty-eight year old Bowie has been quite disappointing since entering the league and has been plagued by injuries, the Denver Nuggets decided to take a chance with their second round choice. In a decision that could come back to bite them, they went with who they felt was the best Center left on the board.

Although Bowie has had troubles since entering the league, he has shown some streaks of the talent that made him the second overall pick just a few years ago. Bowie has proven himself to be a great defensive Center with a good knack for the ball. His defensive and rebounding numbers will make him a great asset for the Nuggets, but what they're hoping to develop will be his scoring. With a great Point Guard distributing the ball, the Nuggets think Bowie's scoring numbers will go up, making him a great value pick in the second round. Although he will not be that second star that the Nuggets were hoping to get, Bowie has great size and skill, the question is whether he can stay healthy.

Ken Norman

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In hopes of adding yet another great player into the mix, the Denver Nuggets agreed to a deal with the Sacramento Kings in which the Nuggets traded a future first round pick and a fourth round Creation Draft pick to Sacramento for the fourth pick in the third round. With this pick, the Nuggets continued the trend of drafting for defense and added some youth in the process. With their recently acquired pick, the Nuggets selected twenty five year old Ken Norman,a Small Forward from the University of Illinois.

Although Ken Norman is only twenty five years old and was th youngest player the Nuggets have drafted thus far, he is very good and mature for his age. At just 25, Norman has emerged as one of the league's finest defenders. This young man has shown that he can play shut down defense, something the Nuggets will need him to do. With such great scorers in the Midwest, such as James Worthy, Chuck Person, and Tony Campbell, the Nuggets are happy to have drafted such a fine defensive player. To add to that defensive prowess that made him such a prized player, Norman also adds a good inside game which will be a good asset with Magic Johnson's precision passing.

Hot Rod Williams

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With their own third round draft pick, the Nuggets went big once again, selecting a more reliable big man in Hot Rod Williams. Again, the Nuggets went with defense, adding a great shot-blocking big man to the mix of an already great defensive team. Teaming up with Sam Bowie in the front-court, the Nuggets now possess one of the biggest front-courts in the league with Bowie standing at 7'1" and Williams at 6'11". Although he gives the Nuggets another great shot-blocker, Williams is lacking in one dimension of the game that worries many. Williams's rebounding statistics are not nearly as good as what many teams are looking for from their Power Forward or Center. Although this was a concern for the Nuggets, they are hoping that Sam Bowie, Ken Norman, and Magic Johnson, who are all great rebounders will carry the load.

Darrell Griffith

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After some time off in the fourth round, the Denver Nuggets were on the clock once again with the fourteenth pick in the fifth round. With this pick, the Nuggets were looking to add a good scorer to give Magic Johnson another weapon to play with. The Nuggets were also looking to add an outside shooter, something they were seriously lacking on their team. In the fifth round, they were able to fill both those needs with Darrel Griffith, most known by his nickname "Dr. Dunkenstein". At 31 years old, Griffith is much older than many of the players the Nuggets were looking at with this pick, but his specific skill set was one the Nuggets just could not pass up. Griffith was one of the best perimeter shooters left in the draft and was a proven scorer. Although he is not a lock-down defender like many of the Nuggets' other picks, Griffith is not a defensive liability either and will fit in with the Nuggets' plans. Griffith's role will be much less demanding than he is used to, but he was a great value in the fifth round. Plus, how can you pass on a guy with such a cool nickname?

Orlando Woolridge

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Rounding out the first hal of the draft, the Denver Nuggets were looking to add a great scorer for the team's sixth man. Although the Nuggets had a great defensive team, they felt they did not have enough scoring to win it all. With their last two picks, Griffith and Woolridge, they are hoping they have addressed that need. Orlando Woolridge was a great pick in the sixth round. At 6'9", Woolridge is big enough to play either forward position and is a great insurance policy just in case Bowie gets into injury troubles again nezt season. Woolridge's best asset is his great inside scoring. Coming off the bench, Woolridge will give teams a much different look than either Williams or Bowie would. Orlando Woolridge is a much more offensive minded player who is capable of giving the Nuggets a great spark off the bench. Although his defense is nothing to write home about, Woolridge gives the Nuggets some much needed scoring on a team full of defensive players.

With six picks down and six more to go, the Denver Nuggets feel confident that they are well on their way to becoming a championship contender. Although there are many great teams in their way, the Nuggets have some great talent and an amazing floor general to put the pieces together. If everything falls together for the Nuggets, it is possible hey could become the league's first champions.
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Maverick41
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I like what u have done so far. The article had some really good facts and stats in it.

EDIT: One thing though, Norman won't be able to stop Person! lol, jk
Edited by Maverick41, Jun 1 2009, 04:19 AM.
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