2001–02 Denver Nuggets season

2001–02 Denver Nuggets season
Head coach
General managerKiki VanDeWeghe
OwnerStan Kroenke
ArenaPepsi Center
Results
Record27–55 (.329)
PlaceDivision: 6th (Midwest)
Conference: 12th (Western)
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television
RadioKKFN

The 2001–02 Denver Nuggets season was the 26th season for the Denver Nuggets in the National Basketball Association, and their 35th season as a franchise.[1] During the off-season, the Nuggets signed free agents Isaiah Rider and Avery Johnson;[2] however, Rider would only play in just ten games before being waived in November.[3] After finishing just one game below .500 in winning percentage the previous season, the Nuggets suffered another disastrous setback as Antonio McDyess suffered a preseason knee injury, which limited him to just ten games.[4][5] The Nuggets got off to a 6–5 start to the regular season, but then lost nine of their next ten games.

The Nuggets were also involved in controversy this season, after a 99–96 home loss to the Charlotte Hornets at the Pepsi Center on December 11, 2001, when head coach Dan Issel yelled a racial slur towards a Mexican fan; Issel was suspended for four games and was forced to resign, being replaced by his assistant Mike Evans after a 9–17 start to the season.[6][7][8] At mid-season, Nick Van Exel was traded along with Johnson, Raef LaFrentz and Tariq Abdul-Wahad to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Juwan Howard, All-Star guard Tim Hardaway, and second-year forward Donnell Harvey.[9][10][11] The Nuggets posted a 7-game losing streak in March, and finished in sixth place in the Midwest Division with a 27–55 record, missing the NBA playoffs for the seventh consecutive year.[12]

Howard averaged 17.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in 28 games with the Nuggets after the trade, while Voshon Lenard averaged 11.5 points per game, and McDyess provided the team with 11.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. In addition, Hardaway contributed 9.6 points and 5.5 assists per game in 14 games, while George McCloud provided with 8.8 points per game, and Harvey averaged 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 29 games. Meanwhile, Calbert Cheaney contributed 7.3 points per game, and Ryan Bowen averaged 4.9 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.[13]

Following the season, McDyess was traded to the New York Knicks,[14][15] while Lenard signed as a free agent with the Toronto Raptors,[16] Cheaney signed with the Utah Jazz,[17] McCloud was traded to the Washington Wizards, but was released to free agency, Hardaway was released, and Evans was fired as head coach.[18]

Offseason

Draft picks

Main article: 2001 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality School/Club team
2 47 Ousmane Cisse F  Mali St. Jude HS (AL)

Roster

2001–02 Denver Nuggets roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
C 27 Mengke Bateer 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 290 lb (132 kg) China
F 15 Chris Andersen 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Blinn
G 30 Carlos Arroyo 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 202 lb (92 kg) FIU
F 32 Ryan Bowen 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Iowa
G/F 29 Calbert Cheaney 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 209 lb (95 kg) Indiana
C 25 Zendon Hamilton 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) St. John's
G 10 Tim Hardaway  6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) UTEP
F 1 Donnell Harvey 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Florida
F 7 Juwan Howard 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Michigan
G 5 Voshon Lenard 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Minnesota
F 21 George McCloud 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Florida State
F/C 24 Antonio McDyess  6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Alabama
G/F 41 James Posey 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Xavier
G 11 Kenny Satterfield 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 186 lb (84 kg) Cincinnati
F/C 42 Scott Williams  6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) North Carolina
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster

Roster Notes

  • Shooting guard Isaiah Rider was waived on November 20, 2001.

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-San Antonio Spurs 58 24 .707 – 32–9 26–15 21–3
x-Dallas Mavericks 57 25 .695 1 30–11 27–14 16–8
x-Minnesota Timberwolves 50 32 .610 8 29–12 21–20 15–9
x-Utah Jazz 44 38 .537 14 25–16 19–22 8–16
e-Houston Rockets 28 54 .341 30 18–23 10–31 9–15
e-Denver Nuggets 27 55 .329 31 20–21 7–34 8–16
e-Memphis Grizzlies 23 59 .280 35 15–26 8–33 7–17
#
Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Sacramento Kings 61 21 .744 –
2 y-San Antonio Spurs 58 24 .707 3
3 x-Los Angeles Lakers 58 24 .707 3
4 x-Dallas Mavericks 57 25 .695 4
5 x-Minnesota Timberwolves 50 32 .610 11
6 x-Portland Trail Blazers 49 33 .598 12
7 x-Seattle SuperSonics 45 37 .549 16
8 x-Utah Jazz 44 38 .537 17
9 e-Los Angeles Clippers 39 43 .476 22
10 e-Phoenix Suns 36 46 .439 25
11 e-Houston Rockets 28 54 .341 33
12 e-Denver Nuggets 27 55 .329 34
13 e-Memphis Grizzlies 23 59 .280 38
14 e-Golden State Warriors 21 61 .256 40
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Game log

Player statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Regular season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Nick Van Exel 45 44 38.6 .408 .337 .782 3.8 8.1 0.7 0.2 21.4
Juwan Howard 28 28 34.9 .457 .000 .770 7.9 2.7 0.6 0.6 17.9
Raef LaFrentz 51 51 32.7 .466 .434 .667 7.4 1.2 0.6 3.0 14.9
Voshon Lenard 71 19 23.5 .410 .371 .783 2.6 1.8 0.8 0.4 11.5
Antonio McDyess 10 10 23.6 .573 .818 5.5 1.8 1.0 0.8 11.3
James Posey 73 63 30.7 .376 .283 .793 5.9 2.5 1.6 0.5 10.7
Tim Hardaway 14 14 23.2 .373 .373 .632 1.9 5.5 1.2 0.1 9.6
Avery Johnson 51 13 23.5 .486 .000 .747 1.3 5.1 0.7 0.2 9.4
Isaiah Rider 10 1 17.3 .457 .400 .765 3.3 1.2 0.3 0.2 9.3
George McCloud 69 26 26.5 .358 .270 .810 3.6 3.0 0.8 0.3 8.8
Donnell Harvey 29 4 23.4 .492 .647 6.2 1.1 0.6 0.7 8.0
Calbert Cheaney 68 47 24.0 .481 .000 .687 3.5 1.6 0.5 0.3 7.3
Tariq Abdul-Wahad 20 12 20.9 .379 .500 .750 3.9 1.1 0.9 0.5 6.8
Zendon Hamilton 54 15 15.7 .420 .652 4.7 0.3 0.4 0.3 6.0
Kenny Satterfield 36 4 15.6 .367 .259 .783 1.4 3.0 0.9 0.0 5.3
Mengke Bateer 27 10 15.1 .402 .333 .784 3.6 0.8 0.4 0.2 5.1
Ryan Bowen 75 21 22.5 .479 .083 .750 4.0 0.7 1.0 0.5 4.9
Scott Williams 41 16 18.0 .396 .000 .732 5.1 0.3 0.4 0.8 4.9
Carlos Arroyo 20 1 13.8 .439 .000 .750 1.4 2.5 0.3 0.1 4.1
Shawnelle Scott 21 10 12.0 .493 .400 4.9 0.4 0.1 0.3 3.9
Chris Andersen 24 1 10.9 .338 .000 .786 3.2 0.3 0.3 1.2 3.0

Player statistics citation:[13]

Awards and records

Transactions

References

  1. ^ 2001-02 Denver Nuggets
  2. ^ Wise, Mike (October 30, 2001). "PRO BASKETBALL; Jordan Against the New Generation, Lakers Against the World". The New York Times. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  3. ^ "Nuggets Waive Isiah Rider". United Press International. November 20, 2001. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
  4. ^ "PLUS: PRO BASKETBALL; Nuggets Sign Cook, Former St. John's Star". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 10, 2001. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  5. ^ "Nuggets' McDyess Has Knee Surgery". Associated Press. October 12, 2001. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  6. ^ "PRO BASKETBALL; Issel Apologizes for Slur and Will Miss 4 Games". The New York Times. Associated Press. December 13, 2001. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  7. ^ "Nuggets Bench Issel for Outburst". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. December 13, 2001. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  8. ^ "Coach Quits After Slur Controversy". CBS News. December 27, 2001. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  9. ^ Broussard, Chris (February 22, 2002). "BASKETBALL; Van Exel and LaFrentz Are Traded to the Mavericks". The New York Times. Retrieved January 12, 2022.
  10. ^ "Mavericks Get Van Exel, LaFrentz". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. February 22, 2002. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  11. ^ "Van Exel, Howard Are Part of Big Trade". The Washington Post. February 22, 2002. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  12. ^ "2001–02 Denver Nuggets Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  13. ^ a b "2001–02 Denver Nuggets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  14. ^ Broussard, Chris (June 27, 2002). "PRO BASKETBALL; Knicks Get McDyess for Camby and Jackson". The New York Times. Retrieved January 11, 2022.
  15. ^ "Nuggets Trade McDyess, Get Draft-Day Makeover". ESPN. Associated Press. June 26, 2002. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  16. ^ Mathur, Ashish (June 12, 2020). "Raptors: Every Notable Toronto Free-Agent Signing, by Year". Clutch Points. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  17. ^ Buckley, Tim (October 28, 2002). "Utah Jazz Season Preview 2002-03". Deseret News. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  18. ^ Heisler, Mark (October 28, 2002). "West Capsules in Predicted Order of Finish". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 20, 2022.

See also

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