Down to the final four, Nuggets fans may recognize some familiar faces. There are seven former Nuggets that now play for the Thunder, Warriors, Cavaliers and Raptors. While some are benchwarmers, others are making significant impacts on their team’s postseason run.
Let’s look at a few of these players and see what their Denver years were like and if the Nuggets could (or should) have kept them.
Timofey Mozgov
The 7-foot-1 Russian originally came to Denver in the trade that sent Carmelo Anthony to the Knicks. In his four seasons with the Nuggets, Mozzy saw great improvement in his play. In the 2013-14 season, Mozgov played in all 82 games and saw his points per game jump almost seven whole points from the previous year to 9.4.
The next season Mozgov became the full-time starter, averaging 8.5 points and a career-high 7.8 rebounds. He also had his career game against the Warriors scoring 23 and grabbing 29 boards in a one-point road win.
However, 35 games into the season, Mozgov was traded to the Cavaliers for two first round picks. He remained the starter for the rest of the season and continued to play the best ball of his career.
Mozgov became the first Russian to play in the finals, putting up three double-doubles against the Warriors and was a big factor in the Cavs game two win, with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
This season, however, nagging knee injuries have caused Mozgov to see his minutes drop in favor of Tristian Thompson and smaller lineups. In this postseason, Mozgov has been forgotten, only logging a total of 38 minutes.
Verdict: The Nuggets got a great deal for Mozgov in last year’s trade during the peak of his career. Now all that matters is making sure the Nuggets get value from those picks.
DeMarre Carroll
Some fans may even forget that Carroll was a Nugget due to his short stint. While mostly just riding the bench, Carroll made four appearances in the white and blue, averaging 3.0 points in 5.4 minutes.
After being waved by the Rockets in April of 2011, Carroll was invited to the Nuggets training camp the following year. He was with the team only a few months before being waved.
Through his tenure, Carroll played at the power forward position. He later found success as a small forward as he began to earn his minutes and become a starter in Utah and later Atlanta.
This last offseason Carroll signed a four-year, $60 million dollar deal with the Raptors. While a knee injury caused him to miss most of this year, he has been healthy for the playoffs. In fact, over the past two seasons, Carroll has been the best defender against LeBron James in the entire league. While James had the upper hand earlier in the series, Carroll had his best defensive performance in Game 3.
Verdict: No one in Denver could have foreseen what kind of player Carroll became. If the Nuggets had decided to try playing him at the three, the team possibly could have struck gold.
Andre Iguodala
When the Nuggets acquired Iguodala in the blockbuster trade that sent Dwight Howard to the Lakers, things were looking good. Iggy had just helped his 76ers beat the first seed Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs and was playing on the 2012 Olympic team.
The team went on to have its best season in franchise history, winning 57 games, good enough for the three seed in the Western Conference. However, the season ended abruptly. The Nuggets were upset by the Golden State Warriors in six games, ultimately leading to George Karl’s firing.
That series also featured off-the-court drama. The Warriors then-head coach Mark Jackson accused Karl of telling his players to play overly aggressive on Stephen Curry, indicating that he had a source within the team. Karl says “no question” that the mole was Iguodala. Furthermore, Iggy’s family sat by the Warriors bench during the series and indicated to the team that he was interested in a move to the Bay Area.
Iguodala opted out of his contract with the Nuggets, signing with the Warriors for less than what Denver could offer.
The rest is history. Last season Steve Kerr moved Iguodala to the bench, but brought him back to the starting lineup in the Finals. He shut down LeBron James and was named Finals MVP, becoming the first player to win the award without starting a game in the regular season.
Verdict: While he still played well in the series, the way Iguodala treated the end of his time in Denver left a sour impression for many fans. While keeping him a Nugget may have prevented the rebuild the team now finds itself in, there may not have been much the team could have done to resign him.
J.R. Smith
When Smith gets hot, he shoots as well as Steph Curry. He can turn a game around in an instant and sometimes looks like the best player on the court. He is the only Cavalier that LeBron James says, “has the ultra-green light” on for when he can shoot. He had the same exciting tendencies during his five seasons in Denver (including one of the best dunks in team history).
While J.R. is a starter in Cleveland, during his time in Denver he was one of the best sixth men in the league. He averaged 13.7 points in 24.7 minutes during his tenure with the Nuggets.
Smith had a career high 45 against the Sacramento Kings in 2009, hitting 11 three pointers, one shy of the record.
During the 2011-12 lockout, Smith signed with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association. In a February 1 match up, Smith scored 60 points and 14 threes off the bench. Two days later, he put up 41. This led him to being selected as a starter in that season’s All-Star Game.
After the lockout Smith signed with the New York Knicks where he was reunited with his former teammate Carmelo Anthony. There he was named the 2013 Sixth Man of the Year. After four seasons in New York, Smith was traded with Iman Shumpert to the Cavs.
During his time in Cleveland, Smith still does many of the things he did in Denver — scuffle with opponents and get as hot as any shooter in the game.
Verdict: J.R. is the type of player that any team should want. If the lockout could have been avoided, there’s a chance that he could still be draining threes in the blue and gold.