we have such a great rep...
Nuggets need to pawn K-Mart off on Knicks
Andy Rosenthal
May 5, 2006
Heading into the summer of 2004, the Denver Nuggets were in an envious position.
They had one of the league's rising stars in Carmelo Anthony, a roster full of defensive-minded players, a bevy of future first-round draft picks and enough cap space to acquire at least two impact free agents.
And now, after the Los Angeles Clippers systematically dismantled the Nuggets, Denver is one of the biggest question marks in the league.
Denver still has Anthony, but under the guidance of Kiki Vandeweghe, the Nuggets squandered the bulk of their cap space and three first-round draft picks for the oft-injured Kenyon Martin.
At the time, the decision didn't seem nearly as abhorrent as it turned out. After all, Kenyon Martin was one-third of a nucleus that went to the NBA Finals in back-to-back years and was a 26-year-old All-Star. Those are certainly enough quality accolades to garner a contract above the $4.5 million mid-level exception. But Vandeweghe, in an apparent effort to spend as much money as possible, negotiated against himself and not only gave Martin a max contract, but threw in multiple draft picks for a player who can't be considered any better than a second-tier power forward.
To make matters worse, Martin got along with head coach George Karl about as well as Tupac got along with Biggie Smalls and was suspended for the final three games of the Nuggets playoff series against the Clippers.
Fortunately for Vandeweghe, there is a safety net available to rescue the Nuggets and, potentially, Vandeweghe's job.
That safety net? His name is Isiah Thomas, general manager for the New York Knicks.
Not only does Thomas have a penchant for acquiring players with a history of bad attitudes and disastrous contracts, but he actually has enough desirable players and expiring contracts for a trade to actually benefit the Nuggets.
Trading Martin and Nenê, in a sign-and-trade, for Jamal Crawford and Maurice Taylor would work under the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement and would make sense for both teams.
Taylor's contract expires at the end of the season and Crawford would become the second scoring option Anthony so badly needs. Crawford also has experience playing the point guard position, which would allow the Nuggets to stop pretending Earl Boykins has any discernible basketball skills whatsoever.
Thomas has previously expressed a desire to acquire Martin and Nenê, who is coming off a season-ending injury, something Thomas has never previously shied away from (see Antonio McDyess and Eddy Curry).
Another area of need for the Nuggets is shooting guard. The Nuggets shot slightly below 23 percent from the 3-point line against the Clippers and finished the season with Greg Buckner masquerading as their 3-point specialist.
Though the Nuggets don't have a first-round draft pick in the June draft, there should be plenty of quality sharpshooters available in the second round for the Nuggets to choose from.
Kevin Pittsnogle, Steve Novak, Denham Brown and Gerry McNamara could all be available for the Nuggets' choosing.
Above all, however, the Nuggets need to file a Chapter 11 on K-Mart and end the mistake of 2004 as quickly as possible.
