air's Nuggets dynasty

[colickyboy]

nice job holding kobe to 16. 3-pt shot at the end...cold-blooded. my three shooting on superstar is very erratic, so ups for staying alive on a tough shot

[Keo]

One point win! Couldn't have come at a better time. Very realistic and exciting Dynasty, Air. Keep up the good work.

[Kobe101]

Good luck next game! The other one was crazy!

[JoshD]

good luck. great dynasy. come you can win.

[air]

NUGGETS LOSE GAME FIVE IN DENVER, LAKERS ADVANCE TO CONFERENCE FINALS

LA Lakers 92
Denver 77
LA Lakers win series 4-1

The Denver Nuggets' playoff run came to an end last night at the Pepsi Center in Denver, as Los Angeles Lakers took game five by a comfortable margin. It was a bitter end to a season which might have been a historic one for Denver after their great regular season run.

The Nuggets held the lead after the first quarter after another great display by Marcus Camby, who was again taking all the inside shots in Kenyon Martin and Nene's absence. The Lakers took the lead by half time and didn't let go, and when Denver didn't get the points they needed from the rest of their team, the Lakers ran away to victory. Even Camby lost his touch in the final quarter, and the Nuggets had to go for outside shots.

"It's too bad it had to end like this", said Camby. "With a win here we would have given Nene and Kenyon more time to return, but it didn't happen. It's too bad they won't get a chance to shine in the later playoff stages."

"I couldn't get the job done", said a disappointed Carmelo Anthony, who had 15 points.

"We had a great regular season, and who knows what we could have done with Kenyon and Nene in the lineup", said Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik. "But in basketball you have to cope with injuries. We were unable to do that in this series, we were unable to find other scoring options within our team."

Starters:
LA Lakers
C B. Grant
F L. Odom
F C. Butler
G K. Bryant
G C. Atkins

Denver
C F. Elson
F M. Camby
F C. Anthony
G J. Johnson
G J. Williams

Player of the game:
Grant LAL 16/15

Stats:
LA Lakers
Grant 16/15
Odom 15/7
Butler 14/4 ast
Bryant 11/4
Atkins 15/3/7 ast
George 11
Walton 0/3
Wafer 2
Mihm 1
Jones 7/5 ast

Denver
Elson 6/5
Camby 28/13
Anthony 15
Johnson 9
Williams 6
Person 5
Buckner 2/3
Najera 6

Pictures:


Coach Buzz looks on.


Voskuhl makes sure Odom doesn't score.


Anthony flies high to two of his 15 points.

BILLUPS INJURY HURTS PISTONS

Eastern Conference favourites Detroit Pistons lost their conference semi final series to Indiana Pacers by two games to four. Point guard Chauncey Billups' injury troubled the Pistons team in game six and Indiana advanced to the conference finals to meet Washington Wizards, who beat Boston Celtics in game seven.

The first seed of the conference also went out in the West, as Sacramento Kings suffered a bitter defeat at the hands of Phoenix Suns in game seven of the Western semis. Phoenix now go on to meet Los Angeles Lakers, who defeated Denver Nuggets in five games.

CONFERENCE SEMI FINALS

WEST
1 Sacramento 3
4 Phoenix 4

2 Denver 1
6 LA Lakers 4

EAST
1 Detroit 2
4 Indiana 4

2 Washington 4
7 Boston 3

CONFERENCE FINALS

WEST
4 Phoenix vs.
6 LA Lakers

EAST
4 Indiana vs.
2 Washington
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So it's all over then. I'll post the conference and NBA finals results soon, then it's off to offseason.

Thanks for all your feedback and support during my playoffs campaign! In a way it's more exciting to have something to play for next season, then again it would have been interesting to see how far I could have gone. Guess I'll find out next season.

[air]

SUNS, PACERS SWEEP CONFERENCE FINALS SERIES

Phoenix Suns and Indiana Pacers advanced to the NBA Finals by sweeping their conference finals series against LA Lakers and Washington respectively. Both teams finished fourth in their conferences after regular season.

JERMAINE O'NEAL OUT OF FINALS

Indiana Pacers suffered a setback before the NBA finals when star forward Jermaine O'Neal's injury turned out to be one that will keep him out of the finals against the Phoenix Suns.

NBA FINALS MATCHUPS

Phoenix
C A. Stoudemire
F S. Marion
F J. Jackson
G V. Lenard
G S. Nash

Indiana
C J. Foster
F J. Bender
F R. Artest
G F. Jones
G J. Tinsley

PHOENIX SWEEP FINALS SERIES AND WIN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP

NBA Finals favourites Phoenix Suns proved to be worthy of all expectations by winning the finals in four games. Phoenix were lucky considering Pacers' Jermaine O'Neal's absence and took full advantage by sweeping the series.

[Kobe101]

SAd to see you go. To bad the playoffs had to end like that.

[colickyboy]

stinker

[Sac-1]

Oh tough....well better luck next year...can't wait for the off-season...Kings lost in 7 oh man

[Keo]

Yeah but they lost to the champs.^ Very sad to see Denver get knocked out. You have a great Dynasty, Air.

[air]

Thanks for your support again, Kobe101, ColickyBoy, SAC-1, Sensation.

It's my first offseason and it was quite interesting so I went right through it and wrote reports.

[air]

MARION NAMED FINALS MVP

Phoenix Suns' Shawn Marion was named NBA Finals MVP, averaging 17 points, 9 rebounds and 2,6 assists in the finals. Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire also averaged 17 points.

ROCKETS STRIKE LUCKY IN DRAFT LOTTERY

Despite having small odds to get the first pick in the draft, Houston Rockets have been drawn to have the first pick in the NBA draft.

NUGGETS RE-SIGN PLAYERS

Denver Nuggets have re-signed shooting guards Joe Johnson and Wesley Person. Johnson's contract is a lucrative three-year deal, while veteran player Person settled for a single year contract.

TWO PLAYERS BREAK OFF NEGOTIATIONS WITH NUGGETS

DerMarr Johnson and Luis Flores have both broken up contract negotiations with their current employer, Denver Nuggets. The pair wanted long deals, while the Nuggets were only offering short-term contracts. Johnson and Flores will be free agents in the summer.

KLEIZA RELEASED BY NUGGETS

Denver Nuggets have released forward Linas Kleiza after just one season with the team.

HOUSTON BRING IN ANOTHER MCGRADY

Houston Rockets picked 6'10 power forward Mosi McGrady in the NBA draft, making the former Middle Tennessee State player the number one pick this year. Mosi's brother J.R. is still playing college basketball, and the highly-rated player who stands at 7'0 is expected to enter next year's draft.

New Jersey Nets took their chance to pick the favoured Germain James, an exciting 7'2 post player from Temple.

The third pick was used by Charlotte Bobcats to bring in P.J. Workman, a 6'8 forward from Illinois.

Milwaukee Bucks drafted Katashiko Chow, an exciting 6'3 shooting guard from Japan, while Seattle went for Mexican-born forward Darrick Dorman who stands at 6'8 with the fifth pick.

Denver Nuggets had the 29th pick in this year's NBA draft, and they took a risk signing an Icelandic-born player. 22-year-old Viktor Neckar plays at shooting guard.

The Nuggets used their second round pick to draft powerhouse forward Guy Grunfeld, who stands at an impressive 7'1. Grunfeld turned 19 recently.

GASOL, HUGHES SIGN FOR NEW TEAMS

Atlanta made a great signing bringing in power forward Pau Gasol from free agency. The former Memphis Grizzlies player will definitely strengthen the young Hawks team.

Meanwhile, Charlotte Bobcats were busy signing their new addition Larry Hughes, who did not agree a new deal with his old team Washington.

NUGGETS SIGN PARGO

Denver Nuggets have landed point guard Jannero Pargo from free agency. Pargo comes in as a backup point guard after the departure of Luis Flores.

[Kobe101]

I think you sould have keep Johnson. Good signing recap though.

[air]

Your new Nuggets
by Mike Nugget, Denver Post Sports Writer

Neckar wants to prove himself



Experts are saying Denver Nuggets took a risk in the first round of the draft by drafting shooting guard Viktor Neckar. It's often hard to compare the abilities of a player who has never played in America, let alone for the player himself to move to a different continent.

Neckar, who stands at 6'6, holds a Slovakian passport but was born in Iceland. His family soon moved to the country that was then Czechoslovakia, and instead of soccer or ice hockey Viktor picked up the game of basketball. After dominating his native league at a young age, he played a season in Germany before entering the NBA draft.

Known for his speed, Neckar wants to make an impact in the NBA.

"I suppose they have a reason to question my ability", he speaks with an accent. "But that's what you have to do in sports, prove people wrong."

Who's that Guy?



In the second round of the draft, Denver Nuggets opted for a young powerhouse forward, Guy Grunfeld.

The former UNLV Rebel played just a year of college basketball, and many doubted his decision to enter the draft early.

"It's my decision", he points out. "Many players have done what I have. I just have to make sure I keep learning."

Grunfeld, who has Jamaican origins, can play at power forward or center. His 7'1 frame makes him a force under the basket, but he may have trouble keeping up with quicker opponents.

[Kobe101]

Good job on the your new rookies!

[air]

Kobe101 Posted:

I think you sould have keep Johnson. Good signing recap though.

Thanks for the quick response, now I get to explain my actions!

I play man-to-man defence and DerMarr has terrible defensive awareness. I almost kept him for his offensive abilities but didn't want to make a six-year deal.

[Kobe101]

Now I understand. 6 years is too much for that kind of player.

[Keo]

The new rookies look great.

[air]

Yep, I tried shorter deals but he was "insulted" or something.

But hey, like there isn't enough for one update, here's the starters for game one of the new season at Madison Square Garden.

Denver
C M. Camby
F K. Martin
F C. Anthony
G J. Johnson
G J. Williams

New York
C C. Frye
F J. Williams
F Q. Richardson
G J. Crawford
G S. Marbury

[hornets_fan]

good lineup

[colickyboy]

nice moves in the off-season...

[Sac-1]

new rookies look great.....great off-season coverage and good lineups

[Keo]

Looks like a good lineup. Good luck against NY.

[Buckley]

looks like a championship team there........nice draft, good job re-signing JJ and person, who was very good in clutch situations. hopefully dermarr won't turn out like this but u really didn't have to re-sign them.

Also Jannero Pargo will be a good backup player in ur dynasty. He played very well in mine and i hope he contributes off the bench.

good luck this season.

[air]

Thanks for your replies, HornetsFan, ColickyBoy, Sac-1, Sensation, CWebbIverson!

hopefully dermarr won't turn out like this but u really didn't have to re-sign them.

He is still a free agent actually. No-one else wanted him for six years either, and I did see that thread and considered keeping him.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the roster for the new season:

C Marcus Camby, 6'11, center
PF Kenyon Martin, 6'9, power forward
SF Carmelo Anthony, 6'8, small forward
SG Joe Johnson, 6'7, shooting guard
PG Jason Williams, 6'1, point guard

6 Nene, 6'11, power forward
7 Earl Boykins, 5'5, point guard
8 Francisco Elson, 7'0, center
9 Wesley Person, 6'6, shooting guard
10 Viktor Neckar, 6'6, shooting guard
11 Eduardo Najera, 6'8, power forward
12 Greg Buckner, 6'6, shooting guard

R Jake Voskuhl, 6'11, center
R Guy Grunfeld, 7'1, power forward
R Jannero Pargo, 6'1, point guard