The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. The team was founded as the Denver Larks in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association (ABA) but changed their name to the Rockets before the first season. The Rockets then changed their name again to the Nuggets in 1974. After the name change, the Nuggets played for the final ABA Championship title in 1976, losing to the New York Nets.
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is part of the University of Tennessee System.
David O'Neil Thompson is an American former professional basketball player. He played with the Denver Nuggets of both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA. He was previously a star in college for North Carolina State, leading the Wolfpack to its first NCAA championship in 1974. Thompson is one of the eight players to score 70 or more points in an NBA game. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996.
Raef Andrew LaFrentz is an American former professional basketball power forward and center who played for the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, and Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born and raised in Iowa, LaFrentz attended the University of Kansas and was drafted in 1998 by the Denver Nuggets. He was known for his perimeter shooting and his shot blocking abilities. In 2020 LaFrentz became an assistant basketball coach at Decorah High School in Decorah, Iowa.
Lafayette "Fat" Lever is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association. He later served as the director of player development for the Sacramento Kings of the NBA as well as an analyst for Kings radio broadcasts.
Bernard King is an American former professional basketball player at the small forward position in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 14 seasons with the New Jersey Nets, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, and Washington Bullets. King is a four-time NBA All-Star, four-time All-NBA selection and led the NBA in scoring in the 1984–85 season. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on September 8, 2013. His younger brother, Albert, also played in the NBA during his career.
Daniel Paul Issel is an American former professional basketball player and coach. An outstanding collegian at the University of Kentucky, Issel was twice named an All-American en route to a school-record 25.7 points per game for his career. The American Basketball Association Rookie of the Year in 1971, he was a six-time ABA All-Star and a one-time NBA All-Star.
Ernest Maurice "Kiki" VanDeWeghe III is an American former professional basketball player, coach and executive who is an advisor for the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a player, he was a two-time NBA All-Star.
Willie Lloyd Anderson Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. During his pro club career, Anderson played nine seasons in the NBA, and three seasons in the EuroLeague. He was named to the 1988–89 NBA season's All-Rookie First Team. While he was a member of the Greek Basket League club AEK Athens, he played in the 1998 EuroLeague Final.
Eric Augustus "Sleepy" Floyd is an American former professional basketball player. An NBA All-Star in 1987 as a Warrior, he is perhaps best known for his tenures for Golden State and Houston.
Otis Lee Birdsong is an American former professional basketball player. He spent twelve seasons (1977–1989) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and appeared in four NBA All-Star Games.
Avery DeWitt Johnson is an American basketball television commentator and former player and coach who most recently served as head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team. He is currently an NBA and college basketball analyst for CBS Sports.
Craig Duane Neal is an American basketball coach and former professional player who is currently the associate head coach for the Nevada Wolf Pack of the Mountain West Conference (MWC). He was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the third round of the 1988 NBA draft, and played in the NBA and several minor leagues.
Henry Dickerson was an American professional basketball player and college basketball coach. He was the head coach of the men's basketball team at North Carolina Central University from 2004 to 2009. He led the Eagles through their first two seasons of NCAA Division I competition in 2007–09. He was born in Beckley, West Virginia.
Anthony Jerome Roberts was an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets and Washington Bullets in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected in the first round as the 21st pick in the 1977 NBA draft by the Nuggets and spent five seasons playing the NBA.
Rashad Jamal Jones-Jennings is an American professional basketball player. He last played for Pioneros de Quintana Roo.
Orlando Lightfoot is a retired American professional basketball player whose international career spanned from 1994 to 2007. He is best known in the United States for his collegiate career at the University of Idaho from 1991 and 1994 in which he was a two-time Big Sky Conference Player of the Year and graduated as the all-time leading scorer in conference history. Since retiring from basketball he has become an account manager for a trucking company in his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Ivica Zubac is a Croatian professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round in the 2016 NBA draft. He played for the Lakers until the 2019 trade deadline when he was traded to the Clippers. During the 2021 NBA Playoffs, he helped the Los Angeles Clippers reach the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.
Tristan Jarrett is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Kennesaw State Owls, the Three Rivers Raiders, and the Jackson State Tigers.
Malachi Knight-Smith is an American professional basketball player for the Rip City Remix of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Wright State Raiders, Chattanooga Mocs, and Gonzaga Bulldogs.
