1994–95 Denver Nuggets season

The 1994–95 NBA season was the Nuggets' 19th season in the National Basketball Association, and 28th season as a franchise.[1] During the offseason, the Nuggets signed free agent Dale Ellis. Coming off their improbable playoff run, the Nuggets were bitten by the injury bug, losing LaPhonso Ellis for all but six games due to a preseason knee injury.[2] Despite winning five of their first six games, head coach Dan Issel resigned with the team holding an 18–16 record. Under his assistant Gene Littles, the team struggled losing 10 of 13 games as Littles was replaced with General Manager Bernie Bickerstaff.

1994–95 Denver Nuggets season
Head coachDan Issel (18–16)
Gene Littles (3–13)
Bernie Bickerstaff (20–12)
ArenaMcNichols Sports Arena
Results
Record41–41 (.500)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Midwest)
Conference: 8th (Western)
Playoff finishWest First Round
(Lost to Spurs 0–3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionPrime Sports Rocky Mountain, KTVD
RadioKOA

Under Bickerstaff, the Nuggets would recover making a late push winning 20 of their final 32 games, sneaking into the playoffs by defeating the Sacramento Kings for the #8 seed in the Western Conference in the final game of the season, 102–89 at McNichols Sports Arena.[3] The Nuggets finished fourth in the Midwest Division with a 41–41 record. Dikembe Mutombo captured his first Defensive Player of The Year award, and was selected for the 1995 NBA All-Star Game.

However, in the first round of the playoffs, the Nuggets were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in three straight games. This would be their final playoff appearance until 2004. Following the season, second-year forward Rodney Rogers and Brian Williams were both traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, and Robert Pack was dealt to the Washington Bullets.

Draft picks
Main article: 1994 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College / Team
111Jalen RoseSG United StatesMichigan

Roster
Roster listing
1994–95 Denver Nuggets roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
PG 1 Abdul-Rauf, Mahmoud 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 162 lb (73 kg) 1969–03–09 LSU
SF 3 Ellis, Dale 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1960–08–06 Tennessee
PF 20 Ellis, LaPhonso  6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1970–05–05 Notre Dame
PG 9 Grant, Greg 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) 140 lb (64 kg) 1966–08–29 Trenton State
PF 21 Hammonds, Tom 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1967–03–27 Georgia Tech
PF 53 Levingston, Cliff 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1961–01–04 Wichita State
C 55 Mutombo, Dikembe 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1966–06–25 Georgetown
PG 14 Pack, Robert  6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1969–02–03 Southern California
PF 42 Randall, Mark 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1967–09–30 Kansas
PF 54 Rogers, Rodney 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1971–05–20 Wake Forest
SG 5 Rose, Jalen 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1973–01–30 Michigan
PF 35 Slater, Reggie  6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1970–08–27 Wyoming
SG 23 Stith, Bryant 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 1970–12–10 Virginia
C 8 Williams, Brian 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1969–04–06 Arizona
SF 34 Williams, Reggie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1964–03–05 Georgetown
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Regular season

Season standings
Midwest Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-San Antonio Spurs 6220.756—33–829–1220–6
x-Utah Jazz 6022.732233–827–1417–9
x-Houston Rockets 4735.5731525–1622–1913–13
x-Denver Nuggets 4141.5002123–1818–2313–13
Dallas Mavericks 3646.4392619–2217–2411–15
Minnesota Timberwolves 2161.2564113–288–334–22

[4]

# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-San Antonio Spurs6220.756–
2 y-Phoenix Suns5923.7203
3 x-Utah Jazz6022.7322
4 x-Seattle SuperSonics5725.6955
5 x-Los Angeles Lakers4834.58514
6 x-Houston Rockets4735.57315
7 x-Portland Trail Blazers4438.53718
8 x-Denver Nuggets4141.50021
9 Sacramento Kings3943.47623
10 Dallas Mavericks3646.43926
11 Golden State Warriors2656.31736
12 Minnesota Timberwolves2161.25641
13 Los Angeles Clippers1765.20745

Record vs. opponents
1994-95 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA UTA WAS
Atlanta —3–12–21–41–42–02–03–22–00–21–42–00–22–21–32–04–02–21–33–11–11–11–11–10–20–24–0
Boston 1–3—1–30–42–21–11–13–12–01–12–20–21–14–11–32–02–30–52–33–11–10–21–10–21–10–23–1
Charlotte 2–23–1—2–23–20–21–15–02–00–21–42–00–23–14–11–13–13–11–33–10–22–01–11–12–02–03–1
Chicago 4–14–02–2—2–31–11–15–02–01–12–21–11–13–11–42–02–23–11–34–01–11–10–21–10–20–22–2
Cleveland 4–12–22–33–2—0–21–12–22–00–22–31–11–11–34–01–14–02–21–33–11–11–11–10–20–21–13–1
Dallas 0–21–12–01–12–0—1–41–13–12–31–13–11–30–21–14–11–10–20–22–00–43–12–22–30–42–41–1
Denver 0–21–11–11–11–14–1—1–11–31–41–14–02–22–02–06–01–10–20–21–11–33–12–21–41–31–42–0
Detroit 2–31–30–50–52–21–11–1—1–10–22–21–10–21–32–31–12–21–31–34–01–10–21–10–20–20–23–1
Golden State 0–20–20–20–20–21–33–11–1—0–40–23–23–21–10–21–31–11–10–21–13–21–40–51–31–42–22–0
Houston 2–01–12–01–12–03–24–12–04–0—1–13–10–42–01–13–22–00–20–22–03–11–33–11–50–42–32–0
Indiana 4–12–24–12–23–21–11–12–22–01–1—2–01–12–23–22–03–11–32–24–01–11–12–02–01–10–23–1
L.A. Clippers 0–22–00–21–11–11–30–41–12–31–30–2—2–30–21–11–30–20–20–21–11–40–51–40–40–51–30–2
L.A. Lakers 2–01–12–01–11–13–12–22–02–34–01–13–2—1–11–13–12–00–21–11–11–42–33–21–34–12–22–0
Miami 2–21–41–31–33–12–00–23–11–10–22–22–01–1—4–01–11–31–41–31–40–20–20–20–20–20–24–1
Milwaukee 3–13–11–44–10–41–10–23–22–01–12–31–11–10–4—1–12–22–20–43–10–20–21–10–20–20–23–1
Minnesota 0–20–21–10–21–11–40–61–13–12–30–23–11–31–11–1—1–10–21–11–10–40–41–30–50–41–41–1
New Jersey 0–43–21–32–20–41–11–12–21–10–21–32–00–23–12–21–1—1–42–22–30–21–11–10–21–10–22–3
New York 2–25–01–31–32–22–02–03–11–12–03–12–02–04–12–22–04–1—2–34–01–11–12–01–10–20–24–0
Orlando 3–13–23–13–13–12–02–03–12–02–02–22–01–13–14–01–12–23–2—4–11–12–01–11–10–21–13–2
Philadelphia 1–31–31–30–41–30–21–10–41–10–20–41–11–14–11–31–13–20–41–4—0–22–01–10–20–20–23–2
Phoenix 1–11–12–01–11–14–03–11–12–31–31–14–14–12–02–04–02–01–11–12–0—5–04–12–24–12–22–0
Portland 1–12–00–21–11–11–31–32–04–13–11–15–03–22–02–04–01–11–10–20–20–5—3–21–32–31–32–0
Sacramento 1–11–11–12–01–12–22–21–15–01–30–24–12–32–01–13–11–10–21–11–11–42–3—0–43–20–41–1
San Antonio 1–12–01–11–12–03–24–12–03–15–10–24–03–12–02–05–02–01–11–12–02–23–14–0—2–23–22–0
Seattle 2–01–10–22–02–04–03–12–04–14–01–15–01–42–02–04–01–12–02–02–01–43–22–32–2—1–32–0
Utah 2–02–00–22–01–14–24–12–02–23–22–03–12–22–02–04–12–02–01–12–02–23–14–02–33–1—2–0
Washington 0–41–31–32–21–31–10–21–30–20–21–32–00–21–41–31–13–20–42–32–30–20–21–10–20–20–2—

Game log
GameDateOpponentResultNuggets pointsOpponentsRecordStreakNotes
1

Playoffs

West First Round

(1) San Antonio Spurs vs. (8) Denver Nuggets: Spurs win series 3-0

  • Game 1 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (April 28): San Antonio 104, Denver 88
  • Game 2 @ Alamodome, San Antonio (April 30): San Antonio 122, Denver 96
  • Game 3 @ McNichols Sports Arena, Denver (May 2): San Antonio 99, Denver 95

Last Playoff Meeting: 1990 Western Conference First Round (San Antonio won 3-0)

Awards, records, and honors

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

Season
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG

Playoffs
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG

Transactions

Free agents

Additions
Player Signed Date Former team
Reggie Slater Free agent August 2, 1994 Girona (Spain)
Cliff Levingston Free agent September 29, 1994 Buckler Bologna (Italy)
Dale Ellis Free agent October 4, 1994 San Antonio Spurs
Mark Randall Signed two 10-day contracts February 23, 1995 Fort Wayne Fury (CBA)
Eldridge Recasner 10-day contract March 14, 1995 Yakima Sun Kings (CBA)
Greg Grant Signed two 10-day contracts March 14, 1995 Mexico City Aztecas (CBA)
Mark Randall Signed for rest of season March 17, 1995 Denver Nuggets
Greg Grant Signed for rest of season April 5, 1995 Denver Nuggets

Subtractions
Player Reason left Date New team
Alvin Robertson Waived October 3, 1994 Toronto Raptors
Mark Randall Waived November 1, 1994 Fort Wayne Fury (CBA)
Darnell Mee Waived February 1, 1995 Tri-City Chinook (CBA)

Trades

The Denver Nuggets did not make any trades in the off-season and the regular season.

References
  1. 1994-95 Denver Nuggets
  2. "Nuggets' Ellis Lost For Season With Knee Injury". Chicgao Tribune. November 21, 1994. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  3. "PRO BASKETBALL; As Regular Season Ends, Denver's Season Lives On". New York Times. April 24, 1995. Retrieved July 20, 2017.
  4. 1994-95 NBA Season Summary - Basketball-Reference.com
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