The Denver Rockets emerged in the 1967-68 ABA season and became the Nuggets for the 1974-75 season. This team has never won a championship, even though they have been competitive most of the time, as they have 37 playoff appearances. They always have a solid team, but end up falling short.RELATED: 10 Pairs Of NBA Brothers: Which One Is Better?A few NBA legends have played for the Nuggets franchise, as well as players who wore the Denver uniform for several years, earning the love and respect of the fans. Let's take a look at the 10 best players in Denver Nuggets history.
10 Nenê
This Brazilian center and power forward played for the Denver Nuggets between the 2002-2003 and 2011-12 campaigns, averaging 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.9 blocks per game, with a 17.4 Player Efficiency Rating. Nenê was never a superstar, but he did his job and was loyal to the team. He is in the top 10 in franchise history in points scored (6,868), rebounds (3,859), steals (694), blocks (508), Win Shares (51.1) and Value Over Replacement Player (13.1).
9 Marcus Camby
Marcus Camby was a great center, maybe offensively he wasn't the best, but defensively he was pretty much a wall. In six seasons with the Denver Nuggets, "The Camby Man" averaged 10.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 3.0 blocks per game. In fact, he was block champion in three consecutive years (from 2005-06 to 2007-08). Camby is second in franchise history in blocks (1,126), seventh in rebounds (4,117) and eighth in Value Over Replacement Player (15.8).
8 Carmelo Anthony
In the 2003 NBA Draft, the Denver Nuggets selected Carmelo Anthony with the third overall pick. He was expected to be the superstar that led the Nuggets to their first championship, which didn't happen, but at least the team was always in the playoffs with Anthony.
RELATED: 10 Best Players In Memphis Grizzlies History
This small forward played eight seasons with the Nuggets, averaging 24.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game, with a Player Efficiency Rating of 20.2. In franchise history, "Melo" ranks third in points (13,970), eighth in steals (634) and seventh in Value Over Replacement Player (16.5).
7 Dikembe Mutombo
Dikembe Mutombo played the first five seasons of his career with the Denver Nuggets, and it didn't take him long to become one of the best defensive players in the game. In a Nuggets uniform, Mutombo recorded 12.9 points per game, 12.3 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game (highest in franchise history). "Deke" was a blocking champion in three consecutive seasons (from 1993-94 through 1995-96). Not surprisingly, Mutombo is the player with the most blocks in Nuggets history (1,486). He also has the fourth most rebounds (4,811).
6 Fat Lever
Fat Lever played six seasons for the Denver Nuggets, averaging 17 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game, with a 19.1 Player Efficiency Rating. Lever is the all-time franchise leader in steals (1,167), second in assists (3,566), eight in points (8,081), 10th in rebounds (3,621), fourth in Value Over Replacement Player (26.0) and third in Box Plus/Minus (4.1). He was also the leader in Triple-Doubles (43), until Nikola Jokić arrived.
5 Bobby Jones
Bobby Jones was a versatile power forward, capable of outstanding offense and defense, just as it should be. He played only four seasons with the Denver Nuggets in the 1970s, but his performance was so good that he deserves to be mentioned in this list. He averaged 14.8 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.9 blocks per game, with a Player Efficiency Rating of 19.7. "The Secretary of Defense" is second in franchise history in Box Plus/Minus (5.7) and in Win Shares per 48 minutes (.186).
4 David Thompson
Hall of Famer David Thompson recorded averages of 24.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks per game over seven seasons with the Denver Nuggets. In terms of advanced stats, he had a 20.4 Player Efficiency Rating, 56.8 Win Shares and a 19.6 Value Over Replacement Player. Right now, he ranks fourth in franchise history in points scored (11,992). "Skywalker” was an excellent shooting guard.
3 Dan Issel
Unlike Dikembe Mutombo and Marcus Camby, Dan Issel was a center who didn't defend that well, but was tremendous offensively. In fact, Issel averaged 20.7 points per game in a Nuggets uniform, with 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks per game, and a Player Efficiency Rating of 21.1. "The Horse" is the franchise's all-time leader in rebounds (6,630) and Win Shares (94.8), and is also second in points (16,589).
2 Alex English
Alex English is a true Denver Nuggets icon. This guy played 11 seasons with the team, giving his best week after week. He averaged 25.9 points (the best in franchise history), 5.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.0 steals per game, with a Player Efficiency Rating of 20.9. "The Blade" is by far the leading scorer in franchise history, with 21,645 points, and was also the player with the most points in the 1980s. He is second in team history in assists (3,679). English is also in the top five in rebounds (4,686), steals (854), Win Shares (84.2) and Value Over Replacement Player (34.3).
1 Nikola Jokić
The best player in Denver Nuggets history is Nikola Jokić, and if you think he is not, your mind will probably change soon, because this guy is unstoppable. The Serbian center has been named MVP in the last two seasons, and he is making history in a regular basis, with single-game, single-season or even all-time records. In 551 games, The Joker averages 19.9 points, 10.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 0.7 blocks per game.
Jokić has a Player Efficiency Rating of 27.3, which is the second-highest of all-time, only behind Michael Jordan. He also has 80 Triple-Doubles, sixth most in NBA history. Back to the Nuggets, Jokić is the all-time leader in Value Over Replacement Player (46.8), Box Plus/Minus (9.1) and Win Shares per 48 minutes (.242). Nikola Jokić is a player for the ages.
