Denver Nuggets

The franchise began as the Denver Rockets in 1967, a charter member of the American Basketball Association. After rebranding as the Nuggets in 1974, the team became one of the ABA's most exciting franchises, led by high-scoring guard David Thompson and coached by Larry Brown. Thompson, drafted first overall in the ABA's final draft, was a spectacular athlete whose explosive leaping ability earned him the nickname "Skywalker."

The Nuggets reached the ABA Finals in 1976, losing to the New York Nets and Julius Erving. When the ABA merged with the NBA later that year, Denver was one of four ABA franchises absorbed into the established league. The transition was not entirely smooth - the Nuggets were required to pay significant fees and did not retain their ABA championship history - but the franchise brought its up-tempo, high-scoring identity into the NBA.

Thompson continued to dazzle in the NBA, famously scoring 73 points in the final game of the 1977-78 regular season in a scoring duel with San Antonio's George Gervin. However, personal issues curtailed Thompson's career, and the Nuggets searched for their next identity.

Under coach Doug Moe, the Nuggets became the most entertaining team in the NBA. Moe's system was simple: run, shoot, and outscore everybody. Alex English, the smooth-scoring forward acquired in 1980, became the engine of this philosophy, leading the NBA in scoring in 1982-83 and becoming the first player to score 2,000 points in eight consecutive seasons. Alongside Kiki Vandeweghe and later Fat Lever, the Nuggets regularly produced some of the highest-scoring games in NBA history.

The 1983-84 Nuggets averaged over 123 points per game, and their games were frequently shootouts that thrilled fans but frustrated defensive purists. The most famous example came in December 1983, when the Nuggets and Pistons combined for 370 points in a triple-overtime game that Detroit won 186-184 - the highest-scoring game in NBA history.

Despite all the offensive fireworks, the Nuggets could never advance deep enough in the playoffs to seriously contend for a championship. The lack of defense was their Achilles' heel. English was inducted into the Hall of Fame and remains the franchise's all-time leading scorer, but the championship remained elusive.

After several lean years in the late 1990s, the Nuggets landed the third overall pick in the loaded 2003 draft and selected Carmelo Anthony out of Syracuse. Anthony was an immediate star - a natural scorer with one of the most polished offensive games in the league. Combined with the acquisition of Allen Iverson in 2006 and the coaching of George Karl, the Nuggets returned to relevance.

The peak came in 2009, when the Nuggets won 54 games and reached the Western Conference Finals behind Anthony, Chauncey Billups, and a deep supporting cast. They fell to the Lakers in six games, and it proved to be the high-water mark of the Anthony era. By 2011, with Anthony forcing a trade to the New York Knicks, the franchise was starting over again.

The post-Melo years featured a quick rebuild around a core of Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried, and Danilo Gallinari, culminating in a surprise 57-win season in 2012-13. But the franchise needed a true franchise-altering talent, and they found one in the most unlikely place imaginable - the second round of the 2014 draft.