RealGM Basketball Wiretap

Raptors Target Masai Ujiri As Top GM Candidate

Sat, 18 May 2013 11:05:13 EDT

The Toronto Raptors are pursuing Masai Ujiri to become the team's top basketball executive, according to sources.

Ujiri was named the 2013 NBA Executive of the Year for his work as general manager of the Nuggets.

Ujiri's contract with the Nuggets expires this summer and he has been in discussions on an extension.

Korn/Ferry International, the search firm hired by MLSE to search for a new GM for the Raptors, has identified Ujiri as its top candidate.

MLSE has until Monday to make a decision on whether to retain Bryan Colangelo, who could stay with the franchise under a new decision-maker.

Ujiri worked for three years with the Raptors under Colangelo before becoming GM of the Nuggets.

Ujiri 'Optimistic' Iguodala Will Return To Nuggets

Thu, 09 May 2013 16:24:56 EDT

Andre Iguodala will likely opt out of his player option this offseason and become a free agent, but the Denver Nuggets have been adamant about their desire to re-sign him.

When asked about Iguodala possibly returning to the Nuggets, Masai Ujiri said on Thursday: “I’m very optimistic that things will go well. … We want him back.”

Iguodala averaged 18 points, eight rebounds and 5.3 assists in the Nuggets' six-game series loss to the Golden State Warriors in the first round.

Karl Believes Nuggets Showed 'Lack Of Maturity' In Series Loss To Warriors

Thu, 09 May 2013 12:02:41 EDT

George Karl believes the Denver Nuggets did not have the right mentality to beat Golden State.

"When I talked about the playoffs, I told my team constantly: 'You don't understand how hard this is,' " Karl said. "I call it starting the fight. We started the fight in the second half of Game 3 against Golden State. ... Call it a young, cocky team. Blame it on an old coach who's too arrogant. Whatever. The lack of maturity of our team showed."

Karl is confident the Nuggets will make the necessary adjustments for next season.

"I think there's personnel development we need to do. And I think there's change in coaching. But we're aware of it, and I think we'll get it done," Karl said. "We're the No. 1 scoring team in the NBA. We're the worst-shooting team in basketball. We're one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in basketball. We're a team with a philosophy of getting fouled that didn't always shoot free throws well. And you don't think we're creative enough to figure out what we need or how to add to this team?"

Masai Ujiri Named Executive Of The Year

Wed, 08 May 2013 21:36:03 EDT

Masai Ujiri has been named the NBA's executive of the year.

Ujiri, general manager of the Denver Nuggets, put together a roster that won 57 games.

The Nuggets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in six games by the Golden State Warriors.

Ujiri became GM of the Nuggets in 2010 after a stint with the Toronto Raptors as their Director of Global Scouting.

George Karl Named 2013 NBA Coach Of The Year

Wed, 08 May 2013 10:51:58 EDT

George Karl has been named the recipient of the Red Auerbach Trophy as the 2012-13 NBA Coach of the Year.

Karl, who guided the Nuggets to the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, joins Doug Moe as the only coaches in franchise history to win the award. It also is the first time Karl has received the honor in his 25 NBA seasons.

Karl totaled 404 points, including 62 first-place votes, from a panel of 121 sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. 

Nuggets Confident Of Chances To Re-Sign Iguodala

Mon, 06 May 2013 11:40:43 EDT

Andre Iguodala will be a free agent this offseason, making his situation the biggest priority for the Denver Nuggets to resolve.

Iguodala was acquired by the Nuggets last August in a four-team trade.

“Andre was a great fit, we felt,” general manager Masai Ujiri said. “He brings every aspect of the game to the table, be it defending, passing, leadership and scoring sometimes. For us, he grew with the team. I think he saw that. He’s a good priority for us. We’re definitely excited and I think Andre was excited the way he gelled with the team. We’ve had good conversations with him and we’ll continue to have those conversations. We feel confident. We feel confident with where generally everything is.”

Ujiri Confident Of Nuggets' Future, Won't Panic After Playoff Loss

Mon, 06 May 2013 11:38:45 EDT

Masai Ujiri will enter a Denver Nuggets' offseason following a six-game elimination in the first round of the playoffs by the Golden State Warriors without a contract of his own as general manager.

Ujiri called the loss to the Warriors disappointing, but is still confident of the Nuggets' future.

“I think it’s nothing that we need to panic about,” Ujiri said. “We will fix it. We knew we had a growing team and there would be growing pains, and we will fix the problems.”

The Nuggets won a franchise-record 57 games in the regular season.

“We just built a team that we thought could grow,” Ujiri said. “And they really played hard, the team started to come together.”

Ujiri was asked if the Nuggets are constructed in a flawed way to compete in the playoffs.

“I have to take responsibility, too. We built the team. Are there flaws in the roster? Are there things that we need to tweak or change? We have always said it’s a young team, it’s the third-youngest team in the NBA. There’s going to be some growing up to do. Maybe this was part of it.”

Josh Kroenke Expects Masai Ujiri To Return As GM Of Nuggets

Sat, 04 May 2013 11:31:59 EDT

Josh Kroenke expects Masai Ujiri to return as general manager of the Denver Nuggets next season.

Ujiri's contract as general manager expires at the end of June.

"For the fans, they should know that Masai wants to be here, and I think he enjoys working for me,” Kroenke said. “I think we make a pretty good team, along with Pete (D'Alessandro, vice president of basketball operations) and Dan (Tolzman, scouting director) and the rest of our scouting staff. So I wouldn't anticipate any issues there."

Kroenke tabbed Ujiri to run the Nuggets in 2010.

Nuggets Aren't Contemplating Parting Ways With George Karl

Fri, 03 May 2013 20:35:33 EDT

After a first round exit out of a 57-win Denver Nuggets team, George Karl's future has been discussed, but the organization fully supports the head coach.

"George is under contract for next year. At this point in time, we haven't really given any thought to making any change whatsoever," Nuggets president Josh Kroenke said. "As we do at the end of every season, we'll have internal meetings and George will obviously be a major part of them. We won 57 games and in my mind, he should hands down be the NBA coach of the year.

"We'll all put our heads together and try to figure out what happened (in the playoffs) and why it happened. We were without our second-leading scorer, and some benefit of the doubt should be given to a coach with well over 1,000 wins without one of his leading scorers (Danilo Gallinari) in the playoffs."

Karl's Nuggets set a franchise record in wins this season, but they weren't themselves against the No. 6-seeded Golden State Warriors and lost the series in six games.

"I think there's a heavy burden on me, and of course my record speaks for myself," Karl said after the loss. "And even though I put an armor on to defend my record, I'm disappointed in my record, as well."

Iguodala Expected To Opt Out Of $16M Deal For 13-14

Fri, 03 May 2013 16:34:15 EDT

Andre Iguodala is expected to opt out of the final season of his current contract, which is set to pay him $16 million in order to explore free agency.

Iguodala may not receive as much money on an annual basis, but would welcome the security of a long-term deal.

Iguodala will be one of the NBA's most coveted unrestricted free agents this offseason.

Faried Wins Citizenship Award

Wed, 01 May 2013 12:06:01 EDT

Kenneth Faried has won the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award, given out by the Pro Basketball Writers Association.

Tyson Chandler, Luol Deng, David Lee, Jason Terry, Kyle Korver and Tristan Thompson were also nominated.

The award goes to a player, coach or trainer who shows “outstanding service and dedication to the community.”

Gallinari Undergoes Surgery To Repair Meniscus, ACL Repair To Wait

Wed, 01 May 2013 11:57:38 EDT

Danilo Gallinari underwent surgery to repair meniscus in his left knee on Monday and will undergo an additional procedure at a later date to fix his ACL.

Gallinari will undergo rehab on his knee before a date is scheduled to repair his ACL.

Gallinari was hurt on April 4.

Warriors, Nuggets Accuse Each Other Of 'Dirty Plays'

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:21:50 EDT

Mark Jackson accused the Denver Nuggets of taking cheap shots at Stephen Curry during the Golden State Warriors' loss in Game 5.

Jackson said that Denver people warned him of what would take place with "inside info".

"They tried to send hit men on Steph," said Jackson. "It wasn't magic, they outplayed us."

Curry agreed that he seemed targeted by the Nuggets.

Kenneth Faried responded to accusations from Jackson with a similar sentiment.

"They play dirty every night. They have targeted me," said Faried.

Curry, visibly frustrated following the game, also engaged in a verbal altercation with a fan while exiting through the tunnel.

Faried Kicks Hole In Locker Room Wall Following Nuggets' Loss

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 11:45:44 EDT

Kenneth Faried kicked a hole in the wall of the Denver Nuggets' locker room following the team's 115-101 loss at the Golden STate Warriors in Game 4.

“I hate losing with a passion. I hate losing more than I like winning,” said Faried.

Faried has an injured left foot and he's not sure which one he used.

“I don’t know, I just kicked it, I was mad.”

Timofey Mozgov Isn't Focused On Upcoming Free Agency

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:00:06 EDT

MILWAUKEE – All season long, Timofey Mozgov has made clear his desire for an increased role in the Denver Nuggets’ rotation. George Karl has trusted Kosta Koufos and JaVale McGee as his two centers, though, and Mozgov has played just 40 games.

At this point, Mozgov wants to deflect his impending free agency to the side and focus on the Nuggets’ playoff run. Mozgov had been expected to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, and he told RealGM that he hasn’t heard any indication about a possible qualifying offer tender from the Nuggets and isn’t worrying about where he could play next season.

“I don’t want to think right now about what is going on in the summer,” Mozgov said. “Now we have playoff time … games we got to win. It will be a time for [a decision] in the summer.”

Although he continues to sit on the bench, Mozgov hasn’t lost his workout habits – lifting weights, running on a treadmill and working on low-post moves every day. His most playing time this season came in a Jan. 28 win over the Indiana Pacers, when he scored 10 points and grabbed three rebounds in 25 minutes.

Mozgov was an integral piece in the Carmelo Anthony trade of 2011, and the 26-year-old center still believes there’s plenty of time to show exactly why.

“I feel confident I can play,” Mozgov said. “I know I can play and I know Coach knows I can play, so I feel confident. I just need some [playing] time.”

Source: Nuggets Will Tender Qualifying Offer To Mozgov

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 09:13:10 EDT

The Denver Nuggets will tender center Timofey Mozgov a $3.9 million qualifying offer by the June 30 deadline, according to a source.

The decision will make Mozgov a restricted free agent. Denver will be in position to match any offer sheet signed by the center in order to retain his services.

The source said, "Mozgov is a priority and it will take a lot [for Denver] not to match."

Mozgov is currently Denver's third center, behind Kosta Koufos and JaVale McGee. Koufos and McGee both have guaranteed contracts for the 2013-14 season.

Record Five Teams Have Had At Least 12-Game Win Streak

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:42:04 EDT

According to Elias Sports, the 2012-13 NBA season is the first in which five different teams have enjoyed win streaks of at least twelve games.

The New York Knicks defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday, extending their current run to 12 straight wins.

The Miami Heat, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers and Thunder also had streaks of at least 12 wins this season.

Gallinari Suffers Torn ACL, MRI Confirms

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 16:51:08 EDT

An MRI has confirmed that Danilo Gallinari tore the ACL in his left knee during Thursday night's game.

No other ligament or meniscus damage was suffered.

Gallinari will miss the remainder of the season.

Gallinari Likely Tore ACL In Left Knee

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 02:58:50 EDT

Danilo Gallinari is believed to have a torn ACL of his left knee, according to sources.

Gallinari will undergo an MRI on Friday.

"The doctor indicated that the ligament was loose," one source told Yahoo! Sports. "They expect that it's a torn ACL."

Gallinari is averaging 16.3 points and 5.2 rebounds for the Denver Nuggets.

Lawson Believes Nuggets Can Beat Heat For Title

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 10:07:25 EDT

Ty Lawson is confident that the Denver Nuggets "can get to the NBA Finals" and win it all.

After the statement, Lawson was asked if he felt his team could beat the Miami Heat, the presumed favorite to win the championship this season.

"I think so," Lawson said. "They beat us twice early in the year when we weren't really in sync. We were still trying to find ourselves. So I feel like if we play them now it would be a better game and we could actually beat them."

Miami beat Denver twice earlier this season by a combined eight points.

"Teamwork, and we could throw a lot of people at LeBron (James) and (Dwyane Wade), and not just one person," Lawson said. "We can throw (Andre) Iguodala and (Danilo Gallinari) and Corey Brewer and Wilson (Chandler). You can throw so many people at (them). And then we have so many weapons."

Spoelstra, Karl Named Coaches Of The Month For March

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 03:44:15 EDT

The Miami Heat's Erik Spoelstra and the Denver Nuggets' George Karl on Monday were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month for March.

Spoelstra led Miami to a league-best 17-1 (.944) record in March, which included 15 straight wins to open the month that pushed the Heat's winning streak to 27 straight games. 

Karl led Denver to a Western Conference-best 13-2 (.867) mark in March, which included wins in the first 12 games of the month, feeding a 15-game winning streak that began on Feb. 23.

Other nominees for Coach of the Month were Dallas' Rick Carlisle, Indiana's Frank Vogel, Memphis' Lionel Hollins and New York's Mike Woodson.

Iguodala Likely To Opt Out Of Contract With Nuggets

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 23:07:18 EDT

Andre Iguodala is likely to exercise the opt-out clause in his contact after this season.

Opting out would enable Iguodala to obtain a multi-year deal elsewhere or possibly lengthen his commitment to the Nuggets.

“You got to weigh options,” Iguodala said. “Security-wise, a player would opt, especially with the type of season we’ve had as a team. Teams know what I can bring to them, and I know (the Nuggets) know what I can bring to a team here.
 
“Players get like $50, $60 or $70 or $80 (million over multiple years), whatever the number was, they gave up a big number (in an option season by opting out). But in the grand scheme of things, pretty much get it back. You got security.’’

Iguodala declined to guarantee he would re-sign with Denver.

“Obviously, it’s a business, so you’re going to look at your options,” Iguodala said. “Here we have some good (prospects). But I’m not making any promises.”

Gallinari Warned For Violating Anti-Flopping Policy

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 17:35:22 EDT

The NBA has issued a warning to Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari for violating the league's anti-flopping policy.

Gallinari flopped severely as Robin Lopez drove to the basket in Monday's Denver-New Orleans Hornets game.

Ty Lawson Out With Torn Plantar Fascia

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 16:16:07 EDT

Ty Lawson is out with a plantar fascia tear in his right heel and will not have to undergo surgery, the Denver Nuggets announced on Friday.

Lawson suffered the injury on March 19 against the Oklahoma City Thunder and missed three of the Nuggets' next four games. Further exams on Thursday revealed a tear.

The Nuggets call Lawson day-to-day.

Lawson, who leads the Nuggets in scoring and assists, is improving in his recovery and will maintain his current treatment.

Karl Endorses Popovich As Next Coach Of Team USA

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 11:45:10 EDT

George Karl offered an endorsement of Gregg Popovich as the next coach of Team USA.

"I hope he gets the USA job," Karl said. "I think he wants it. He's a military guy who, I think, brings a dignity to representing the United States, and he's also earned the respect of the basketball world."

Popovich has led the Spurs to fourteen straight 50-win seasons and has a .605 winning percentage in the playoffs.

"I think the one thing I respect about him is he puts as many quality possessions on the court, in the course of 82 games, as any coach in the NBA," said Karl, who is sixth all time with 1,123 wins. "He builds a team system that magnifies team but also magnifies stars, which is sometimes a lot more difficult to do than fans think it is. Incorporating the talent of your star into the team. I'm not sure in San Antonio if everybody is happy, but everybody seems to be."

Brewer Hopes Nuggets Attempt To Re-Sign Him

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 12:02:03 EDT

Corey Brewer hopes the Denver Nuggets make an attempt to re-sign him in the offseason.

Brewer will be an unrestricted free agent at season's end.

"You never know, but I like it here," Brewer said of his future. "Hopefully they want to keep me."

Brewer is averaging a career-best 11.8 points per game this season.

Iguodala Doesn't Regret Time With 76ers

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 10:41:30 EDT

Andre Iguodala played against the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night and stated he still maintains contact with several former teammates.

Iguodala was traded to the Denver Nuggets last offseason, but he said Thursday that he has no regrets about his time with the 76ers.

"I try to look forward," Iguodala said. "I don't live with regrets. I still talk to the guys in Philly. But we talk mostly about things outside of basketball. I talk to Jrue [Holiday] about getting married. . . . And I talk with Evan [Turner] a lot. "

Wilson Chandler To Miss 3-4 Games With Shoulder Injury

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:04:18 EDT

Wilson Chandler will sit out the Denver Nuggets' next three to four games and is most likely to return on March 27 in San Antonio.

After an injury-plagued start to the season, Chandler has established himself as a critical part of the Nuggets' offensive attack, averaging 11 points and five rebounds overall.

Chandler is averaging 15.5 points on 55 percent shooting in March, highlighted by a 35-point performance against the Chicago Bulls on Monday.

Get Your Latest NBA News From RealGM's Basketball Wiretap

Tue, 21 May 2013 08:17:02 EDT

Get all the latest news and happenings from around the NBA with RealGM's Basketball Wiretap.