Almost all of the NBA's Class of 1998 has experienced early dismissal. Twenty-four of the league's 29 first-round picks in 1998 no longer play for the team that drafted them. Twenty-one of the 29 have been traded at least once, including several on draft day.
Four of the five players who remain with their original teams are center Michael Olowokandi (Los Angeles Clippers), guard/ forward Paul Pierce (Boston Celtics), center Radoslav Nesterovic (Minnesota Timberwolves) and forward Al Harrington (Indiana Pacers).

Kiki Vandeweghe is not second-guessing the Denver Nuggets' general manager.
Of course, he is the Nuggets' GM.

Questions, however, abound.

One, a recurring inquiry, is just what the Nuggets plan to do about that little block of real estate under the basket, the brightly painted area where NBA giants grapple.

DENVER ? The Denver Nuggets experienced one of those fourth quarters Wednesday night when things went from bad to worse.

Trailing by 12 and with shooting ice cold from the field, Nick Van Exel added to his team's misery by drawing a pair of crucial technical fouls as the visiting Indiana Pacers went on to a relatively easy 99-85 victory at the Pepsi Center.

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The Nuggets' season-high-equaling fourth loss in a row dropped them to 6-9 this season in what amounted to a role reversal.

A rested Nuggets team looked tired, especially by the final period. An Indiana team (now 9-9) that played the previous night in Portland, Ore., looked fresh and rested.

Dan "the Horse" Issel thinks Louisville can be successful as an NBA franchise for a relocated Charlotte Hornets team.  Issel comments on the possible move in today's Denver Post from his perspective as a former University of Kentucky and ABA Kentucky Colonels star.  Issel doesn't think the Grizzlies would have been a success in Louisville because of the need to put a winner on the floor to attract fans and the competition from university basketball.  One wonders why somebody in Michael Heisley's group didn't mention that to him when the Grizzlies moved to Memphis.

"But in Charlotte, you're getting one of the best teams in the league. There is no built in audience or student body or alumni association. You fill seats when you win. Kentucky and (nearby) Indiana are great basketball places. And you put a team as good as Charlotte in Louisville, I don't think there is any question that it succeeds."

Thursday, November 29, 2001 - The Denver Nuggets' best inside player watched from the bench, and their second best stands just 6-foot-1 and plays point guard.

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It's usually a long night for the Nuggets if they can't consistently hit jumpers. Such was the case Wednesday night as Denver dropped its fourth consecutive game, a 99-85 loss to the Indiana Pacers at the Pepsi Center.

"Right now, we don't have an inside presence," Denver coach Dan Issel said. "We're not going inside. We're not driving the ball to the basket or putting pressure on their defense. We shoot perimeter jump shots."

DENVER -- Al Harrington said it was the topic of conversation when the game-weary Indiana Pacers convened for breakfast Wednesday.

The topic: How to avoid squandering a double-digit lead as the team had done in Portland the night before.

"It's been burning inside since we left Portland," said Harrington, one of the Pacers who rekindled the fire into passionate on-court play in a 99-85 win over the Denver Nuggets.

"We knew we had to play better defense and stop turning the ball over so much."

Lately, more and more NBA players are negotiating their contracts without an agent.  The Denver Post has an interesting article on this growing trend.  Antonio McDyess and Nick Van Exel seem to be pretty happy without an agent.  Could the Falks and Goodwins be a thing of the past?  Nah, that's too much to hope for.

According to Dwain Price of the Star-Telegram, Mark Cuban has denied there is any validity to a possible Juwan Howard-Karl Malone swap.  Cuban suspects the rumor came from a call from Utah to guage his interest in Malone over the summer.  Utah management was reacting to a trade request bluff of Malone's, he speculates.

However, a 'Nuggets source' did admit that the Mavs called Denver management to see if they were willing to trade Raef Lafrentz (they are not) in a three-way deal.  All the same, Cuban warns not to expect Malone in a Mav uniform.

? After Tuesday's practice, the Denver Nuggets' rookies were forced into signing duty in honor of point guard Nick Van Exel's 30th birthday.

"Sounded awful," reported coach Dan Issel.

As it turns out, Van Exel was celebrating more than a milestone birthday Tuesday. A quick look at the NBA's statistical leaders revealed an oddity no one could have realitically envisioned almost a month into the season:

Avery Johnson screamed loud enough for anyone in the arena to hear it.
"Cut to the basket," the Denver Nuggets point guard admonished, glaring at forward/center Scott Williams during a loss Friday at Portland, Ore.

Sunday at Los Angeles, Williams cut toward the basket. Guard Nick Van Exel threw a pass to Williams on the perimeter, but the ball sailed into the crowd for a Nuggets turnover.

Confusing times.