You got to love this intro from the Rocky Mountain News on the Nick Van Exel situation:

"La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la -- not listening to Nick Van Exel, not listening to Nick Van Exel, not listening . . ."

That's the take-off for an article on Coach Dan Issel's deep state of denial on his rebellious point guard.  Van Exel seems to be pretty up-front about where he's laying his problems -- at Big Dan's feet. He cited Denver's history of making trades. Issel, until this season, has been responsible for all of Denver's personnel moves.

"We have something, then all of a sudden it gets taken away from you," Van Exel said. "Ron Mercer, Keon Clark, even Chauncey Billups. Those are some pretty quality basketball players. When you have all those together, then you trade away players, and then trade away the players you got for them -- what does that say?"

Issel seems to not have heard anything, though. "I have not talked to Nick Van Exel," Issel said Monday. "He hasn't told me he wants to be traded."