Denver Nuggets 2005 Draft Preview

Denver, which turned its season around when George Karl took over as head coach in late January, does need a shooting guard. Earl Boykins teams with Miller to give the Nuggets a nice duo at the point, but this squad needs an outside threat who can open up the court for the rest of the team.

Anthony led the team in scoring (20.8 ppg), while Camby was the top rebounder (10.0 rpg) and Miller led the clubs with 6.9 assists per game. Martin averaged 15.5 points and 7.3 boards in his first season with the Nuggets, who were eliminated in five games in the first round of the playoffs by San Antonio.

With the 20th and 22nd selections in the first round of the draft, Denver should be able to find some help. The Nuggets may even explore the possibility of packaging the picks to move up in the draft. Denver may select a foreign player that can shoot with one of its picks if it does not make a trade.

France’s Johan Petro, Marko Tomas of Croatia and Russia’s Yaroslav Korolev are three foreign players that may be on Denver’s radar. Providence’s Ryan Gomes could also be a player that may interest the Nuggets.

Key Player(s): Carmelo Anthony (Forward), Earl Boykins (Guard), Marcus Camby (Center), Kenyon Martin (Forward), Andre Miller (Guard), Nene (Center/Forward).

Team Needs: Shooting guard and a scoring forward.

Draft picks: 1st round (20th overall), 1st round (22nd overall), 2nd round (52nd overall).