[Izulde]

Augusto Wants Out

A stunning development has occurred in the wake of the Denver Nuggets' successful title defense. 21 year old star PF Marcelino Augusto has demanded a trade from Denver, claiming he doesn't feel he has the support that teammate Mateen Yeaton does.

"I performed at a higher and more consistent level than Mateen and I should've received the Finals MVP award, not him. There's constantly been trade rumors swirling around me and I'm tired of it. So I say to the GM and to the front office: Trade me. Trade me to some other team where I'll be appreciated, where I'll be the clear-cut number one and not have to play second fiddle to a man who's past his prime", Augusto said at a press conference announcing his desire to be dealt.

Nuggets captain Emeka Okafor has also publically expressed a wish to be moved to another team if he decides not to retire, but that isn't likely to happen.

GM Jestor declined comment on the Brazilian's outburst, but sources say there's a very high probability that the young superstar and regular season MVP candidate will get his wish and be traded.

If that happens, the fallout could be considerable for Denver, as the team will then have to find another scorer to pair with Yeaton. It also means that their future franchise fixture at PF will be gone. On the other hand, Yeaton will still be the only returning starter over 30 and there's every reason to believe the Nuggets can continue their dominance even without Augusto, depending on what Jestor can get back.

Augusto also indicated during the press conference that as a gesture to Nuggets fans, who've been so ardent in their enthusiasm for him during his three years in the league, he's willing to a sign 2 year, $12 million base, 10% raise contract extension, but no more than that. It's uncertain as to how the Nuggets front office will respond to that offer.

What's certain is that this offseason just got a lot more intriguing for Nuggets fans.

***End Article***

Bastard. I knew I should've sold him sooner. But that's going to have to wait. We've the lottery first.

NBA Lottery
14. Boston Celtics
13. Chicago Bulls
12. New Jersey Nets
11. Memphis Grizzlies
10. Houston Rockets
9. Golden State Warriors
8. Charlotte Bobcats

7. Denver Nuggets (-1)

...Damn it. We dropped a spot as Miami sneaks into the top 3.

6. Los Angeles Clippers (-1)
5. Washington Wizards (-1)
4. New Orleans Hornets (-3)
3. Indiana Pacers
2. Phoenix Suns
1. Miami Heat (+6)

And so it's the Heat that come up lucky in the lottery. Oh well, it could've been worse. I'll take the #7 pick.

2019 NBA Awards
MVP
Andrew Bynum - Los Angeles Lakers - 18.1 PPG 11.9 RPG 3.6 APG 2.6 BPG 0.9 SPG
Defensive Player of the Year
Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors - 14.0 PPG 15.4 RPG 3.7 APG 2.7 BPG 1.0 SPG
Rookie of the Year
Devone Allen - Dallas Mavericks - 15.9 PPG 3.7 RPG 3.2 APG 1.4 BPG 1.2 SPG
6th Man of the Year
Kelvin Johnson - Atlanta Hawks - 15.3 PPG 4.4 APG 2.6 RPG 0.7 BPG 0.9 SPG
Coach of the Year
Sam Mitchell - Toronto Raptors

The media obsesses way too much with centers and keeps voting them as MVP even when they don't really deserve it. Poor form again, though not quite as egregious as the Greg Oden selections. Augusto was furious when he found out he'd be snubbed for the MVP award, though he did finish in second place.

All-NBA 1st Team
PG Kenny Graham - Detroit Pistons
SG Mateen Yeaton - Denver Nuggets
SF Kevin Durant - Portland Trailblazers
PF Marcelino Augusto - Denver Nuggets
C Andrew Bynum - Los Angeles Lakers

All-NBA 2nd Team
PG Paulinho Buboltz - Indiana Pacers
SG Justin Richler - Toronto Raptors
SF Rudy Gay - Memphis Grizzlies
PF Kelvin Moody - Minnesota Timberwolves
C Jonte Jones - Dallas Mavericks

All-NBA 3rd Team
PG Calvis Graham - Los Angeles Lakers
SG Lebron James - Cleveland Cavaliers
SF Charles Garren - Orlando Magic
PF Federico Gomez - Minnesota Timberwolves
C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors

First time in my career I've had two All-First Team selections and I'm going to have to ship one of them out. Oh well, c'est 'la vie.

All-Defense 1st Team
PG Derrick Sterett - New Jersey Nets
SG Mateen Yeaton - Denver Nuggets
SF Jeremy Lemons - Orlando Magic
PF Tyrus Thomas - Philadelphia 76ers
C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors

All-Defense 2nd Team
PG Brian Metcalfe - Philadelphia 76ers
SG Charles Seegars - Chicago Bulls
SF David Anyan - Toronto Raptors
PF Kelvin Moody - Minnesota Timberwolves
C Patrick Riley - Sacramento Kings

All-Rookie 1st Team
PG Keith Attaway - Indiana Pacers
SG Filip Mikulic - Houston Rockets
SF Devone Allen - Dallas Mavericks
PF Jeremy Bellairs - Golden State Warriors
C Charlie Joseph - Portland Trailblazers

All-Rookie 2nd Team
PG Carlton Goree - Sacramento Kings
SG Walter Hicks - New Jersey Nets
SF Steven Feaster - Miami Heat
PF Calvis Hatter - Memphis Grizzlies
C Leo Sinville - Orlando Magic

B.B. Dyer got a monster bid for the team and took it, figuring the time was right to sell high. Enter Bob Neal, who doesn't care at all about winning. He just wants the profit and he wants the profits -now-, especially after how much money he shelled out to get the Nuggets.

Luckily, Mr. Neal is fine with the same deep playoff run and 10-15 million over the cap that I've proposed to Mr. Dyer the last several years. I'm going to hold off on trading Augusto until I see exactly what this draft class looks like.

Coach Hiring

Jim O'Brien's rewarded with a 3 year, $2.3 million a year contract extension for leading us to two straight titles. By the time he retires, he should be over .500 careerwise.

Other than that, we sit tight and watch the usual musical chairs of coaches, including Scott Skiles going to the Heat. ...Yeah, his slow style is going to go over -real- well with Nigel Abel.

Mock Draft

For the most part, this is looking like a pretty weak class. Not one I'd pay much to move up in. SG Jon Ward, a 19 year old who just finished his freshman year at Syracuse, looks like the class of the crop from initial impressions.

I have some mild interest in Ward, SG Austin Forte, a 21 year old out of Notre Dame, and 21 year old PF Terry Vinson out of Indiana, especially since Mateen Yeaton's a Hoosier, but overall, this just isn't a great class in terms of star power at the top.

On the other hand, there looks to be enough depth in this class that a few second rounders could well make an impact.

Decisions, decisions to make as we head into the draft.