1988–89 Denver Nuggets season

The 1988–89 NBA season was the Nuggets' 13th season in the NBA and 22nd season as a franchise.^[1] During the off-season, the team signed free agent All-Star guard Walter Davis.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} The Nuggets got off to an 11–4 start to the season, but played below .500 afterwards, as Bill Hanzlik only played just 41 games due to a back injury.^[7][8][9] At mid-season, the team traded Jay Vincent and Calvin Natt to the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for Dave Greenwood and Darwin Cook,^{[10][11][12][13]} and held a 25–23 record at the All-Star break.^[14] Despite losing six of their final eight games, the Nuggets finished third in the Midwest Division with a 44–38 record,^[15] while posting a very successful 35–6 home record at McNichols Sports Arena.^[16][17]

1988–89 Denver Nuggets season
Head coach	Doug Moe
Arena	McNichols Sports Arena
Results
Record	44–38 (.537)
Place	Division: 3rd (Midwest) Conference: 6th (Western)
Playoff finish	West First Round (lost to Suns 0–3)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	KTVD KMGH-TV Prime Sports Rocky Mountain (Dan Issel, Irv Brown)
Radio	KOA
< 1987–88 1989–90 >

Alex English averaged 26.5 points and 4.7 assists per game, and was selected for the 1989 NBA All-Star Game, which was his final All-Star appearance,^{[18][19][20][21][22]} while Fat Lever averaged 19.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 2.7 steals per game, and Michael Adams provided the team with 18.5 points, 6.4 assists and 2.2 steals per game. In addition, Davis played a sixth man role, and contributed 15.6 points per game off the bench, while Danny Schayes provided with 12.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, and Wayne Cooper averaged 6.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.^[23]

However, in the playoffs, due to injuries to Lever (thigh bruise), Adams (hamstring), and Schayes (sprained ankle),^{[24][25][26][27]} the Nuggets were swept by the Phoenix Suns in three straight games in the Western Conference First Round.^{[28][29][30][31]}

Following the season, Cooper signed as a free agent with the Portland Trail Blazers,^[32][33][34] and Greenwood and Cook were both released to free agency.

Draft picks

Main article: 1988 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	23	Jerome Lane	PF/SF	United States	Pittsburgh
2	43	Todd Mitchell	F	United States	Purdue
2	47	Vernon Maxwell	SG	United States	Florida
3	66	Dwight Boyd		United States	Memphis

Roster

1988–89 Denver Nuggets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From G 14 Adams, Michael 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 162 lb (73 kg) 1963–01–19 Boston College G 1 Cook, Darwin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 1958–08–06 Portland C 42 Cooper, Wayne 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1956–11–16 New Orleans G/F 6 Davis, Walter 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1954–09–09 North Carolina F 43 Engelstad, Wayne 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1965–12–06 UC Irvine F 2 English, Alex 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1954–01–05 South Carolina F 22 Greenwood, Dave 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 222 lb (101 kg) 1967–05–27 UCLA F 24 Hanzlik, Bill 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1957–12–06 Notre Dame G 15 Hughes, Eddie 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1960–05–26 Colorado State F 35 Lane, Jerome 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1966–12–04 Pittsburgh G 12 Lever, Fat 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1960–08–18 Arizona State C 41 Rasmussen, Blair 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1962–11–13 Oregon C 34 Schayes, Danny 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1959–05–10 Syracuse

Head coach Doug Moe Assistant coach(es) Allan Bristow Doug Moe Jr. Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Utah Jazz	51	31	.622	–	34–7	17–24	19–11
x-Houston Rockets	45	37	.549	6	31–10	14–27	19–11
x-Denver Nuggets	44	38	.537	7	35–6	9–32	18–12
Dallas Mavericks	38	44	.463	13	24–17	14–27	19–11
San Antonio Spurs	21	61	.256	30	18–23	3–38	9–21
Miami Heat	15	67	.183	36	12–29	3–38	6–24

#	Western Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Los Angeles Lakers	57	25	.695	–
2	y-Utah Jazz	51	31	.622	6
3	x-Phoenix Suns	55	27	.671	2
4	x-Seattle SuperSonics	47	35	.573	10
5	x-Houston Rockets	45	37	.549	12
6	x-Denver Nuggets	44	38	.537	13
7	x-Golden State Warriors	43	39	.524	14
8	x-Portland Trail Blazers	39	43	.476	18
9	Dallas Mavericks	38	44	.463	19
10	Sacramento Kings	27	55	.329	30
11	San Antonio Spurs	21	61	.256	36
12	Los Angeles Clippers	21	61	.256	36
13	Miami Heat	15	67	.183	42

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1988-89 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	NJN	NYK	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	–	3–1	4–1	4–2	4–2	1–1	0–2	1–5	1–1	1–1	5–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	6–0	4–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Boston	1–3	–	6–0	1–3	1–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–2	5–1	3–3	3–3	0–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–4
Charlotte	1–4	0–6	–	1–4	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	0–4	2–4	2–4	3–3	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–5
Chicago	2–4	3–1	4–1	–	0–6	2–0	1–1	0–6	1–1	1–1	4–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	6–0	2–2	3–2	1–3	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–1
Cleveland	2–4	4–1	4–0	6–0	–	2–0	2–0	3–3	1–1	1–1	5–1	1–1	0–2	2–0	3–3	4–0	2–2	3–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2
Dallas	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	–	3–3	0–2	1–3	1–5	1–1	3–1	0–4	6–0	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–2	5–1	2–2	4–2	1–1
Denver	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	3–3	–	1–1	3–1	4–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	5–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	3–3	2–2	3–3	1–1
Detroit	5–1	3–1	4–0	6–0	3–3	2–0	1–1	–	1–1	1–1	4–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–4	4–0	0–4	5–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	5–0
Golden State	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–3	1–1	–	1–3	1–1	5–1	2–3	4–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–4	2–4	2–3	3–1	2–4	2–2	1–1
Houston	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	5–1	2–4	1–1	3–1	–	2–0	2–2	1–3	4–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	1–3	3–1	2–2	6–0	2–2	2–4	0–2
Indiana	1–5	3–2	2–2	2–4	1–5	1–1	1–1	2–4	1–1	0–2	–	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–4	1–3	0–5	0–4	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–3
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	0–2	1–5	2–2	1–1	–	1–5	1–3	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–5	1–5	2–3	3–1	1–4	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	4–0	3–1	0–2	3–2	3–1	2–0	5–1	–	4–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–3	5–0	5–1	3–1	4–2	1–3	1–1
Miami	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–6	1–5	0–2	0–4	2–4	1–1	3–1	0–4	–	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–4	0–4	1–3	2–4	0–4	1–5	0–2
Milwaukee	0–6	2–2	4–0	0–6	3–3	2–0	2–0	4–2	2–0	1–1	4–2	2–0	1–1	2–0	–	4–1	1–3	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1
New Jersey	1–4	1–5	4–2	2–2	0–4	1–1	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–4	–	2–4	1–5	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–5
New York	2–2	3–3	4–2	2–3	2–2	2–0	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	5–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	4–2	–	2–4	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–1
Philadelphia	2–2	3–3	3–3	3–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	0–5	1–1	2–0	4–0	2–0	0–2	2–0	1–3	5–1	4–2	–	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–2
Phoenix	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	3–1	3–1	0–2	4–2	3–1	1–1	5–1	3–3	4–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	–	2–3	5–1	3–1	4–1	2–2	2–0
Portland	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	1–1	4–2	1–3	0–2	5–1	0–5	4–0	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–2	–	3–3	4–0	2–4	0–4	1–1
Sacramento	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	1–3	0–2	3–2	2–2	1–1	3–2	1–5	3–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–5	3–3	–	2–2	1–5	1–3	0–2
San Antonio	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–5	3–3	0–2	1–3	0–6	0–2	1–3	1–3	4–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–3	0–4	2–2	–	0–4	1–5	1–1
Seattle	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–2	2–2	0–2	4–2	2–2	1–1	4–1	2–4	4–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–4	4–2	5–1	4–0	–	3–1	1–1
Utah	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–4	3–3	0–2	2–2	4–2	1–1	3–1	3–1	5–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	4–0	3–1	5–1	1–3	–	2–0
Washington	1–3	4–2	5–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–5	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–4	5–1	1–5	2–4	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	—

Game log

Playoffs

1989 playoff game log
First round: 0–3 (home: 0–1; road: 0–2) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 28 @ Phoenix L 103–104 Walter Davis (34) Fat Lever (12) Fat Lever (17) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,471 0–1 2 April 30 @ Phoenix L 114–132 Alex English (36) Michael Adams (12) English, Cook (6) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,471 0–2 3 May 2 Phoenix L 121–130 Walter Davis (26) Elston Turner (7) Bill Hanzlik (6) McNichols Sports Arena 12,660 0–3
1989 schedule

Player statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game

Season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG

Playoffs

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG

Awards and records

Transactions

References

1. "1988-89 Denver Nuggets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
2. "Sports Digest". United Press International. July 6, 1988. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
3. "Sports People; Davis Joins Nuggets". The New York Times. July 7, 1988. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
4. "Bullets Won't Keep Moses Malone; Suns Lose Davis to Nuggets". Los Angeles Times. July 7, 1988. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
5. "Changing of Guard: Davis In; Evans, Dunn on Way Out of Denver Lineup". Deseret News. July 7, 1988. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
6. Goldaper, Sam (October 30, 1988). "N.B.A. '88-'89; League Is Changing, But Lakers Are Still on Top". The New York Times. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
7. "Around the NBA". The Washington Post. November 9, 1988. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
8. "Hanzlik Re-signs with Nuggets". United Press International. September 25, 1989. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
9. "Basketball". The Washington Post. October 9, 1990. Retrieved April 3, 2023.
10. "The Denver Nuggets Traded Veteran Forwards Calvin Natt and..." United Press International. January 26, 1989. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
11. "The Denver Nuggets Traded Forwards Calvin Natt..." Los Angeles Times. January 27, 1989. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
12. "Disgruntled Nuggets Traded for Pair of Spurs". Deseret News. January 27, 1989. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
13. "Around the NBA". The Washington Post. January 27, 1989. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
14. "NBA Games Played on February 9, 1989". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
15. "1988–89 Denver Nuggets Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
16. Bock, Hal (April 30, 1989). "NBA Road Warriors Have Difficult Task". The Prescott Courier. p. 4B. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
17. "Warriors Have Jazz on the Edge". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. May 2, 1989. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
18. Robinson, John (February 1, 1989). "Stockton, Eaton on All-Star Squad". Deseret News. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
19. McManis, Sam (February 12, 1989). "Today's All-Star Game May Lack the Usual Magic: Without Johnson and Bird, NBA Showcase Just Won't Be the Same". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
20. "NBA All-Star Weekend Stars Will Have to Shine Without Bird, Magic Spotlights". Sun Sentinel. February 12, 1989. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
21. "1989 NBA All-Star Recap". NBA.com. NBA.com Staff. September 13, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2023.
22. "1989 NBA All-Star Game: West 143, East 134". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
23. "1988–89 Denver Nuggets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
24. "The Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets, Having Dispelled the..." United Press International. April 29, 1989. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
25. "Denver Missing Two Starters". United Press International. May 1, 1989. Retrieved December 27, 2022.
26. "Suns 132, Nuggets 114". Eugene Register-Guard. May 1, 1989. p. 3B. Retrieved November 4, 2024.
27. "Nuggets Limp Into Denver". Boca Raton News. Associated Press. May 2, 1989. p. 4D. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
28. "NBA Playoffs Roundup: Knicks Complete Sweep with Overtime Win". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 3, 1989. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
29. "Pistons, Knicks, Suns Complete Playoff Sweeps; Bucks Take 2-1 Lead Over Hawks". Deseret News. Associated Press. May 3, 1989. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
30. "Suns 130, Nuggets 121". United Press International. May 3, 1989. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
31. "1989 NBA Western Conference First Round: Nuggets vs. Suns". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
32. "THE SIDELINES: Wayne Cooper Signs with Blazers". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. July 24, 1989. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
33. "SPORTS PEOPLE: BASKETBALL; Blazers Sign Cooper". The New York Times. July 25, 1989. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
34. "Cooper Signs with Trail Blazers". Deseret News. July 25, 1989. Retrieved April 3, 2023.

See also

• 1988-89 NBA season