1991–92 Denver Nuggets season

The 1991–92 NBA season was the 16th season for the Denver Nuggets in the National Basketball Association, and their 25th season as a franchise.^[1] The Nuggets received the fourth overall pick in the 1991 NBA draft, and selected 7' 2" center Dikembe Mutombo out of Georgetown University, and also selected shooting guard Mark Macon out of Temple University with the eighth overall pick, which was acquired from the Washington Bullets via trade;^[2][3][4][5] Mutombo was a native of Zaire, and spoke nine languages (English, French, Portuguese, Spanish, and five African dialects). The team also re-signed former Nuggets guard Walter Davis after a brief stint with the Portland Trail Blazers,^[6][7] and acquired Winston Garland from the Los Angeles Clippers.^[8][9]

1991–92 Denver Nuggets season
Head coach	Paul Westhead
President	Bernie Bickerstaff
General manager	Bernie Bickerstaff
Arena	McNichols Sports Arena
Results
Record	24–58 (.293)
Place	Division: 5th (Midwest) Conference: 11th (Western)
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	KWGN-TV Prime Sports Rocky Mountain
Radio	KOA
< 1990–91 1992–93 >

With the addition of Mutombo, the Nuggets showed improvement with an 8–8 start to the regular season, then holding a 17–26 record at the end of January. However, in the second half of the season, the Nuggets struggled losing nine consecutive games between February and March, then posting an 11-game losing streak near the end of the season. The Nuggets lost 32 of their final 39 games of the season, and finished in fourth place in the Midwest Division with a 24–58 record.^[10][11]

Mutombo averaged 16.6 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, and selected for the 1992 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando, Florida, which was his first ever All-Star appearance,^{[12][13][14][15]} and also finishing in second place in Rookie of the Year voting.^[16][17] In addition, Reggie Williams averaged 18.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game, while Greg Anderson provided the team with 11.5 points and rebounds per game each, and Macon contributed 10.6 points and 2.0 steals per game, and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Meanwhile, Garland provided with 10.8 points, 5.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game, while off the bench, second-year guard Chris Jackson contributed 10.3 points per game, second-year forward Marcus Liberty averaged 9.3 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, and Davis provided with 9.9 points per game.^[18]

Following the season, Davis retired, while Anderson and Garland were both released to free agency, and head coach Paul Westhead was fired.^[19]

Draft picks

Main article: 1991 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	4	Dikembe Mutombo	C	Zaire	Georgetown
1	8	Mark Macon	SG	United States	Temple

Roster

1991–92 Denver Nuggets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From PF 33 Greg Anderson 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1964–06–22 Houston SF 43 Kevin Brooks 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1969–10–12 Louisiana PF 45 Anthony Cook 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1967–03–19 Arizona SG 6 Walter Davis 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1954–09–09 North Carolina PG 12 Winston Garland 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1964–12–19 Missouri State PF 10 Scott Hastings 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1960–06–03 Arkansas PG 3 Chris Jackson 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 162 lb (73 kg) 1969–03–09 LSU SF 30 Marcus Liberty 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1968–10–27 Illinois SG 21 Todd Lichti 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1967–01–08 Stanford SG 1 Mark Macon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1969–04–14 Temple C 55 Dikembe Mutombo 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1966–06–25 Georgetown C 50 Steve Scheffler 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1967–09–03 Purdue SF 34 Reggie Williams 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1964–03–05 Georgetown C 42 Joe Wolf 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1964–12–17 North Carolina

Head coach Paul Westhead Assistant(s) Jim Boyle Mike Evans Judas Prada Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster Updated: March 17, 1992

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Utah Jazz	55	27	.671	—	37–4	18–23	20–6
x-San Antonio Spurs	47	35	.573	8	31–10	16–25	18–8
Houston Rockets	42	40	.512	13	28–13	14–27	12–14
Denver Nuggets	24	58	.293	31	18–23	6–35	8–18
Dallas Mavericks	22	60	.268	33	15–26	7–34	11–15
Minnesota Timberwolves	15	67	.183	40	9–32	6–35	9–17

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

#	Western Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Portland Trail Blazers	57	25	.695	–
2	y-Utah Jazz	55	27	.671	2
3	x-Golden State Warriors	55	27	.671	2
4	x-Phoenix Suns	53	29	.646	4
5	x-San Antonio Spurs	47	35	.573	10
6	x-Seattle SuperSonics	47	35	.573	10
7	x-Los Angeles Clippers	45	37	.549	12
8	x-Los Angeles Lakers	43	39	.524	14
9	Houston Rockets	42	40	.512	15
10	Sacramento Kings	29	53	.354	28
11	Denver Nuggets	24	58	.293	33
12	Dallas Mavericks	22	60	.268	35
13	Minnesota Timberwolves	15	67	.183	42

z - clinched division title

y - clinched division title

x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1991-92 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	–	3–1	2–2	0–5	0–5	2–0	2–0	1–4	1–1	2–0	1–4	1–1	0–2	2–2	3–1	2–0	3–1	2–2	2–2	2–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–2
Boston	1–3	–	3–1	1–3	3–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–0	2–0	3–2	2–2	0–2	2–3	3–2	5–0	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–1
Charlotte	2–2	1–3	–	0–4	2–3	1–1	1–1	1–4	1–1	0–2	3–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–3	1–1	1–3	0–4	3–1	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–2
Chicago	5–0	3–1	4–0	–	3–2	2–0	2–0	4–1	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	3–2	2–0	4–0	4–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	4–0
Cleveland	5–0	1–3	3–2	2–3	–	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	5–0	1–1	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	2–2	4–0	3–1	4–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0
Dallas	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	–	3–2	0–2	0–4	4–2	1–1	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–1	3–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–2	0–4	1–3	0–5	0–4	1–4	0–2
Denver	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–3	–	0–2	0–4	2–3	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2	1–1	2–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–4	1–3	1–5	1–1
Detroit	4–1	0–4	4–1	1–4	1–3	2–0	2–0	–	1–1	2–0	2–2	0–2	2–0	2–2	3–2	1–1	2–2	2–2	4–0	3–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Golden State	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	–	2–2	2–0	3–2	3–2	1–1	2–0	4–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–3	5–0	2–2	3–2	1–3	2–0
Houston	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–4	3–2	0–2	2–2	–	1–1	2–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	3–1	3–1	3–2	1–3	1–4	2–0
Indiana	4–1	2–2	2–3	1–3	0–5	1–1	2–0	2–2	0–2	1–1	–	0–2	2–0	3–1	4–1	2–0	2–2	1–3	2–2	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–2
L.A. Clippers	1–1	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–1	4–0	2–0	2–3	2–2	2–0	–	2–3	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–3	2–3	2–2	2–3	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	4–0	3–1	0–2	2–3	2–2	0–2	3–2	–	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–3	1–4	4–1	1–3	1–4	1–3	1–1
Miami	2–2	2–3	3–1	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–2	0–2	–	4–0	2–0	2–2	1–4	3–1	1–4	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–0
Milwaukee	1–3	2–2	3–2	2–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	0–2	1–1	1–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	–	2–0	0–4	1–3	3–1	3–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Minnesota	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–3	3–2	1–1	0–4	2–3	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–2	–	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–4	1–3	0–6	0–4	2–3	0–2
New Jersey	1–3	3–2	3–1	0–4	2–2	2–0	1–1	2–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	2–2	4–0	2–0	–	2–3	3–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–3
New York	2–2	2–3	4–0	0–4	0–4	2–0	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	4–1	3–1	2–0	3–2	–	4–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	4–0
Orlando	2–2	0–5	1–3	1–3	1–3	1–1	0–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–3	2–0	1–3	1–4	–	3–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–3
Philadelphia	2–2	1–3	1–3	1–3	0–4	2–0	0–2	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	4–1	1–3	2–0	2–3	1–3	2–3	–	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	5–0
Phoenix	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–3	3–1	1–1	2–3	3–2	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	–	3–2	4–1	3–1	3–2	2–2	2–0
Portland	2–0	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	4–0	3–1	0–2	3–2	1–3	2–0	3–2	4–1	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–3	–	5–0	2–2	4–1	2–2	2–0
Sacramento	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	3–1	2–2	0–2	0–5	1–3	1–1	3–2	1–4	0–2	2–0	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–4	0–5	–	1–3	1–4	1–3	2–0
San Antonio	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	5–0	4–1	1–1	2–2	2–3	0–2	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	6–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	–	3–1	1–4	0–2
Seattle	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	2–3	3–1	2–0	3–2	4–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–3	1–4	4–1	1–3	–	3–1	2–0
Utah	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–1	5–1	1–1	3–1	4–1	1–1	3–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	3–2	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–2	3–1	4–1	1–3	–	2–0
Washington	2–2	1–3	2–2	0–4	0–4	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–5	1–3	2–0	3–2	0–4	3–2	0–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	—

Game log

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

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Reggie Williams	81	80	32.4	.471	.359	.803	5.0	2.9	1.8	0.8	18.2
Dikembe Mutombo	71	71	38.3	.493		.642	12.3	2.2	0.6	3.0	16.6
Greg Anderson	82	82	34.1	.456	.000	.623	11.5	1.0	1.1	0.8	11.5
Winston Garland	78	67	28.3	.444	.321	.859	2.4	5.3	1.3	0.3	10.8
Mark Macon	76	67	30.3	.375	.133	.730	2.9	2.2	2.0	0.2	10.6
Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf	81	11	19.0	.421	.330	.870	1.4	2.4	0.5	0.0	10.3
Walter Davis	46	0	16.1	.459	.313	.872	1.5	1.5	0.6	0.0	9.9
Marcus Liberty	75	13	20.4	.443	.340	.728	4.1	0.8	0.9	0.4	9.3
Todd Lichti	68	10	17.3	.460	.111	.839	1.7	1.1	0.6	0.2	6.6
Joe Wolf	67	0	17.3	.361	.091	.803	3.6	0.9	0.5	0.2	3.8
Jerome Lane	9	5	15.7	.250		.421	4.9	1.4	0.2	0.1	3.1
Kevin Brooks	37	0	7.3	.443	.182	.810	1.1	0.3	0.2	0.1	2.8
Steve Scheffler	7	0	6.6	.571		.667	1.6	0.0	0.4	0.0	1.7
Scott Hastings	40	4	10.5	.340	.000	.857	2.5	0.7	0.3	0.4	1.5
Anthony Cook	22	0	5.2	.600		.667	1.5	0.1	0.2	0.2	1.5

Player Statistics Citation:^[18]

Awards, records, and honors

• Dikembe Mutombo, NBA All-Rookie Team 1st Team
• Mark Macon, NBA All-Rookie Team 2nd Team

Transactions