The Nuggets have reportedly come to terms with Isaiah Rider, Cedric Ceballos and Paul McPherson. Personally, I like all three signings, but surprisingly I like the McPherson one the most. Dude is promising, solid player and I was close friends with someone who covered the Suns and he absolutely loved McPherson's attitude. As for the other two, it could be interesting. Luckily, it appears that they will be watched closely as new GM Kiki Vandeweghe has hired a LOT of new coaches/assistants to help with everything. David Thompson, Calvin Natt, Clyde Drexler, etc. etc.. Don't get me wrong, we're still gonna suck this year (One word: Issel), but it's nice to see that we have someone in the front office who's not afraid of making a move to help the team. Now we just need to dump 2 or 3 of our 7,000 swingmen for a backup center (at this point, even Osterstiff might not be that bad.....nah, he would. Nevermind). NUGGETS IN 2003!!!
Have I got a deal for you! We just happen to have a great backup center that we'd be willing to help you out with, if the deal is right. He's athletic, can block 6-7 shots in a single preseason game (imagine what he could do during the regular season), has an unbelievable upside of potential, will gladly sit on the bench all season if it'll help the team, & best of all, he's locked in for the next 5 years, so you want have to worry about someone trying to steal him away from you through free agency. I'll tell you what, since I'm in such a good mood today, I'll let you have this great backup center for the measley low price of Lenard/Cheaney. With this trade, you actually drop $600,00 off of your team salary. So, what do you say, can we draw up the papers now?
I like the Rider signing. The Nuggets are going to be much better, especially if they give him the ball now and then.
im with ya n4. despite issel sucking as coach, kiki in a VERY short time, has turned the image of this team around and at the very least - made things very exciting and fun. rider - hell yes. i dont care. we have nothing to lose. ceballos - could be a nice vet to have on the bench but we are loaded at the 2/3. would he mind spending time on our IR? mcpherson - i knew this was the same kid when i saw his name. apparently he played decently for GS and PHO. dunno why he didnt stick. could be a plesant surprise. anyways, that plus drexler has made the last month pretty darn nice. go kiki. (but your right; we still need another big man...hmmm...)
Man, you guys can keep Cato. I still love the McPherson signing. I think he's gonna produce for us. C - LaFrentz, Willis, Radojevic PF - McDyess, Someone in trade SF - Posey, Ceballos, McCloud, Bowen SG - Rider, McPherson, Abdul-Wahad (I'm still high on him) PG - Van Exel, Johnson, Satterfield Lenard and Cheaney are on the block. Hell, most of the team is on the block, but those two are the most likely to go. I fully expect one to be traded for some sort of PF or C.
only problem is there are only 48 minutes per game. whers the minutes gonna come from... van exel, posey, rider will get plenty im sure. then mccloud, ceballos (maybe), johnson get some. then you still have bowen, lenard, cheaney, wahad, and mcpherson (if he sticks). and i might be forgetting someone... satterfield?
If the Nuggets can get McPherson to play defense or pass the ball, more power to them. 'Cause when he was with the Warriors last year, he showed ZERO interest in either. Very, very, self-centered player. Should get along great with Rider. In fact, if you imagine a 6'2" Rider with no outside shot, that's McPherson.
well that explains how he got on our training camp roster anyways. either way, its no big deal. we dont need help at 2/3.
I think those are VERY good signing for the Nuggets. If Rider keeps his head on straight at least half the time that is the third scorer the Nuggets need. He is fearless, multi-talented, has range and can create his own shot. He has a championship ring to, which is weird, even though he wasn't on the roster. Ceballos, if in shape, is another solid scorer and rebounder. The Nuggets added some much needed offensive punch and depth. I'm still sticking to my prediction that the Rockets and Nuggets will replace the Wolves and Suns in the playoffs.
Those are good pickups for the Nuggets, but this creates a bit of a logjam at the 3. However, Ceballos won't get many minutes, but when he does get them, he can score in bunches. Rider....what can you say about Rider? One of the biggest wastes of talent in the league, perhaps in league history. This can flat out play.......and his attitude and lack of interest in obeying the rules of his employer have killed his game, and created a lack of interest across the league. Someone always picks him up, but he doesn't stay long enough to unpack. If Issel (a HUGE if) can harness him for a while, he could really help the Nuggets. Stay tuned......this could be interesting!
Rider is a bad signing for Denver. You are talking about a total cancer. He was a cancer on a horrible team that could give him all the shots he could take (Atlanta), he was horrible with a good team with a great coach when only a minimal role was requested from him(Lakers). It is not like Rider is like Rodman and can perform in the right situation, all the recent places he has been it he has been a disaster. The only team that might should have considered Rider is the Bulls, because they are so hapless it really doesn't matter. Denver is a young team with some talent trying to learn how to play together, how anyone can see that Rider would help the situation of a team already with some internal friction is beyond me.
Thank you Nugz! I don't know, I've never thought of Rider as being as much of a cancer as people say. I think Rider is along the same line of Rodman, who people called a disruption. He's a disruption to the media, but for the most part they go out and produce. I don't think Rider will cause trouble in Denver, he really didn't cause trouble in Los Angeles. I think that Rider and Van Exel form a pretty solid, and potentially explosive, backcourt combo, I think he'll fit in fine.
Seriously, Rodman is a nut but he always played hard, the latter can't be said about Rider. In the right situation Rodman was effective for the team. Except for SA taking him too seriously, he probably would have worked out there too. What did Rider say when he couldn't have been in a better situation????--playing with the previous champs, playing with best coach at getting headcases or limited players to perform, and just needing to provide a little scoring off the bench,---I think he said something like he just couldn't handle it so he slacked off (in the easiest role in the business). With injuries to Fisher and Harper even Phil J decided not to take him back, that tells you a lot. Now you think he will positively contribute to Issel, Nick and Lafrenz's already unstable stew, please.
i know but rider is a no risk situation so im happy with it. im psyched to see a nve/poz/rider/dice/raef starting 5
If only Kiki could get David Thompson, Calvin Natt, Clyde Drexler to come out of retirement. Only then, would there be improvement in Denver.
ouch. low blow. anyways, in regards to rider above, i think the diff between us and the lakers is they are a championship team. they had something to lose. they didnt need rider. he needed them way more. they had something going with shaq/kobe/PJ/etc. we, on the other hand (may have to sit down for this shocker) are not a championship team. i know what your thinking "shut the hell up Nugz, what the hell are you smoking??!!" no its true...were not. hard to believe but thats reality. therefore taking a chance on rider with such low risk, might be worth a shot. at least it might give the nuggets some local interest and be fun to watch and talk about. and who knows, might win us a game or two. I mean honestly, what do we have to lose? if we cant win now just dump rider and itll get issel fired and a good draft pick. i think its worth a shot.
NugzFan, I think I'm starting to see why you're defending Rider so much. With Rider on board, Issell will focus his wrath on him, instead of keeping his feud with LaFrentz going & maybe, just maybe, he won't trade LaFrentz/Willis to us for Cato. Very clever on your part, but you're not going to get away with it. We will have LaFrentz!
