During the past few seasons, the Denver Nuggets have been one of those teams that generally play respectable basketball, finish the season with a winning record, make the playoffs and exits in the first round. Basketball fans had become accustomed to seeing this take place on a yearly basis, so people were surprised (to say the least) to witness the run that the Denver Nuggets embarked on during the 2009 NBA playoffs.

Not many expected the Denver Nuggets - who were notorious for losing in the first round it seems - to make it to the Western Conference Finals. The Nuggets were out manned and out played against the Lakers but that still doesn’t take away from the excellent season they had.

The Nuggets look to improve on this upcoming season and make it to the finals. They didn’t have any real changes during the off-season, but their core is all healthy and will continue to improve with time.

The addition of point guard Chauncey Billups essentially changed their season for the better once he arrived in town. Billups brought a defensive mentality from the Detroit Pistons who were one of the best defensive teams of the decade.

Then there’s Carmelo Anthony, one of the most natural point scorers in the league. With the arrival of Billups and his defensive skills, this only helped Melo on the defensive side of the ball.

Carmelo Anthony emerged as a defensive player as well because of Billups. Anthony could possibly be the best pure scorer in the entire NBA - that includes Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. Everyone knew ‘Melo could score but his improvement on defense was most impressive.

The San Antonio Spurs have added Richard Jefferson, the Dallas Mavericks added Shawn Marion, and the Los Angeles Lakers added Ron Artest.

After a hard fought series versus the Lakers, their season was cut short. Still, it was a beautiful run in Denver, one they hope to repeat.

For more Nuggets talk, check out the Denver Nuggest forum at RootZoo Sports, the most exciting sports forum online.

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