1976–77 Denver Nuggets season

1976–77 Denver Nuggets season
Midwest Division Champions
Head coach	Larry Brown
Arena	McNichols Sports Arena
Results
Record	50–32 (.610)
Place	Division: 1st (Midwest) Conference: 2nd (Western)
Playoff finish	West Conference Semifinals (Eliminated 2-4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	KWGN
Radio	KOA

The 1976-77 season was Denver's first season in the NBA, after nine seasons in the ABA.

Offseason

ABA-NBA merger

With the conclusion of the 1975-76 season, the American Basketball Association came to an end with the ABA-NBA merger. Four ABA teams entered the NBA: the Nuggets, the Indiana Pacers, the New York Nets and the San Antonio Spurs. The other ABA teams were folded prior to the merger except for the Kentucky Colonels and Spirits of St. Louis, both of which were folded as part of the league merger.

The Nuggets and the other ABA teams were given harsh obstacles as part of their entry to the NBA. Each team had to pay an entry fee; for the Nuggets it was $3.2 million. The Denver and the other four ABA team also received no television money for their first three NBA seasons in the NBA, were not allowed to participate in the 1976 NBA draft, had to be classified as "expansion franchises" (despite longer histories and more success than many NBA teams) and had to go for two years without any vote regarding the distribution of NBA gate receipts or the realignment of NBA divisions.

The Nuggets moved from the ABA to the NBA's Midwest Division.

NBA Draft

As part of the terms of the ABA-NBA merger the Nuggets were prohibited from participating in both the 1976 NBA draft of college players and in the dispersal draft of ABA players from teams that did not enter the NBA.

Main article: 1976 NBA Draft

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Denver Nuggets	50	32	.610	–	36–5	14–27	15–5
x-Detroit Pistons	44	38	.537	6	30–11	14–27	12–8
x-Chicago Bulls	44	38	.537	6	31-10	13-28	10–10
Kansas City Kings	40	42	.488	10	28–13	12–29	7–13
Indiana Pacers	36	46	.439	14	25–16	11–30	9–11
Milwaukee Bucks	30	52	.366	20	24–17	6–35	7–13

#	Western Conference
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Los Angeles Lakers	53	29	.646	–
2	y-Denver Nuggets	50	32	.610	3
3	x-Portland Trail Blazers	49	33	.598	4
4	x-Golden State Warriors	46	36	.561	7
5	x-Detroit Pistons	44	38	.537	9
6	x-Chicago Bulls	44	38	.537	9
7	Kansas City Kings	40	42	.488	13
7	Seattle SuperSonics	40	42	.488	13
9	Indiana Pacers	36	46	.439	17
10	Phoenix Suns	34	48	.415	19
11	Milwaukee Bucks	30	52	.366	23

Game log

Game	Date	Opponent	Result	Pacers points	Opponents	Record	Streak	Notes
1

Playoffs

West First Round

The Nuggets had a first round bye.

West Conference Semifinals

(2) Denver Nuggets vs. (3) Portland Trail Blazers: Blazers win series 4-2

• Game 1 @ Denver: Portland 101, Denver 100
• Game 2 @ Denver: Denver 121, Portland 110
• Game 3 @ Portland: Portland 110, Denver 106
• Game 4 @ Portland: Portland 105, Denver 96
• Game 5 @ Denver: Denver 114, Portland 105 (OT)
• Game 6 @ Portland: Portland 108, Denver 92

Awards, records, and honors

• David Thompson, All-NBA First Team
• Bobby Jones, NBA All-Defensive First Team

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

References

• Nuggets on Basketball Reference