1987–88 Denver Nuggets season

The 1987–88 NBA season was the Nuggets' 12th season in the NBA and 21st season as a franchise. During the offseason, the Nuggets acquired Michael Adams from the Washington Bullets. The Nuggets finished first place in the Midwest Division with a 54–28 record. Head coach Doug Moe was named Coach of The Year. Alex English and Fat Lever were both selected for the 1988 NBA All-Star Game. In the first round of the playoffs, they defeated the Seattle SuperSonics in five games, but lost to the 3rd-seeded Dallas Mavericks six games in the semifinals.

Draft picks

Main article: 1987 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
2	31	Andre Moore	PF	United States Australia	Loyola (IL)
3	54	Tom Schafer		United States	Iowa State
4	77	David Boone		United States	Marquette
5	100	Ron Grandison		United States	New Orleans
6	123	Kelvin Scarborough		United States	New Mexico
7	146	Rowan Gomes		United States	Hampton
7	156	Curtis Hunter		United States	North Carolina

Roster

1987–88 Denver Nuggets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Name	Height	Weight	From
PG	14	Adams, Michael	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	162 lb (73 kg)	Boston College
SF	35	Brooks, Michael	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	La Salle
C	42	Cooper, Wayne	6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	New Orleans
SG	23	Dunn, T.R.	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Alabama
SF	2	English, Alex	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	South Carolina
PG	5	Evans, Mike	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Kansas State
SF	24	Hanzlik, Bill	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Notre Dame
SG	12	Lever, Fat	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Arizona State
SF	11	Martin, Maurice	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Saint Joseph's
PF	33	Natt, Calvin	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Louisiana–Monroe
C	41	Rasmussen, Blair	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	250 lb (113 kg)	Oregon
PF	34	Schayes, Danny	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Syracuse
SF	30	Vincent, Jay	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Michigan State

Head coach

Doug Moe

Assistant coach(es)

Allan Bristow

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-Denver Nuggets	54	28	.659	–	35–6	19–22	18–12
x-Dallas Mavericks	53	29	.646	1	33–8	20–21	20–10
x-Utah Jazz	47	35	.573	7	33–8	14–27	18–12
x-Houston Rockets	46	36	.561	8	31–10	15–26	13–17
x-San Antonio Spurs	31	51	.378	23	23–18	8–33	12–18
Sacramento Kings	24	58	.293	30	19–22	5–36	9–21

#	Western Conference v t e
#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Los Angeles Lakers	62	20	.756	–
2	y-Denver Nuggets	54	28	.659	8
3	x-Dallas Mavericks	53	29	.646	9
4	x-Portland Trail Blazers	53	29	.646	9
5	x-Utah Jazz	47	35	.573	15
6	x-Houston Rockets	46	36	.561	16
7	x-Seattle SuperSonics	44	38	.537	18
8	x-San Antonio Spurs	31	51	.378	31

9	Phoenix Suns	28	54	.341	34
10	Sacramento Kings	24	58	.293	38
11	Golden State Warriors	20	62	.244	42
12	Los Angeles Clippers	17	65	.207	45

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1987-88 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIL	NJN	NYK	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	2–4	2–3	5–1	2–0	1–1	2–4	2–0	1–1	4–2	2–0	0–2	3–3	5–0	3–3	6–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–3
Boston	4–2	—	3–3	2–3	2–0	0–2	3–3	2–0	1–1	5–0	2–0	0–2	3–3	5–1	5–1	4–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	5–1
Chicago	3–2	3–3	—	3–3	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–0	2–0	3–3	2–0	1–1	5–1	5–1	3–2	4–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–3
Cleveland	1–5	3–2	3–3	—	1–1	1–1	1–5	0–2	1–1	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	5–1	2–4	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	6–0
Dallas	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	—	3–3	1–1	4–1	4–2	2–0	5–0	1–4	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–0	3–2	5–1	5–1	3–2	3–3	1–1
Denver	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–3	—	1–1	4–1	4–2	1–1	5–0	3–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	3–2	2–3	4–2	5–1	4–1	2–4	2–0
Detroit	4–2	3–3	4–2	5–1	1–1	1–1	—	2–0	1–1	3–3	1–1	0–2	4–2	5–1	4–2	4–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–2
Golden State	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–4	1–4	0–2	—	0–5	0–2	3–3	0–6	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–4	1–5	2–3	3–2	1–5	1–4	0–2
Houston	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–4	1–1	5–0	—	2–0	3–2	1–4	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1	4–1	4–2	2–4	3–2	3–3	2–0
Indiana	2–4	0–5	3–3	2–4	0–2	1–1	3–3	2–0	0–2	—	1–1	1–1	3–3	6–0	2–3	2–4	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–4
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–5	0–5	1–1	3–3	2–3	1–1	—	1–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–4	0–6	3–2	0–5	1–5	1–4	0–2
L.A. Lakers	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–1	2–3	2–0	6–0	4–1	1–1	5–1	—	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	5–1	3–3	4–1	5–0	4–2	4–1	1–1
Milwaukee	3–3	3–3	1–5	4–2	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–0	0–2	3–3	2–0	2–0	—	3–2	3–3	2–4	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1
New Jersey	0–5	1–5	1–5	1–5	1–1	0–2	1–5	0–2	1–1	0–6	2–0	0–2	2–3	—	3–3	2–4	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–6
New York	3–3	1–5	2–3	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–0	0–2	3–3	3–3	—	3–3	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–3
Philadelphia	0–6	2–4	2–4	2–3	1–1	0–2	1–4	1–1	1–1	4–2	1–1	0–2	4–2	4–2	3–3	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–3
Phoenix	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–5	2–3	0–2	4–2	1–4	0–2	4–2	1–5	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	—	0–6	3–2	2–3	2–4	2–3	0–2
Portland	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–3	3–2	1–1	5–1	1–4	2–0	6–0	3–3	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	6–0	—	4–1	5–0	3–3	1–4	2–0
Sacramento	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–5	2–4	0–2	3–2	2–4	0–2	2–3	1–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–4	—	3–3	1–4	1–5	0–2
San Antonio	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–5	1–5	1–1	2–3	4–2	0–2	5–0	0–5	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–2	0–5	3–3	—	3–2	3–3	0–2
Seattle	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–4	1–1	5–1	2–3	1–1	5–1	2–4	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–2	3–3	4–1	2–3	—	1–4	2–0
Utah	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–3	4–2	0–2	4–1	3–3	1–1	4–1	1–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–2	4–1	5–1	3–3	4–1	—	2–0
Washington	3–3	1–5	3–3	0–6	1–1	0–2	2–3	2–0	0–2	4–2	2–0	1–1	1–4	6–0	3–3	3–3	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	0–2	—

Game log

Regular season

1987–88 game log
Total: 54–28 (home: 35–6; road: 19–22)

November: 8–4 (home: 6–1; road: 2–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
1	November 6	L.A. Clippers	W 139–93				McNichols Sports Arena	1–0
2	November 7	@ Golden State	W 103–99				Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	2–0
3	November 10	@ Sacramento	L 123–134				ARCO Arena	2–1
4	November 12	Portland	W 126–113				McNichols Sports Arena	3–1
5	November 14	Sacramento	W 130–109				McNichols Sports Arena	4–1
6	November 17, 1987 7:30 p.m. MST	@ Utah	L 110–120	Lever (18)	Rasmussen (10)	Lever (7)	Salt Palace 11,461	4–2
7	November 18	Indiana	L 106–117				McNichols Sports Arena	4–3
8	November 20	San Antonio	W 156–142				McNichols Sports Arena	5–3
9	November 21	@ L.A. Clippers	W 97–91				Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena	6–3
10	November 24	New Jersey	W 132–104				McNichols Sports Arena	7–3
11	November 27, 1987 8:30 p.m. MST	@ L.A. Lakers	L 119–127	English (27)	Schayes (14)	Adams, Lever (10)	The Forum 17,505	7–4
12	November 28, 1987 7:30 p.m. MST	Dallas	W 106–98	English (25)	Schayes (15)	English (7)	McNichols Sports Arena 13,400	8–4

December: 8–7 (home: 5–1; road: 3–6)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
13	December 1	@ Houston	L 101–106				The Summit	8–5
14	December 2	Sacramento	W 147–120				McNichols Sports Arena	9–5
15	December 4, 1987 7:30 p.m. MST	Chicago	W 105–89	English (21)	Rasmussen (12)	Adams (7)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	10–5
16	December 5, 1987 6:30 p.m. MST	@ Dallas	L 96–109	English, Vincent (16)	English, Lever, Rasmussen (5)	Adams, English, Lever (5)	Reunion Arena 17,007	10–6
17	December 9, 1987 5:30 p.m. MST	@ Boston	W 124–119	Adams (31)	Lever (11)	Lever (13)	Boston Garden 14,890	11–6
18	December 10	@ New York	L 97–113				Madison Square Garden	11–7
19	December 12	@ Philadelphia	W 131–121				The Spectrum	12–7
20	December 16	Houston	W 132–113				McNichols Sports Arena	13–7
21	December 18	@ San Antonio	L 114–133				HemisFair Arena	13–8
22	December 19	@ Houston	W 121–117				The Summit	14–8
23	December 22	Phoenix	W 119–104				McNichols Sports Arena	15–8
24	December 23	@ Golden State	L 117–129				Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	15–9
25	December 26	Seattle	W 115–111				McNichols Sports Arena	16–9
26	December 28	@ Seattle	L 100–108				Seattle Center Coliseum	16–10
27	December 29, 1987 7:30 p.m. MST	Utah	L 97–98	Schayes (27)	English, Lever, Schayes (11)	Lever (6)	McNichols Sports Arena 10,621	16–11

January: 8–6 (home: 5–1; road: 3–5)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
28	January 1, 1988 6:00 p.m. MST	@ Washington	W 124–109	Vincent (33)	Schayes (7)	Adams (10)	Capital Centre 5,326	17–11
29	January 2, 1988 5:30 p.m. MST	@ Detroit	W 151–142	English (34)	Cooper (11)	Lever (13)	Pontiac Silverdome 23,746	18–11
30	January 4, 1988 5:30 p.m. MST	@ Cleveland	L 101–122	Evans (28)	Schayes (8)	English (7)	Richfield Coliseum 6,448	18–12
31	January 6	@ New Jersey	W 98–93				Brendan Byrne Arena	19–12
32	January 7, 1988 6:30 p.m. MST	@ Chicago	L 96–100	Lever (31)	Lever (16)	Lever (12)	Chicago Stadium 17,590	19–13
33	January 9, 1988 5:30 p.m. MST	@ Atlanta	L 105–113	English (27)	Rasmussen, Schayes (9)	Lever (6)	The Omni 14,986	19–14
34	January 11	@ Phoenix	L 115–127				Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	19–15
35	January 14, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Atlanta	W 115–112	English (27)	Schayes (12)	English, Lever, Vincent (5)	McNichols Sports Arena 14,944	20–15
36	January 16	Golden State	W 115–94				McNichols Sports Arena	21–15
37	January 18, 1988 2:00 p.m. MST	Detroit	L 116–123	English (32)	Vincent (11)	English (7)	McNichols Sports Arena 13,004	21–16
38	January 21, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	L.A. Lakers	W 115–113	Vincent (23)	Vincent (12)	Lever (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	22–16
39	January 22	@ Portland	L 106–126				Memorial Coliseum	22–17
40	January 28, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Milwaukee	W 122–113	English (24)	Rasmussen (8)	Adams, English, Lever (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 13,911	23–17
41	January 30	L.A. Clippers	W 124–106				McNichols Sports Arena	24–17

February: 9–4 (home: 7–1; road: 2–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
42	February 3, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Dallas	W 115–105	English (26)	Lever (9)	Adams (9)	McNichols Sports Arena 10,667	25–17
43	February 4	@ San Antonio	W 129–123				HemisFair Arena	26–17
All-Star Break
44	February 9	San Antonio	W 136-108				McNichols Sports Arena	27–17
45	February 11, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	L.A. Lakers	L 105–120	English (31)	Rasmussenn (9)	Adams (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	27–18
46	February 12	@ Portland	L 105–120				Memorial Coliseum	27–19
47	February 14, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Utah	W 107–93	English (25)	Lever (15)	Lever (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 9,971	28–19
48	February 17, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Boston	W 138–125	English (37)	Rasmussen (11)	English (11)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	29–19
49	February 20	@ Phoenix	L 108–128				Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	29–20
50	February 22, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Washington	W 100–87	Schayes (21)	Lever (15)	English (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 10,553	30–20
51	February 24, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	@ Utah	W 123–120	English, Rasmussen (35)	Lever (10)	Lever (16)	Salt Palace 12,444	31–20
52	February 26	Philadelphia	W 120–104				McNichols Sports Arena	32–20
53	February 28	New York	W 109–100				McNichols Sports Arena	33–20
54	February 29, 1988 6:30 p.m. MST	@ Dallas	L 96–123	Schayes (21)	Lever (8)	Adams (8)	Reunion Arena 17,007	33–21

March: 12–5 (home: 6–2; road: 6–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
55	March 2, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Cleveland	W 99–81	Adams (23)	Lever (20)	Lever (12)	McNichols Sports Arena 9,178	34–21
56	March 4	Phoenix	W 116–108				McNichols Sports Arena	35–21
57	March 5	@ Seattle	W 115–102				Seattle Center Coliseum	36–21
58	March 7	@ Sacramento	L 114–116 (OT)				ARCO Arena	36–22
59	March 8	Houston	L 103–113				McNichols Sports Arena	36–23
60	March 11, 1988 7:00 p.m. MST	@ Milwaukee	L 93–132	Rasmussen (21)	Rasmussen (8)	Adams (7)	MECCA Arena 11,052	36–24
61	March 13	@ Indiana	W 108–100				Market Square Arena	37–24
62	March 14, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	Utah	L 115–116	English (27)	Lever (17)	English (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 10,172	37–25
63	March 17	Portland	W 116–115 (OT)				McNichols Sports Arena	38–25
64	March 18, 1988 7:30 p.m. MST	@ Utah	L 111–118	Adams (22)	Lever, Rasmussen (11)	Lever (9)	Salt Palace 12,444	38–26
65	March 20	Seattle	W 108–95				McNichols Sports Arena	39–26
66	March 22	San Antonio	W 136–109				McNichols Sports Arena	40–26
67	March 23	@ L.A. Clippers	W 118–108				Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena	41–26
68	March 25, 1988 8:30 p.m. MST	@ L.A. Lakers	W 120–119	English (34)	Schayes (9)	Lever (11)	The Forum 17,505	42–26
69	March 26	@ Golden State	W 131–108				Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena	43–26
70	March 29	@ Sacramento	W 107–103				ARCO Arena	44–26
71	March 31	Sacramento	W 121–111				McNichols Sports Arena	45–26

April: 9–2 (home: 6–0; road: 3–2)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Record
72	April 2	Golden State	W 123–107				McNichols Sports Arena	46–26
73	April 5	@ Houston	W 110–97				The Summit	47–26
74	April 8	@ San Antonio	W 129–124 (OT)				HemisFair Arena	48–26
75	April 9, 1988 6:30 p.m. MDT	@ Dallas	L 109–135	Schayes (21)	Brooks (7)	Adams (10)	Reunion Arena 17,007	48–27
76	April 11	@ Phoenix	W 123–119				Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	49–27
77	April 13, 1988 7:30 p.m. MDT	L.A. Lakers	W 120–106	English (29)	Lever (12)	Adams (9)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	50–27
78	April 15	Houston	W 132–125				McNichols Sports Arena	51–27
79	April 17, 1988 2:00 p.m. MDT	Dallas	W 133–122	English (31)	Lever (19)	Lever (13)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	52–27
80	April 19	Seattle	W 134–114				McNichols Sports Arena	53–27
81	April 22	@ Portland	L 135–141 (OT)				Memorial Coliseum	53–28
82	April 23	L.A. Clippers	W 134–109				McNichols Sports Arena	54–28

1987–88 schedule

Playoffs

1988 playoff game log

First Round: 3–2 (home: 2–1; road: 1–1)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	April 29	Seattle	W 126–123	Alex English (28)	Fat Lever (11)	Fat Lever (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	1–0
2	May 1	Seattle	L 91–111	English, Evans (16)	Fat Lever (12)	Michael Adams (5)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	1–1
3	May 3	@ Seattle	W 125–114	Blair Rasmussen (28)	Blair Rasmussen (12)	Adams, Lever (7)	Seattle Center Coliseum 14,250	2–1
4	May 5	@ Seattle	L 117–127	Jay Vincent (28)	Danny Schayes (8)	English, Evans (5)	Seattle Center Coliseum 14,250	2–2
5	May 7	Seattle	W 115–96	Alex English (23)	Jay Vincent (7)	Alex English (7)	McNichols Sports Arena 16,040	3–2

Western Conference Semifinals: 2–4 (home: 1–2; road: 1–2)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	May 10, 1988 7:30 p.m. MDT	Dallas	W 126–115	Lever (30)	Lever (11)	English, Lever (8)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	1–0
2	May 12, 1988 8:00 p.m. MDT	Dallas	L 108–112	English, Lever (22)	Schayes (12)	Adams (7)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	1–1
3	May 14, 1988 1:30 p.m. MDT	@ Dallas	W 107–105	English (23)	Lever (11)	Lever (12)	Reunion Arena 17,007	2–1
4	May 15, 1988 6:00 p.m. MDT	@ Dallas	L 103–124	English (24)	Cooper (10)	Adams (9)	Reunion Arena 17,007	2–2
5	May 17, 1988 8:00 p.m. MDT	Dallas	L 106–110	Schayes (33)	Schayes (13)	Adams, English (6)	McNichols Sports Arena 17,022	2–3
6	May 19, 1988 8:00 p.m. MDT	@ Dallas	L 95–108	English (34)	Schayes (9)	Adams (8)	Reunion Arena 17,007	2–4

1988 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

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References

"1987-88 Denver Nuggets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 16, 2021.

v t e Denver Nuggets
Founded in 1967 Formerly the Denver Rockets (1967–1974) Based in Denver, Colorado
Franchise	ABA–NBA merger All-time roster Draft history Records Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	Denver Auditorium Arena Denver Coliseum McNichols Sports Arena Ball Arena
Personnel	Owner(s) Ann Walton Kroenke President Josh Kroenke General manager Calvin Booth Head coach Michael Malone
G League affiliate	Grand Rapids Gold
Retired numbers	2 12 33 40 44 55 432
NBA championships	2023
Rivalries	Minnesota Timberwolves Utah Jazz
Culture and lore	Alex English Mt. Mutombo The Hey Song "Cartman Finds Love" (South Park) Kansas City (ABA) 1976 ABA All-Star Game Knicks–Nuggets brawl The Joker

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