They chose the name Nuggets which had been the name of the NBA team in 1949. They were known as the Rockets and played all their home games at the Auditorium Arena.

They played two seasons in the ABA as the Denver Nuggets, and under Coach Larry Brown, they reached the ABA Finals. They were unable to win. The next year, the ABA stopped operations but not before they won their only ABA Conference Title. The NBA took them into their league along with three other teams in 1976. The first two seasons saw the Nuggets win two consecutive Division titles. After that, Larry Brown resigned as coach, bringing about a minor decline in the team.

Doug Moe joined as Head Coach in 1981 and helped bring the team up again. They reached the Western Conference finals in 1985, but lost to the dominant Los Angeles Lakers. The Nuggets made it to most of the playoffs over the next few years but never managed to get beyond them.

Dan Issel was hired as Head Coach in 1992 and that year the Nuggets defeated the Seattle Supersonics at the playoffs. They became the first team in NBA history to be in the eighth seed and defeat a first seeded team in the playoffs.

The current Nuggets team is very promising indeed. With the hiring of George Karl as Head Coach in 2004, the team has improved greatly. In December 2006, he acquired Ivan McFarlin and Allen Iverson. He also acquired Steve Blake in January 2007. The team made the playoffs against the San Antonio Spurs but lost to them again.

The Nuggets had their share of controversy when three of their players were suspended after a fight in a game against the New York Knicks in December 2006. Carmelo Anthony, Nene and J.R. Smith were suspended because of the fight which was started off when Mardy Collins of the Knicks tackled Smith.

Three players have made it to the Basketball Hall of Fame. These players are Alex English, David Thompson and Dan Issel. The current team has star players like Reggie Evans, Anthony Carter and Kenyon Martin. The owner of the team is E. Stanley Kroenke.

Their Home Arenas

As the Rockets of the ABA, they played their home games at the Denver Auditorium Arena from 1967 to 1975. After that, they moved to the McNichols Sports Arena where they played until 1999. The Nuggets moved to the Pepsi Center in 1999 where they play their home games till date.