Even as Masai Ujiri accepted the NBA's executive of the year trophy from club President Josh Kroenke on Thursday, the Denver Nuggets general manager said he would have given it up gladly in exchange for a deep playoff run.
He received 62 first-place votes, followed by Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat with 24 votes from a panel of sports writers and broadcasters. New York's Mike Woodson finished third and San Antonio's Gregg Popovich, who won the award last season, was fourth.
Selfless and starless. These were the staples of the exhilarating Denver Nuggets' NBA franchise-record 57-win regular season.
George Karl led the Denver Nuggets to a team-record 57 wins without a big name on his roster.
Talk is cheap in these NBA playoffs, and it seems as if everyone wants in on the act.
All-Star forward David Lee made a surprising return for the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 against the Denver Nuggets on Thursday night after not dressing the previous four games with what the team had called a season-ending hip injury.
The NBA fined Golden State coach Mark Jackson $25,000 on Thursday for making public comments in an attempt to influence the officiating in the Warriors' playoff series with Denver.
Kicks in the ankles. Forearms to the throat. Elbows at the head. Illegal screens. Hard shoves. Bloody lips. Puffy eyes. Body bruises. Some even done by "hit men."
David Lee went from Golden State's All-Star power forward and double-double machine to the Warriors' biggest cheerleader and strategic adviser during timeouts.
