2001–02 Denver Nuggets season

The 2001–02 Denver Nuggets season was the 26th season for the Denver Nuggets in the National Basketball Association, and their 35th season as a franchise. During the off-season, the Nuggets signed free agents Isaiah Rider and Avery Johnson; however, Rider would only play in just ten games before being waived in November. After finishing just one game below .500 in winning percentage the previous season, the Nuggets suffered another disastrous setback as Antonio McDyess suffered a preseason knee injury, which limited him to just ten games. The Nuggets got off to a 6–5 start to the regular season, but then lost nine of their next ten games.

The Nuggets were also involved in controversy this season, after a 99–96 home loss to the Charlotte Hornets at the Pepsi Center on December 11, 2001, when head coach Dan Issel yelled a racial slur towards a Mexican fan; Issel was suspended for four games and was forced to resign, being replaced by his assistant Mike Evans after a 9–17 start to the season. At mid-season, Nick Van Exel was traded along with Johnson, Raef LaFrentz and Tariq Abdul-Wahad to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Juwan Howard, All-Star guard Tim Hardaway, and second-year forward Donnell Harvey. The Nuggets posted a 7-game losing streak in March, and finished in sixth place in the Midwest Division with a 27–55 record, missing the NBA playoffs for the seventh consecutive year.

Howard averaged 17.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in 28 games with the Nuggets after the trade, while Voshon Lenard averaged 11.5 points per game, and McDyess provided the team with 11.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. In addition, Hardaway contributed 9.6 points and 5.5 assists per game in 14 games, while George McCloud provided with 8.8 points per game, and Harvey averaged 8.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game in 29 games. Meanwhile, Calbert Cheaney contributed 7.3 points per game, and Ryan Bowen averaged 4.9 points and 4.0 rebounds per game.

The Nuggets finished 20th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 633,846 at the Pepsi Center during the regular season. Following the season, McDyess was traded to the New York Knicks after six seasons, and two separate stints with the Nuggets, while Lenard signed as a free agent with the Toronto Raptors, Cheaney signed with the Utah Jazz, McCloud was traded to the Washington Wizards, but was released to free agency, Hardaway was released, and Evans was fired as head coach.