NBA BASKETBALL
Van Exel Act Getting Old in Denver
<December 15, 2001>

By Tom Trush

The suspension of head coach Dan Issel is another setback in a week filled with distractions. How much more can the Nuggets take?

With the absence of All-Star forward Antonio McDyess, due to preseason knee surgery, Nick Van Exel took over the Denver Nuggets' role of primary scorer from the start of the season. A career average of 17.7 ppg, Van Exel was scoring far above that and early success even allowed him to sit atop the scoring leaders for one day. Entering the night's games on Nov. 27, his 27.2 ppg was tops on a chart normally reserved for the league's scoring elite. Besides the reoccurring losses, things seemed to be going well for Denver's point guard.

Now, as the losses have begun to pile on at 7-14, Van Exel's shots on court have been overshadowed by the unrelenting shots coming from his mouth. The point guard continues to reiterate his demand to be traded, after originally going public with his request over the weekend. Van Exel says he informed teammates of his wishes three weeks ago.

Van Exel's antics are nothing new in a career that has included numerous negative remarks about officiating and most notably, a forearm shove into referee Ron Garretson. His 1996 actions as a Laker cost him $25,000 and a suspension for the final seven regular-season games of the year. Below is a tally of Van Exel's recent suspensions and fines, along with a few of his published comments relating to the situations.

April 3, 2001: Van Exel is suspended for missing two workouts without contacting team officials. He is notified of a $90,937.50 team-imposed fine via a letter authored by head coach Dan Issel. The note describes the guard's actions by saying, "On several occasions, you have failed to attend practices, shoot-arounds and mandatory appearances. This behavior is detrimental to the team and is unacceptable."

Van Exel's remarks: "I just got to learn to communicate with people."

Nov. 1, 2001: Van Exel uses his Milwaukee homecoming (he grew up in nearby Kenosha) as a chance to berate officials after a loss to the Bucks. His antics cost him a $10,000 fine by the NBA.

Van Exel's remarks: "It's frustrating because I think we're getting the short end of the stick. Ray Allen and Glenn Robinson (of Milwaukee) get 'baby calls' and we have to work too hard. (The officials) are a bunch of cowards by not calling calls the way they see them. They're too biased in this league."

Nov. 9, 2001: For the second time in eight days, Van Exel criticizes referees after a 14-point loss in Dallas. This time, league officials order him to ante up $20,000 for his latest outburst.

Van Exel's remarks: "Cowards don't make it any easier for you, I'll tell you that much. It's ridiculous some of the calls we get, and some of the calls other teams get. It's like we are the scrubs of the league. We don't get no respect. None . I ain't going to change, so I'm going to keep cussing them (expletives) out."

Nov. 20, 2001: One of nine players cited for having excessively long shorts by the NBA's fashion patrol, Van Exel dishes out $5,000.

By my count, that is $125,937.50 in fines levied against Van Exel over the previous nine months. That calculates out to a little more than a mere 1 percent of his $10.1 million salary this year. In the third season of a seven-year contract signed in 1999, Van Exel could make as much as $50 million over the next four years if he reaches certain incentives. When he signed the contract as a free agent, Van Exel praised Nuggets management for their loyalty, the same people he's now criticizing for failing to keep talent in Denver. How opinions change when money and losses in eight of your last nine games become a factor.

The Nuggets have already rid themselves of one overpaid, high-scoring, immature guard with ego issues in Isaiah Rider, and with luck, the Nuggets will find a home for another. Van Exel's high-priced contract makes him a difficult trade, and general manager Kike Vandeweghe has said he doesn't plan to move the team's leader in points and assists. Maybe he should reconsider. The Nuggets can only hope that the return of McDyess will bring a few victories, but he just began running again and it's still uncertain when he will be back.

As if that wasn't enough.

Combined with their five-game losing streak, problems in Denver escalated even more Wednesday with the suspension of Issel. Suspended without pay for four games, Issel was reprimanded for a verbal altercation with a fan following Tuesday night's 99-96 loss to the Hornets. The head coach's comments included profanity and insensitive racial remarks that were caught on camera by a local television station. Ironically, it was Van Exel who attempted to remove Issel from the situation.

Tom Trush is a freelance writer for Write Way Solutions. You can reach him via email at writewaysolutions@yahoo.com.