It could be worse

["Cecil Wright" <cecil@hfx.eastlink.ca>]

As bad as it may appear for Dan and Jaime, as Celtic fans, it could be far
worse as it appears to be in Denver.

Cecil


Unhappy family

Report: Nuggets skip practice, may sit out game
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Posted: Tuesday December 12, 2000 2:23 PM
Updated: Tuesday December 12, 2000 3:26 PM

   Dan Issel's tirade against Raef LaFrentz may have prompted the team's
protest. AP

DENVER (CNNSI.com) -- The Denver Nuggets did not attend practice on Monday
and were considering sitting out Tuesday's game against the Miami Heat in
protest against president-head coach Dan Issel, according to the Denver
Post.

"The team got together and discussed some things, and [protesting] is what
the conclusion was [Monday]," swingman James Posey told the Post. "That's
all I would really say about it. We got to change the team, and we got
together and we talked about things.

"We don't know if we are going to play or not [Tuesday]. We'll be there for
shoot-around, and we'll see what goes on."

An apparent tirade against Nuggets center Raef LaFrentz reportedly prompted
the protest. Issel is said to have voiced his displeasure with LaFrentz's
0-for-7, five-foul performance in a 104-102 overtime loss to the Boston
Celtics on Sunday night.

When asked if the LaFrentz incident was the reason behind the team's action,
Posey said, "I don't know. It's a lot of things. We talked about everything.
We didn't single out one thing. We talked about everything. That's it."

Issel was recently asked about fired Seattle head coach Paul Westphal's
relationship with his players. He responded, "Your players don't have to
like you. But they should at least respect you and respect the position.
Once that is gone, everybody is better off to get a new situation, including
Paul.

"They at least had respect for the position [in the past]. Players took
ownership of their own performances. Now it seems to be, no one takes
ownership for anything. So it's someone else's fault."

When asked if the Nuggets will still play for Issel, Posey said: "Dan is a
good coach. ... But like I said, it was a team thing and everyone stuck
together. That's how we approached it."

The Nuggets are 8-3 at home but 2-9 on the road. They're currently in sixth
place in the Midwest Division.