Dan Issel is more linked to the Denver Nuggets than any other individual. He spent nine years as a player and two tenures as head coach and general manager with the franchise.
He only missed twenty-four games throughout a fifteen-year professional career, which earned him the nickname “the Horse.” At Kentucky, Issel made his reputation as a center. He amassed 2,138 points under Adolph Rupp’s command at the University of Kentucky. His final season for Louisville saw him average 33.9 points per game and earn All-American honors.
Issel chose to play for the Kentucky Colonels of the ABA after a spectacular college career in which he set twenty-three school records. He subsequently established himself as one of the ABA’s greats, averaging 25.6 points per game in over 500 games, and led the Colonels to an ABA title in 1975.
Issel joined the Nuggets in 1976 and went on to have a Hall of Fame-worthy career, establishing almost every offensive team record. Issel was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992 after being selected as the NBA’s top player.
Dan Issel – Early life
Born in Batavia, Dan Issel led his Batavia High School Illinoisan squad to two regional titles. The school was famous for dishing out professional sportsmen who would subsequently disrupt their leagues. Apart from Issel, it was also home to a 1981 NFL MVP, Ken Anderson, a quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Another sports-related persona who graduated from Batavia High School was the announcer, Craig Sager. As Dan Issel said, the school was all about teaching work ethic, something that would pay tremendous dividends for all three talented men.
Don Vandersnick, Issel’s coach, had peculiar methods. Instead of using a real basketball, Vandersnick resorted to volleyball to teach him dunking. On top of that, he had Issel grab the rim of the basket at least a couple dozen times each day, which let him train his muscle memory. The coach was held in high regard and was an authority, even with weird ways to train at times.
Dan Issel – College career and three Southeastern Conference Finals
Dan Issel had multiple offers from universities such as Wisconsin, Northwestern, as well as Illinois, but his final choice was Kentucky. Playing for the University of Kentucky under a respectable coach in the form of Adolph Rupp, he averaged 33.9 ppg in his first year, subsequently leading his team to the Elite Eight. In the NCAA tournament, he was even better, averaging 36 points.
During his five years at the college, he amassed 2,138 points for a final 25.7 average. In two seasons, he was named an All-American and his record still remains highest to this day among the University of Kentucky’s pupils.
Issel managed to score 53 points against Ole Miss in a crushing 120-85 triumph, thus beating the record for the most baskets scored in a single game. A record that would not be beaten until four decades later, when Jodie Meeks dished out 54 points versus Tennessee. He also holds third place with 51 points scored against Louisiana’s team. Issel helped his team to three Southeastern Conference Titles.
Dan Issel – ABA career
Following his graduation in 1970, Dan Issel was drafted by the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association, a rival league to the NBA. Despite getting an offer from the Detroit Pistons, Issel chose to remain loyal to his home city.
Dan Issel – Kentucky Colonels
Being the hard-working man he was, Issel had a fabulous rookie season, averaging 29.9 points per game, which earned him a spot in the 1971 ABA All-Star Game.
Issel wasn’t done improving. The following season saw him averaging 30.6 points. He was also named the All-Star Game MVP, shooting 21 points and completing 9 rebounds. To add to his already bountiful season, he became a part of the All-ABA First Team.
His last season with the Kentucky Colonels was all the more fruitful, with his squad winning the ABA title. A tag team of Dan Issel, the legendary Artis Gilmore, and an excellent guard Louie Dampier was the key to victory.
Each season, Issel earned the honors of getting to appear on the All-Star team, as well as beating everybody else in terms of scoring three times, including a record-breaking 2,538 points during the 1971-72 season.
For the 1975-76 campaign, Colonels traded Issel to the Denver Nuggets, a franchise that would keep him as a player for the following ten seasons, and later on hire him as coach two times, in 1992 and 1999.
Dan Issel – Denver Nuggets
Issel joined the Nuggets, who also had the high-flyer David Thompson. He placed third in scoring with 22.9 ppg and helped Denver achieve an ABA-best 60 wins on their way to championship hopes that were cut short by a better team: New York’s Nets took home first place after sweeping them 4–0 in the final round of play during ’75-’76 season.’
Dan Issel – NBA Career
1977 was the end of the ABA. A merger with the NBA brought four new teams into the league, the Nets, the Spurs, the Pacers, and, last but not least, Dan Issel’s Nuggets. The last team was the only one that made a name for itself by reaching the playoffs three times in the first three seasons.
Issel’s play as the center for the Nuggets was quite unusual. His hard work and training efforts paid off. Instead of rushing to the basket for dunks, he shot from the field, averaging over 50 percent accuracy. This would go on for seven subsequent seasons. Dan Issel is credited with an invention of his very own move, as described by himself: “It’s the worst fake in the history of basketball and it works every time,” he noted. “I can’t believe anyone goes for it.” It was only possible because of his almost superhuman accuracy from the perimeter, a head fake and drive to beat all the head fakes.
Even though the Nuggets enjoyed the glory of winning the Midwest Division with a record of 50-32, they didn’t make it in the playoffs, getting eliminated after a short-lived run to the champion Portland Trailblazers in the semi-finals of the Western Conference.
The next season was also bittersweet. Even though the Nuggets won their division, they got swept by the Seattle Supersonics in the Western Conference finals.
The Nuggets drafted McGinnis in 1978-79, who joined Thompson as their primary offensive guys. Issel’s average dipped to 17 ppg and Denver finished a game behind the Kansas City Kings in the Midwest Division that year. The playoffs is where things got interesting though. Issel posted 24 points per night while helping lead his team all the way up until it faced off with none other than the LA Lakers. But alas – they were no match for Kareem Abdul Jabbar and the bunch at center court during game four on February 20th 1980 when Los Angeles walked away victorious by scoring 116-103!
The following season saw a decline of the Nuggets. Although the team was uninspiring, to say the least, Issel remained a reliable player throughout the entire campaign. Noting a 30-52 record, the Nuggets were out of the playoffs. Still, even with the lackluster performance of his squad, Issel managed an average of 23.8 ppg.
Management decided it was time for a change. They got rid of McGinnis and acquired Alex English instead, a move that got them a future top scorer for the team.
Even with improved performance, the Nuggets were defeated in the playoffs by Phoenix. Still, the 1981-82 season was considered a success because they led the league with 126.5 points per game.
The next season was on par with the previous one, with Denver averaging 123.2 points. The same thing happened in the following campaign, this time with 123.7 points per game. Apart from a pretty successful regular season, the Nuggets didn’t achieve much in the playoffs. In 1982-83, they succumbed to the San Antonio Spurs, and never reached the playoffs in 1983-84.
Dan Issel retired as a player following the 1984-85 season, with a combined 27,482 NBA/ABA points, earning him fourth place. Even though this was the end of his playing career, he wouldn’t be done with basketball. After six years of running a horse-breeding company, and broadcasting Kentucky basketball games he returned as coach for the Nuggets. He averaged 26.2 ppg during his Denver career.
Dan Issel – Coaching career
Dan Issel’s rookie coaching season was quite successful. He managed to improve the record from the previous year by 12 games, finishing 36-46.
In 1993-94, Issel became a household name. The Nuggets took on further improvements and, under his leadership, they ended the regular season with a 42-40 balance, taking the playoff spot. During the Western Conference finals, they had an electrifying run. In the first game against the Seattle Supersonics after losing two games, they managed to rally and won three straight to get to the next round, thus becoming the first seed number 8 to win versus a number one.
The semi-finals were just as exciting, albeit quite sad for the Nuggets. After losing the first three games with Utah, they won the following three making the score 3-3. This could be the first time a team had won a best of seven after losing the initial three games in basketball history. That didn’t happen though, as Utah swept the Nuggets and advanced to the finals.
The Nuggets had high expectations for the 1994-95 season after their thrilling postseason run. Issel, on the other hand, resigned midway through the season with Denver stuck around .500 in the Midwest. In his 2 1/2 seasons as a coach, he was 96-102.
On March 25, 1998, Issel was reunited with the Nuggets when he was named vice president and general manager of a team that finished the 1997-98 season with a league-and franchise-worst 11-71 record. After an on-court issue involving a fan, Issel’s career ended when he resigned from his position with the Nuggets.
Dan Issel – Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
In 1993, Issel was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Dan Issel – Net Worth
Dan Issel is a former professional basketball player who had a successful career in the NBA and ABA. He is estimated to have a net worth ranging from $1 million to $5 million dollars. Issel was an eight-time All-Star and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.
Where did Dan Issel go to college?
Although three different schools recruited him, Issel chose to play college basketball at the University of Kentucky under Adolph Rupp. As a senior, he averaged 33.9 points per game and helped lead the team to Elite Eight.
How did Dan Issel lose his teeth?
Dan Issel explained that he lost his teeth when playing sports in junior high. He accidentally fell and hit his mouth on the floor, causing his teeth to fly out. The school nurse then grabbed them and took him to see the dentist.
