Issel Steps Down as Coach of Nuggets

Dan Issel, who helped turn around a struggling franchise, resigned as coach of the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, saying the duties and pressures of the job “have started to make me something I don’t want to be.”

In a hastily arranged news conference, Issel, 46, said he will remain with the Nuggets’ organization. His specific duties haven’t been determined, but he might help oversee the team’s move into a new arena in 1997.

Assistant Gene Littles will become interim head coach for the remainder of the season. Mike Evans will remain an assistant, and a second assistant will be hired soon.

“I never coached before, and I certainly won’t coach again,” the emotional Issel said. “I tried to make the right decision for my family and for the organization.”

Issel said that he and General Manager Bernie Bickerstaff “have been talking about it for a long time. I think it came to a head in the last couple of days. It’s tough to do something that your heart is not completely in. I think the way I was conducting myself was starting to show on the team.”

Asked if he had become concerned about his physical health, Issel said, “A little.”

Bickerstaff was not surprised at Issel’s decision. “We’ve had some profound conversations, and things seemed to be eating at him,” Bickerstaff said. “In our conversations, Dan kept saying he was not having any fun. It was wearing on him, you could tell that. I want him to get away and clear his head.”

Issel, in his third season with the Nuggets, had guided the team to an 18-16 record this season. Surprisingly, his resignation came after two of the team’s best games of the season, including a 118-104 victory over the Houston Rockets on Saturday night.

In 1992, Issel took over a team that had won only 20 and 24 games the previous two seasons under Paul Westhead. He compiled a steadily improving 78-86 record in his first two seasons, and guided the team to an upset of Seattle in the playoffs last spring. It was the first time a No. 8-seeded team ever beat a No. 1, and the Nuggets then forced Utah to seven games in the second round before losing.

Issel’s Record

Dan Issel’s coaching record with the Denver Nuggets.

Regular Season

Season W L Pct. Fin. 1992-93 38 46 .439 4th 1993-94 42 40 .512 4th 1994-95 18 16 .529 4th Totals 96 102 .485

Playoffs

Season W L Pct. Fin. 1993-94 6 6 .500