You knew it was love between the Mile High City and Chris Andersen when people began popping up at Halloween parties or costume contests or were trick-or-treating dressed as the Birdman. Hair moussed-up into a Mohawk. Fake tattoos plastered on every free piece of skin.
Because, almost being him had to be as good as being him, right?
Perhaps. But being Chris Andersen was really, really good. He took the Nuggets by storm by just being him. Outside of Dikembe Mutombo and Marcus Camby, Andersen was arguably the most famous shot-blocker in the franchise’s history. His 624 blocks in seven seasons with the Nuggets is tied for fourth with Alex English on the team’s all-time list.