To say that Denver Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke and general manager Masai Ujiri have put their fingerprints on the roster in their first year at the helm would be a bit of an understatement.

It’s been more like a sculpture that they knocked down and are now completely rebuilding.

A few months after the seismic shift from the Carmelo Anthony trade, the Nuggets continued to wheel and deal as they added new pieces to a roster in flux.

And by the end of the 2011 NBA draft, Denver swapped veteran point guards, and drafted two players that they had been eying in the weeks leading up to the draft.

With the 22 pick, Denver selected 6-foot-8 forward Kenneth Faried out of Morehead State.

Then the Nuggets executed another big trade, shipping point guard Raymond Felton to Portland for Andre Miller.

Denver also acquired a future second-round pick and the 26th pick in Thursday’s draft. That 26th pick was acquired by Portland from Dallas, which selected Texas forward Jordan Hamilton, who now is headed to Denver.

Portland traded guard Rudy Fernandez to the Mavericks in the deal.

Miller will likely serve as the backup to starting point guard Ty Lawson.

In Faried, the Nuggets get a high-energy, rebounding machine. He set the NCAA modern-era career rebounding record during his senior season passing the previous leader, Tim Duncan. He finished his career with 1,673 rebounds.

Faried already has good reputation in Denver after leading Morehead State to a first-round upset in the NCAA tournament at Pepsi Center over Louisville, a game in which Faried notched 12 points and 17 rebounds.

And the reckless abandon with which he plays the game made Denver fall in love with him.

“George Karl, he told me, ‘I love guys who bring energy and hustle to the table,’” Faried said Thursday. “’If you rebound, trust me, you’re going to find your way on the floor.’ I think I can make an immediate impact.”

When speaking with Denver reporters after being selected, Faried expressed confidence that his rebounding game will translate to the next level.

“I’m not scared,” Faried said. “I have a never-quit attitude and I’m going to keep going until I come up with the rebound.”

While his rebounding and hustle will undoubtedly provide an immediate impact on the floor, his offensive game is very raw. Complicating matters is the looming labor lockout which would bar Faried from working out with Nuggets coaches.

Faried isn’t concerned about that, however.

“I’m going to be in the gym 24-7 working hard and grinding hard,” Faried said. “There’s nothing more to do. This is my job. It’s what I’ve worked for. It’s my livelihood. I’ve been working towards this all my life. I’ll be in the gym doing my thing.”

In addition to Faried, who may replace unrestricted free agent Kenyon Martin, the Nuggets added a wing scorer in Hamilton of Texas. Hamilton is a 6-9 guard-forward combo who scored just under 19 points per game last season as a sophomore at Texas.

But of all the new players, the one most likely to make a big impact is actually an old Nugget.

Miller played for Denver from 2003-06 and was always a favorite of Nuggets coach George Karl, so much so that Karl was in the ear of Ujiri all night long trying to get him to bring Miller back to help mentor the young Nuggets.

“I think we had like three options (for a trade) and (Karl) kept whispering, ‘Andre Miller, Andre Miller, Andre Miller,’” Ujiri said, laughing. “He loves Andre Miller.”

The exploration of trading Felton stemmed from his desire to be a starting point guard, something that wouldn’t happen in Denver since the reins have been given to Ty Lawson.

When asked if Miller will be willing to come off the bench, Ujiri seemed confident he would.

“I think so. Andre wants to win.”

And just to cap off a wild night at Pepsi Center, the Nuggets sent a future second-round pick to the Los Angeles Lakers for Nigerian forward Chukwudiebere Maduabum, nicknamed Chu Chu. Maduabum is a 20-year-old who will likely play overseas for a couple of years to develop.

After a long night, Nuggets brass was happy to have added three players that will have a chance to make their already deep rotation.

“It was fun,” Ujiri said of his first draft in charge. “Plenty fun.”