used to allow the deal to go through) and Walter Sharpe. Afflalo replaced starting guard Dahntay Jones, who signed with the Indiana Pacers. However, on August 10, the Nuggets lost forward Linas Kleiza, who signed with Olympiacos Piraeus of the Greek League. The 2009–10 season saw Anthony average 28.2 points per game and Billups average a career-high 19.6 points per game. In the opening two games of the season, Anthony totaled 71 points, scoring 30 points in the home opener and 41 the next night, in wins against division rivals Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers, respectively. Anthony became one of two players in the Nuggets' history to open with more than 70 points through two games (Alex English also accomplished the feat). It was also only the second time since 1987 that the Nuggets started the season 2–0. They later went 3–0, 4–0, and 5–0 for the first time since 1985 after defeating the Memphis Grizzlies, Indiana Pacers, and New Jersey Nets respectively. Despite injuries that caused all three captains – Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, and Kenyon Martin – to miss a total of 46 games, and then later on in the second half of the season the absence of head coach George Karl, who underwent treatment for neck and throat cancer, the Nuggets were still able to win 53 games (third consecutive 50-win season, a Nuggets first) for the season which gave them a second consecutive Northwest division title and finished as the fourth seed in the West Conference. However, they were eliminated by the Utah Jazz 4–2, their sixth first-round elimination in 7 seasons. Anthony averaged a career-high 30.7 points per game in the playoffs. On July 14, 2010, the Nuggets bolstered their frontcourt depth by signing Al Harrington. During the 2010 off-season, Masai Ujiri replaced Mark Warkentien as the General Manager, while Josh Kroenke was named team president. Stan Kroenke bought full ownership in the then-St. Louis Rams of the NFL in 2010. Since the NFL does not allow its owners to hold majority control of major-league teams in other NFL cities, Kroenke turned over day-to-day control of the Nuggets and Avalanche to Josh Kroenke toward the end of 2010, and transferred his controlling interest in both teams to his wife in 2015. 2011–2012: The departure of Carmelo Anthony On February 22, 2011, after months of speculation that he wanted to leave the Nuggets, Carmelo Anthony